What do you feed your youngsters?

elliegirl12

elliegirl12

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My yearling being nearly a year and half now!! is already 15.1hh and is consistantly showing his ribs he is moving fields to where cows have just been grazing it, so going there for four months over the winter and hopefully should do quite well on it!

He is getting two feeds at the moment being:
Scoop of hifi original
1/4 scoop of barely rings
1/2scoop of youngstock pellets
and garlic granules

Just wondering not having a youngster before, this is what i have been advised!! but i had someone telling me i should put him on calm and condition?

Just wondering what other people feed there young stock really?
 
I'm just feeding micronised barley, sugar beet and plain, unmollassed chaff. He's looking fine on it - not ribby and well conditioned.

His coat's a bit ratty but I think that's a combination of winter fluff and being savaged by his field mate every now and then (it's all mutual!)
 
He keeps having growth spurts this was him today:

thecolteheheeh.jpg


Lost a bit of weight again....
 
This may sound harsh but I personally think he looks poor especially with winter looming. He looks quite big and rangey so has obviously been using any nutrition on growing rather than covering himself. I feed my youngsters Saracen Level Grow. I think it's important that they receive the higher nutritional levels required for their development, bone development etc. I would ring up either Baileys, Saracen and ask them what they recommend. I do not think that 1/2 scoop of youngstock cubes is enough for a horse his size. I wouldn't feed him Calm and Condition as it's not a diet designed for youngstock. Also remember there will not be any goodness in the grass even if there is a fair bit of it and he will still need hard feed and hay to supplement this. I do not intend for this to come across in a horrible way so please do not take it that way :)
 
Ummm, I know everyone likes to see their horses "well", but I have always been happy to see a rib on yearlings - means they're growing, not laying down fat. With so many horses nowadays being basically pig fat I think people have become used to seeing fat horses as "normal". Oh, and I used to run a largish studfarm BTW.
 
Cortez said:
Ummm, I know everyone likes to see their horses "well", but I have always been happy to see a rib on yearlings - means they're growing, not laying down fat. With so many horses nowadays being basically pig fat I think people have become used to seeing fat horses as "normal". Oh, and I used to run a largish studfarm BTW.
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I certainly do not have fat horses - yet to see a fat racehorse! I also like to be able to see a rib or two on the youngsters. But I personally feel that this horse doesn't have enough covering on it going into winter. Hence I commented on it's weight.
 
My yearling has only just started on hard feed the past 2 weeks, he has one feed per day - happy hoof - about 3 handfuls and sugar beet. He looks very well, prob a bit fat :o but going into winter its not a bad thing.
There all still finishing the grazing - a few patched of long grass as soon as its finished i will be feeding hay. :)
 
I know he looks poor he looked a lot worse however when i got him! I am worried about feeding him lots of protein he has just had another growing spurt i was thinking off sugarbeet i will give saracen a ring and see what solutions they xcome up with :) x
 
Our 3yo was 8 months when we got him. He had Baileys stud balancer and in the winter dengie and speedie beet added to this with ad lib haylage. The only change in his diet now is that he has Baileys low cal balancer instead of stud balancer, then he has a scoop of dengie mollasses free and lots and lots of good grass. When the grass runs out/looks poor then he will have ad lib haylage and again have speedie beet in both feeds. I think the forrage is quite important. He has never had "hard feed" as such and looks well covered but not overweight as vet has advised he is fast growing and needs to stay on the leaner side for now. He has always done well on this very simple diet.
 
My other 2 horses i have had my mare since a 3year she has been pretty straightfoward with her feeding and been on a simple diet hence why i wanted to do a simple diet for my colt! but not had a yearling before so can only go off from some advice very hard though everyone has different opinions :o
 
I was a bit worried about my young chap too, he is a two year old but was looking a little ribby he shares grazing with my piggy 8 year old gelding. So I separate them to feed. He has also had the pickings of a sectioned off paddock which was partly re-seeded in the spring. He was only getting a small feed a day through the summer but have now upped it to two a day consisting of roughage - Alfa-A, Readi-Grass and Speedi Beet, with a little brewers yeast and biotin. He is also getting a bit of hay morning and night. Also now lightly rugged at night. They live out 24/7. I have also just wormed, and plan to do a worm count if he continues to look ribby. This was him last month.

4BuckarouxSept2011two.jpg
 
I think yours looks spot on, LazyS, and lovely too!
I would have to say that OP's looks a little poor IMO as we are going into winter, but youngsters do have a habit of looking a little ribby when growing :)
 
With the exception of weanlings - and 3 year olds being backed, all my youngsters get the same - as much very good haylage as they will eat - and a mineral block! If they're not looking good on that, then I look for a reason (firstly, in the mouth - the answer is usually there!)

The weanlings get a teensy bit of Stud Balancer to get them through their first winter and while they're adjusting to no Mum's milk - and the 3 year olds starting work get a small quantity of Bailey's No. 4 if they look like they need it!

Over-feeding concentrates to youngsters causes more problems than I want to deal with!
 
JG can ask what sort of mineral block you use and if this supplies all their vits and minerals? I only feed the balancer for this not for weight gain or anything and a mineral block sounds cheaper! Also how do you know they are getting enough? Sorry if that is a numpty question:)
 
Oh and forgot a say I don't feel your feeding enough, all mine get a scoop off stud nuts, alfa a and sugar beet twice a day ( tb types) and look just right. Feel ribs easy but not see them. Vet comments every time he's out about their weight being just right and it's nice not to see over weight foals/youngsters
 
sareeskinner said:
I think yours looks spot on, LazyS, and lovely too!
I would have to say that OP's looks a little poor IMO as we are going into winter, but youngsters do have a habit of looking a little ribby when growing :)
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Thank you - like the pun 'spot on' he has got a few spots here and there, but not many.

