How to feed your Growing Foal so you can give him the best chance to develop into a healthy horse with out the nutritional challenges that could cripple him

Life isn’t always fair.

So what can you do to tip the scales for your young growing foal?

First off let me make sure we are all on the same page.

A growing horse is a weanling at 4 months to six months, a yearling at twelve months, a long yearling at eighteen months and a two year old at 24 months. A young horse has greater nutritional demands then adult horses because of the dynamic growing process that is going on in their bodies.

It is important that the growing foal has a consistent diet without a lot of variation of grain and forage quality and amount fed. Making sure the growing horse has a smooth curve of growth gives greater bone strength. It is better for the young horse to have a moderate growth rate then a fast growth rate since this will reduce their incidence to bone problems (Developmental Orthopedic Disease).

In growing foals bone is laid down first as this provides the framework (skeleton) on which all else develops. Muscle is laid down in the first twenty four months.

Bone grows by the elongation of each end of the long bones in as area known as the growth plate. Here cartilage is laid down and then subsequently converted to bone. It is in this conversion that many horses develop bone diseases.

An enormous amount of nutrients are required for growth in this way as energy to fuel the process, and protein and minerals to make the conversion.

Separate feeding programs are necessary to meet the nutritional requirements of nursing foals, weanlings, yearlings, long yearlings and two year olds until they reach 90% of their mature weight.

The Nursing Foal

The mares milk plus the pasture, hay and concentrates (grain) mix being fed the mare, which most foals will start nibbling by a couple of months of age is sufficient to meet the foal’s three months of life as long as he mare is producing a normal amount of milk. This is indicated by a thin foal.

Creep feed is recommended at three months old. After the third month of lactation, the mare’s milk production declines while the foal’s nutritional needs continue to increase. The difference between the nutrients received from the mild and forage, and those needed, should be provided by feeding creep feed. Feed .5 to .75 lbs/100 lbs. body weight a day of a creep feed consisting entirely of concentrates (grain). The creep feed should follow the nutrient requirements:

• Crude protein 16%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) in Mcal/lb3.3 – 3.8
   
• Calcium %.9%
   
• Phosphorus%.6%
   
• Expected total feed eaten (lbs/100lbs body weight).5lbs. -.75lbs.
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily100% grain

Feed the creep feed mix in more than one feeding during the day instead of free choice. This will prevent excessive consumption by the young foal which can result in epiphysitis or enteroxemia.

Weanling Four to Six Months

The weanling should be fed 1 to 1.5 lbs per 100 lbs. of body weight daily of a concentrate mix (grain). He should also get a least 1 lb. per 100 lbs. of body weight daily of good quality forage (hay). If this amount of forage (hay) is not being consumed, the quantity of concentrated (grain) available should be reduced until this amount of forage (hay) is consumed. The grain should meet the nutrient requirements below:

Weanling at four months –

• Crude protein14.5%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) in Mcal/lb2.9
   
• Calcium .8%
   
• Phosphorus.5%
   
• Expected total feed (% body weight/day)2.5%-3.5%
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily 30% hay & 70% grain

Weanling at six months –

• Crude protein14.5%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) in Mcal/lb2.9
   
• Calcium.7%
   
• Phosphorus.4%
   
• Expected total feed (% body weight/day)2.5%-3.5%
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily30% hay & 70% grain

Yearling at 12 months –

By twelve months of age the horses’ growth rate has slowed and there is a corresponding decrease in its nutritional requirements per lb. of body weight. Therefore the amount of grain fed to the yearling should be decreased to .5 to 1 lb/100 lbs. of body weight daily until 90% of mature weight is attained, at which time, it should be fed the same as the mature horse for maintenance or work. 

