food for making pony grow????????

[mcavity]

hi i have just bought a 3yr old pony, is in good condition his bum is up, he is about 13.2/3.
what youngstock feed do you recommend??
he is turned out 24/7 at the mo with ok grass and plenty of hay??

 

[YorkshireLass]

Absolutely the last thing you want to do is 'make him grow'

If you attemt to force him to grow faster than natural, he will run the risk of skeletal deformities such as wobblers, kissing spines etc as a result of mineral inbalance.

He will also run the risk of damaging his joints. This is why you need to keep the weight off youngsters. If they are carrying extra weight the joints take a hammering and you could end up with a horse that can never be worked.

Hay and grass will do fine. Add a stud balancer to make sure he gets all his vitamins and minerals. If he drops weight, a stud mix or cubes will see him well.

 

[mcavity]

i didnt mean i want to force him to grow, just a good feed to help youngesters grow into strong, healthy horses??

 

[now_loves_mares]

I'm not sure if your pony is now too old, but when I bought my foal she had swollen stifles. Vet worried about OCD so we had x-rays done and they were fine, but he recommended Dodson and Horrell Suregrow to ensure she got optimal nutrition for her growth. Their website might help?

To be fair, she is quite wee, but her dam seems to throw small foals, and she was the first foal. But she looks amazing, really strong and mature, and no problems with her limbs.

 

[fricker]

Often depends on the breed as to how susceptible they may or may not be to wobblers, etc.
Just a good quality coarse mix (and not much of it) should be fine.

 

[zoesophie]

I was told when I was younger that I would grow up big and strong if I stood on the muck heap - give that a go