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Discussion on Feed Question
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Member:
scrupi1
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Posted on Monday, Sep 15, 2008 - 5:53 am:
I have read the feeding/nutrition articles several times and it seems like it should be simple to have fat healthy horses but I am having a hard time getting my horses body conditions to what they should be. We just bought two weanlings 2 weeks ago, have been feeding grass hay (coastal bermuda) free choice and safechoice, the 350lb colt gets 2# of safechoice twice a day and the 450lb colt gets 2.5# twice a day. The smaller weanlings ribs are so clear and I would give him a 2 on the body condition scale while I would give the larger weanling a score of a 3.
I also have 2, 6 year olds and a 2 year old. The gelding weights 1,100lbs and is in moderate work. We really can not feed more than twice a day, how can I give him the 11 lbs he needs if you should only give 4.5lbs of concentrate per meal? I also feed beet pulp without molasses to supplement their diet, is the weight of the beet pulp excluded becuase it is not a concentrate?
We just moved here and do not have as much of the land fenced in as we will in the future so the amount of pasture they are on is not adequate. All of the horses are on a regular worming program and the older 3 have all had their teeth floated this year. I was thinking about adding alfalfa cubes to everyones diet. Because the horses are already getting grass hay, can I give 100% alfalfa cubes or should it be a mix of alfalfa and grass? I will do whatever I need to help these horses get to the body condition they should be at. Any feedback would be wonderful. Thank you!
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Member:
paardex
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 3:22 am:
Hi Susanne, Some time ago I asked a similar question[read all the articles but got a bit confused] But as I understood [and now have fed with good results for about half a year] you should limit the GRAIN per feeding, because of the starches, the complete feeds you can up more per feeding but beet pulp and alphalphapellets don't count. For grown horses you can even give alphalpha pellets at lib. The weanlings are an exception on the alphalparule, they can't eat more than a certain percentage[look at the growing foal article.
I should add though, having bred foals now for a long time, it takes time to get them in a good condition, most of the thin ones have worms [please read the articles and be VERY strict about that] and go slow with them or you will risk bonegrowth problems,better have a to thin foal then one who got to much to fast believe me.
The adult horses I would try to feed oil, I tried it on a working dressage horse with problems and it worked very well! Lots of calories and easy to distribute in two feedings.
Hope this helps
Jos
PS I would split this post in a weanlings and adult section if you want to talk about it more, it is very different feeding and we might all get confused and throw advices mixed together.
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 8:10 am:
Susanne,
I found HA years ago when we bought what we thought was a yearling,(she was more like 6 months) she was the skinniest horse I'd ever saw who was still alive. I kept hay in front of her all the time, a mixture of grass and alfalfa hay, (probably 30% alfalfa as that is what I fed most of the time) gave her some kind of sweet feed and added corn oil.
If I were doing that now, I would not give the sweet feed, but would give the SafeChoice like you are feeding now. Just add the oil, following DrO's advice in the many articles on here on feeding.
You do want to take it slow with the weight gain with the weanlings there. I talked to a rep about the SafeChoice one time, and you can feed that pretty heavy without any concern he said. If you could feed 3 or 4 times a day, following the amounts suggested on the bag divided into number of feedings, that would be the best.
If you can't feed more often, don't try to give huge amounts of any type of grain at one time, but up the amount of oil in each feeding. I agree with Jos the oil more for the adults, but a small amount won't hurt the weanlings. I'd rather a horse be a tad thin, that too heavy. It seems easier to put weight on than take it off!
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 9:11 am:
Hello Susanne,
I really think it is unlikely your foal is a body condition of 2. By condition 4 you can see all the ribs and you have to evaluate other changes. If you will post good photos we would be glad to comment.
The recommendation of 4.5 lbs per feeding per 1000 lbs of horse applies to grains and other starchy feeds to prevent overloading the cecum with sugar. Nonstarchy feeds don't have to comply with this rule. For help and suggestions on feeding difficult keepers review Diseases of Horses » Colic, Diarrhea, GI Tract » Weight Loss in Horses » Overview of Chronic Weight Loss.
DrO
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Member:
scrupi1
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 6:30 pm:
Thank you all for your advice. I reread the body condition scoring and you are right Dr. O, I should not have rated the colt a 2, he is more 3 or 4 and the other colt is probably a 4. These are my first babies raised at home so I am a little nervous. This website is wonderful for a first time farm owner and all of your comments are very much appreciated. I will try to attach a sideview of the colts, the smaller colt is going on 4 months and the larger with the white stockings is going on 5 months of age. Thank you all again, your comments really helped clarify things! Susanne
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Member:
scrupi1
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 6:31 pm:
The older 5 month old colt:
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Member:
juliem
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2008 - 11:30 pm:
Well, they say the camera adds a few pounds, but those weanlings look just fine to me. Better to keep them a bit ribby and avoid tendon issues that come with over feeding. They are definitely not in poor condition. I like the way they look. Are they active and bright eyed?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Wednesday, Sep 17, 2008 - 9:05 am:
I would have to say they are looking closer to a 5 than a 4 but photos can be misleading. They look like they are in good condition to me also.
DrO
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Member:
scrupi1
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Posted on Tuesday, Sep 30, 2008 - 6:10 am:
Thanks for your feedback, I have continued with the feeding recommendations and the smaller weanling is starting to put on a bit of weight. I think the transition from being weaned sressed them but they both seem to be striving now, although they have been bright eyed and energetic throughout the process. Thanks again for your feedback and the clarification on judging body condition!
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