Worming: I was going to do a worm count first but working full time and the failing daylight it was easier to worm first then check out later if it didn't seem to work. I had trouble with his dam and worms when he was at foot. I had done a worm count on her before the problem began and it seemed fine - I had to get the vet to check her out as she dropped loads of weight - and I was amazed at the quantity of wormer I was advised to give her!! So I am always careful to ensure they are all wormed correctly now. Lesson learned!
 
I have wormed him and done a worm count so i can rule that out, he is being rugged only a lightweight just too keep rain off his back! I will up his stud nuts i think and maybe start him on sugarbeet? When i bought him 3months back he got weaned from his mother 2months was with her until a year old!, but was only being given hayledge and noo feed!
 
Assuming he has been wormed , I would have his teeth checked and make sure he has ad lib hay or haylage, I would be feeding the full recommended amount of Mare and Youngstock until he has a good covering, then cut it back and feed to maintain condition.
He is very weak behind, I wonder if he needs Bowen treatment?
 
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elliegirl12 said:
He keeps having growth spurts this was him today:

thecolteheheeh.jpg


Lost a bit of weight again....
Click to expand...

Firsty he looks a lovely type but agree with you and others that he looks poor and think you are right to be concerned but not overly so yet. :)

What did you worm him with? Bare in mind no wormer yet exists to be 100% effective against all species so it's important to know which chemicals treats which species and rotate wormers so that all species can be treated regularly and effectively.

Important things to know.

Be wary of negative egg counts, we have had so many false negative results in the past that we no longer have faith in them. For a more realistic snapshot of level of burden, multiple samples should be taken in the course of a week from multiple dung piles. Of course a high count will always etsablish that there is a burden but a low or negative count isn't always reliable so should never be used to rule out the possibility of an existing burden.

In addition encysted worm burdens won't show up in egg counts. :( and neither will a tape worm burden. It won't tell you the level of burden in immature non reproductive round worm either and these can be in their hundreds causing dammage before they start producing eggs that will show up in a dung sample.

Youngstock are very prone to worm infestation more so than mature horses as adult horses do develop natural resistance. Natural resistance to roundworm increases after 18 months of age redworm encysted worm burden is more probalmatic in horses up to five years of age.

High burden is scarily life threatening and many foals, weanlings and youngstock are lost to round worm burden each year not through neglect of their owners who often worm regularly but sadly through failure to understand that roundworm resistance to ivermectin is on the increase. :( Roundworm not only has an increasing high resistance to Ivermectin but resistance to Moxidectin (Equest) is now well and truly established

Encysted worm burden in youngstock under five years of age also claims many lives each year :( Ivermectin remains effective at controlling redworm the problem often starts when they start to encyst during the first winter so the use of panacur five day gaurd or equest for youngstock over 12 months should be included in the worming program. We prefer to use Panacur five day guard.

It has also been noted that equest often only remains effective for eight weeks in youngstock due to the smaller mass of fat tissue than it does in adult horses (12 weeks)

If he were mine I would definitely blood test then discuss the results with your vet. If alls well then worms may not be an issue and you will have peace of mind that he is just going through a straggly growth spurt.

If all is not well give him a five day treatment of panacur guard followed by a double dose of strongid P in four weeks time.

Feeding. Please be wary of mixes, sugarbeat and barley rings these aren't suitable feeds for a youngster. If your going to feed hard feed specifically designed for youngstock choose a pellet as opposed to a mix as it's much more easily digested. Sugars and starches can cause ulcers in the immature digestive system of a young horse, they may have intolerance to starch or sugar so may worsen the situation. Opt instead for a high protein diet such as Alpha A and Dodson & Horrel Sure grow 1,4 kgs can be fed daily to help him regain condition. Adlib hay or haylage at this time of the year is very important as the richness fo grass content is much lower now at this time of year.

Contrary to many's beliefs recent studies have shown that underweight/lightweight youngstock are more prone to OCD and bone development related problems than youngstock that are well covered.

Turning him onto new grazing where cows have been grazing will really help reduce further worm reinfestation if there is an underlying problem.

Keep him warm, if he doesn't have shelter then a heavier rug will be advantageous. Using energy to keep warm will drain on his resources and not having the excess covering is detrimental at the moment whilst his condition is poor.

Youngsters are all very different, some struggle, some don't, what works for one won't always work for another.

Good luck and hope he picks up :)
 
elliegirl12 said:
He had his teeth checked, and has had the once over from the vet, he is eating absolutley fine,

Sorry i have never heard off bowen treatment? what is it?
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The Bowen treatment is a type of physiotherapy, very mild but it sorts out any problems due to mis-alignement of skeleton and / or muscular development. I mention it because Lynn Crowley uses it on young animals, from the foal stage to adults.
 
My yearling is leaner than I'd like. He used to be kept stabled with a few hours turnout on bare paddocks. He had three haynets and hard food. Now I have him, he's out 24/7 on good grass and he wont eat his hard food. I've tried different types (including what he ate happily before) and he's just not interested - he wants grass! There is a mineral block in the field and I have seen him licking it.

I've been rugging him as the weather is turning and I don't want him using his calories keeping warm. He was wormed just before he came to me and I'm going to worm him again next week. He's also been de-loused and bathed (warm day) as he was very pongy, poor chap.
 
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