is she growing??????

[Yorkshire dumpling]

i have a 19 month old filly and i am just wondering if anyone knows if she will grow through winter>??
she's 14.3 and a bit atm and she is expected to make between 15.2 and 16.2. where i keep her a few ppl have said she will keep growing through winter but other people have said she will stop growing and use all energy keeping warm ext? which is right? do youngsters grow in winter or just use energy to stay warm??? any ideas? might sound stupid question lol xx

 

[Kenzo]

The growth rate does slow down once they hit 12 month and so forth but it certainly doesn't stop, she continue to grow very slowly now in height until she's around 4, although some do continue to grow until they are 6 sometimes 7, depending on the size and breed.

They use energy to keep warm yes but not energy to grow, growing is a natural process, it doesn't stop just because it's cold.

 

[Wildspirit]

I'm no expert but from what I know growth is measured over a period of time and so isnt seasonal, I think it goes:

Energy is first given to bone growth then to muscle growth then to fat deposition so as long as shes got a warm bed and or rug where necessary (which i dont doubt she has) she'll still be growing gradually if maybe at a bit of a reduced rate as the energy just has to stretch a little bit further as long as she isnt dropping weight horribly or piling on the pounds shes probably fine,

I'm not tiptop on nutrition and I dont know what you're feeding atm but I would be more worried about her nutrition and whether shes getting the right nutrients etc to help her grow rather than whether she is growing at all, you might want to just double check whether you need to give her a bit more haylage or something as shes that bit younger to help keep her balanced over the cold snap

 

[Yorkshire dumpling]

thanks i no it sounded like a really dense question lol

her diet is ok she gets what she needs she has hay in field all day atm because no grass (under about 8 inches of snow!) and she has 2 feeds a day along with salt and mineral lick, and yes she is rugged up ect. she gets treated better than i do lol xx

 

[Dancing Queen]

growth is due to protein intake, however becareful not to over feed protein.
She will keep growing until roughly 4/5 yrs old. Sugars are generally converted and used for energy and warmth.

 

[CBFan]

In answer to your question, she will continue to grow until she is 6 or 7 whatever the time of year... she may slow down when natural nutrition (i.e from the grass) is limited and In my experience she will have spurts of growth in spring and Autumn where she may suddenly put on an inch or two out of nowhere! My boy, who was 3 in October suddenly shot up again before his birthday...