feed for colt

K

kylee86

Well-Known Member
Joined
11 January 2012
Messages
262
Visit site
Hi i have an 9 month old colt. when i bought him he had a bad worm infestation and got pulled from his mum when he arrived. i have had him 10 weeks now. been feeding him spillers stud and youngstock mix and molichop twice aday he has 3 big hand fulls of the mix and 2 big hand fulls chop morning and night. he also has 1 large haynet in the daytime that is hung it his field and another large net at night in his stable. he is still looking very ribby you cant actually see his ribs because hes so hairy but i can feel them under his coat. when the vet came out 4 weeks ago she said he was slightly underweight so this is when i added the morning feed to his diet. when would you expect to see improvment to his weight. he is a cob stands around 13.3 and weighs 275. (done with tape)
 
You can add some oil to his feed as the cheaper option. This is what I feed.

If not Top Spec Stud Balancer has good reviews.

I'd wait till April for the grass to come through - its not good for a foal to be over weight. I have always been told that it good to be able to feel a foals ribs.
 
Like all youngsters, what with the little growth spurts he's probably experiencing, his condition will most likely keep fluctuating slightly anyway. If you are concerned that he needs a little more weight though, you could try looking for a stud feed which contains a little more digestible energy. Steer clear of starchy, sugary ones though, as these have been known to induce unnatural growth spurts. I fully agree that an oil based energy source is far far better.
 
Yes, I also feed a good slug of vegetable or sunflower oil, and I would be giving him as much hay as he will eat. When the grass comes through, he will pick up.
 
I would pop this in Breeding.

But my immediate thoughts are - start weighing his feeds (rather than handfulls) so you know exactly how much he's getting. In addition I would drop the mollichop (no good for youngsters) and think about adding sugar beet instead.

I'm assuming that he has plenty of hay left at the end of the day/night - if not make sure you increase it so that he does.

Bottom line is that he sounds underfed - so increasing his feed in line with the daily recommendations should help, and you should notice a difference within a fortnight I would say. It may help to split the overall ration in to three meals a say.
 
thankyou for all your feed back since last posting my thread i have been able to move him fields so he has a nice big field with grass he is only coming in now 3 nights aweek and theres always hay left over in the morning. i have reduced his feed now down to 1 bucket feed as he seems to be doing pretty good on the grass would like to no peoples opinions regarding his weight so heres a pic taken 1week ago
022.jpg

014.jpg

020-1.jpg

019.jpg
 
amymay said:
Why have you reduced his food, and are you haying in the field?
Click to expand...

he isnt having hay at the min in field as i have put it out but there not eating it as theres loads of grazing. his feed has been reduced as the vet said the spillers mix instructions guide seemed to much for colt his age and suggest giving him 1 lot but twice aday. if that makes sense
 
Ah, have just seen your other post in Breeding, with better pictures.

He's looking much better, and can see why you've cut the hard feed.

Well done.
 
kylee86 said:
he isnt having hay at the min in field as i have put it out but there not eating it as theres loads of grazing. his feed has been reduced as the vet said the spillers mix instructions guide seemed to much for colt his age and suggest giving him 1 lot but twice aday. if that makes sense
Click to expand...

All good then.

Look forward to your updates on him. He looks like a sweetie.:D
 
amymay said:
All good then.

Look forward to your updates on him. He looks like a sweetie.:D
Click to expand...

hes very good sweet natured boy. be glad when his mane grows back he was lice infested when he arrived as well so decided to chop it off to treat properly as louse treatment wasnt realy getting through his mane. been 1 thing after another with him. im hoping now all treatments are done i can just enjoy him. at the min we are working on him being seperated from his field mate i have been taking him to the yard on his own for an hour a day and each day he stresses less and less. so thats good. nxt step in treatment is waiting for him to drop to get him snipped. seems a shame as he isnt coltish in any way but the farm over the next field has a lot of old mares and dont wnt to risk him getting out and jumping on one. thanksagain for replys
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top