Nutrient requirements below:

• Crude protein12.5%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) Mcal/lb2.8
   
• Calcium.5%
   
• Phosphorus.3%
   
• Expected total feed eaten (%body weight/day)2% – 3%
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily40% hay & 60% grain

Long Yearling at 18 months –

Nutrient requirements below:

• Crude protein12%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) Mcal/lb2.65
   
• Calcium.4%
   
• Phosphorus.25%
   
• Expected total feed eaten (%body weight/day)2% - 2.75%
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily50% hay & 50% grain

Two year old 24 months –

Nutrient requirements below:

• Crude protein11%
   
• Digestible energy (DE) Mcal/lb2.5
   
• Calcium.35%
   
• Phosphorus.2%
   
• Expected total feed eaten (% body weight/day)2% - 2.5%
   
• Hay to grain ratio of total feed daily50% hay & 50% grain

Hay Types for Young Horses

There are two different kinds of hay that can be fed to young horses; legume hays (Lucerne) and grass hay.
Legume hay is almost always the preferred hay for young growing horses and lactating mares. This is because they have two to three times the protein and calcium of grass hays, as well as more soluble (non-fibrous) carbohydrates, beta-carotene and vitamin E.

Types of legumes are alfalfa, red clover, crimson clover, ladino clover, alsike clover, birdsfoot trefoil, lespedeza, cow peas and vetch.

Legumes are generally more costly, and in some parts of North America might be infested with poisonous blister beetles. Because of these two reasons some might feel safer feeding grass hays.

Grass hays are often less dusty than legume hay and their modest protein content makes them a better choice for mature horses not being used for breeding.

Types of grass hays are timothy, coastal bermuda, brome, orchard grass, blue grass, rye grass and canary grass. Timothy hay is the most widely grown hay in North America.

Alternative Hay Solutions

Hay can also be chopped, pressed into cubes and processed into pellets. Hay cubes and pellets come in a variety of sizes and textures, from soft and crumbly to quite hard. They can be all alfalfa; all grass hay, a mixture of the two, or even hay mixed with other products such as ground corn, oats, etc.

Grains for Young Growing Foals

Grains should be fed at least two times a day. If the amount of grain fed at one time is more than 8 lbs. (3.5 kg), increase the frequency of feeding to three times per day at approximately eight hour intervals, but maintain the same total daily intake.

As most of us know, the intake of an excess quantity of any type of grain can result in dire consequences, including life threatening colic, founder and in young horse developmental bone diseases.

Feeding grain to young horses is a good way of supplementing their nutrient demands beyond what their hay provides.

Oats is one of the safest grains, containing the lowest starch and highest fiber content of them all. Oats have 50% starch in dry matter and 2% sugar in dry matter.

Oats have a relatively soft kernel, which most horses have no difficulty chewing and digesting them. Oats can be fed clipped, crimped or whole.

Corn is a hull-less grain, however, it is very high in starch. Fiber makes up only 2.2% of its composition, and its digestible energy (DE) value is more than twice that of oats. This means it does not have the safety margin that oats have and it must be fed with caution and in relatively small quantities. Corn has 70% starch in dry matter and 2% sugar in dry matter.

In order for corn to be digested well by the horse, corn usually needs to be processed by cracking (breaking each kernel into pieces) or flaking (flattening kernels with a roller).

Remember no single grain will provide all the nutrients a horse needs, even when fed in combination with quality hay. So adding a good vitamin mineral supplement is essential for growing horses.

Commercial grains come textured or pelleted. Textured feed is a mixture of grains with a touch of molasses. They are usually formulated with a mixture of grains (oats, corn, barley,etc), and generally supplemented with a mixture of vitamins and minerals appropriate to the type of horse it is designed for (performance horses, breeding stock or growing horses), a commercial grain provides what a single grain can’t.

Pelleted feeds can be all hay or pellets containing hay and grains, usually 10 to 25%. Pelleted feeds may be differentiated from each other by their crude fiber content, which is given on the feed tag. The lower the crude fiber content of the feed, the greater its energy content and the lower its roughage content. Pellets consisting entirely of roughage contain 27% or more crude fiber. Those containing primarily roughage with some cereal grain (oats, barley, and corn); contain 18% to 26% crude fiber. Grain by its self can contain less than 15% crude fiber.

