How to know if your foal is fat?

[MCP030405]

Trying to get the right balance of feeding this little lady!
Shes 3/4 Cob 1/4 Shire and to make 15hh minumum, she was at 12.3 at 7 months when last measured a few weeks ago.
At the moment she's on grass all day, has 2 handfuls of Stud mix and 1 handful of chaff in the morning and at night, hay net at night.
She seems a bit round to me but I don't know if that's because i'm comparing her to our PRE filly who is naturally a lot slimmer and holds herself higher. She's fed 4 handfuls of stud mix with the 1 handful of chaff twice a day so I feel like i'm starving the fat one haha!

I don't know if i'm over feeding or if she's an okay size?
Should I put her on a stud balancer instead of a stud mix and only do a handful or two of that instead?

 

[AmyMay]

She’s certainly not fat.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

She looks fine to me.

 

[nikicb]

What a lovely face she has! Please keep us updated on her progress, she's gorgeous.

 

[Cortez]

You should be able to easily feel her ribs and hip bones but not see them at this stage. I like to see a rib on yearlings, which yours nearly is, so to me she is a teeny bit rotund for going into spring.

 

[TGM]

She doesn't look fat at the moment but I wouldn't want her to put on much more. A stud balancer would be a better choice for her than stud mix, as the balancer concentrates nutrients in a smaller amount of feed with less calories than a stud mix.

 

[MCP030405]

She doesn't look fat at the moment but I wouldn't want her to put on much more. A stud balancer would be a better choice for her than stud mix, as the balancer concentrates nutrients in a smaller amount of feed with less calories than a stud mix.

That's exactly what I was thinking, it feels evil to not feed her with the rest. I only reduced her feed about 10 days ago, when I upped the other to 4 handfuls, so it may be not pulling through yet, but I'll get some balancer instead now and she can be on that

 

[MCP030405]

You should be able to easily feel her ribs and hip bones but not see them at this stage. I like to see a rib on yearlings, which yours nearly is, so to me she is a teeny bit rotund for going into spring.

Would you reduce to 1 handful of stud mix then? Or switch to balancer and do a handful? I agree I don't want her to be too chunky going into spring, 14 weeks left till she'll be out overnight!

 

[Cortez]

Would you reduce to 1 handful of stud mix then? Or switch to balancer and do a handful? I agree I don't want her to be too chunky going into spring, 14 weeks left till she'll be out overnight!

Try the balancer option and see how she goes? It's far more dangerous to overfeed youngstock than to run them light.

 

[MCP030405]

What a lovely face she has! Please keep us updated on her progress, she's gorgeous.

She is the sweetest little girl. We got her from a farm and she was feral but was hilariously easy to bribe into love. Now she demands attention and runs up to us in the field

 

[MCP030405]

Try the balancer option and see how she goes? It's far more dangerous to overfeed youngstock than to run them light.

Ordered from my local feed shop for collection at the weekend! I'll reduce her to a handful as well, it feels like trial and error with these babies, I Seem to have cracked the Andalusian, but not the cob