Pelleted feeds consisting primarily or totally of hay may be fed without any additional hay.

Extruded feeds look like dry dog food and are made by the same process. Extruded feed is about half as dense as pelleted feeds or textured feeds made with the same ingredients. Because extruded feeds are less dense, you get less feed value per bag – often at the same price. 

You also have to be careful when switching your horse to extruded feed; because it is less dense you will feed more to maintain your horse’s weight. It is important to weigh your horses feed to get the correct amount to feed. Don’t rely on the coffee can method of measuring.

Balancing the Young Growing Foals Diet

A horses’ daily diet needs to include many different nutrients in all the proper amounts of energy, protein, minerals, vitamins and amino acids.

Before you can balance your horses’ diet you need to know a few basic things:

• Is your young horses’ condition good, too fat or too thin? 
  Not sure then see what condition your horse is in by looking at our equine conditioning chart.
   
• What feeds are available to you?
   
• What is your young horses’ body weight? 
  You can use a measuring tape sold at feed stores.
  
  It’s worth knowing your young horses weight because you use it to determine how much feed your horse should be getting each day. The total weight of feed per day should be between 1.5% and 3.0% (look at section nutrient requirements and see what it says for expected total feed eaten % body weight/day) of your horses’ body weight. 

Using this rule, a 1,000 lb. thoroughbred (for example) would need between 15 lbs. and 30 lbs. of total feed (forage plus grain). This leeway allows some adjustability, for example, if our thoroughbred was overweight and only in light work, you would lean toward the lower end of the scale at 15 lbs a day. If on the other hand, he was in top physical condition and was competing in a high intensity sport like endurance racing or upper level combined driving he might require closer to 30 lbs. of feed a day to provide him with the energy he needs.

This rule does not apply to nursing foals that will only eat between .5% to .75% of their body weight in solid food while they are nursing.

Weanlings might consume up to 3.5% of their body weight per day.

In order use this rule effectively, you will have to weight your horses’ feed. Most people use the coffee can method of measuring grain (this horse gets half a scoop, this one a whole scoop). Weighing your horses’ feed does not have to be a daily routine. You can have different containers for each horse – weighing their feed so it fits a particular container or marking the container. You weigh the grain using a kitchen or bathroom scale.
 (Remember to subtract the weight of the empty container you use to scoop your grain into).

 To measure hay you can open a bale and on a bathroom scale weigh each flake of hay. Once you have all the weights you can get the average weight of a flake of hay. For example there are 12 flakes of hay in a bale and the weights are 3lbs, 3.5 lbs, 4 lbs, 5 lbs, 3 lbs, 3.5 lbs, 4 lbs, 5 lbs, 4.5 lbs, 5 lbs, 3.5 lbs, 4 lbs. = total weight of 48 lbs. To get average weight of one flake – 48 lbs divided by 12 flakes = 4 lbs. per flake.

Rules of Good Feeding according to life stage and condition of horse.

• Feed according to body weight of horse.
   
• Feed for work done, not for future Make sure they have access to fresh clean water at all times.
   
• Feed work the horse is about to do.
   
• Feed plenty of roughage for healthy gut function. Look at grain to hay ratio.
   
• Feed by weight not volume of feed; weigh grain and hay.
   
• Feed at the same time each day.
   
• Feed little and often so as not to overload the horses’ digestive system. Keep grains to 4 lbs. – 5 lbs. per feeding.
   
• Use high quality feeds. 
  Do not feed dusty or moldy feed.
   
• Make any changes to the diet gradually so as to reduce the risk of digestive upset like colic.
   
• Don’t exercise immediately after feeding.
   Allow 2 to 3 hours after feeding before working the horse and do not feed until one hour after working.

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