Conference noted::equitation

Every single large farm that I have ever gone to or inquired about
what they feed has been the same.  Crimped oats.  Plain or sweet.
Pretty boring, huh?   They also feed a good hay.  Timothy/grass, timothy/
alfalfa.  I believe one farm added Pennwood Supreme to some babies feed.

There is a weanling at my barn now on some "complete" feed (might be Equine
Jr) and you don't feed hay with it.  Poor guy, he is chewing everything in
sight.  

I've been feeding oats for the past 5 years and been very pleased with the
results.

Karen
 

    
    Oats:  I have just heard alot of bad thing about oats.
    
    1.  Offers no nutritional value
    2.  Makes young horses hyper
    3.  Is only good as filler
    
    They do suggust oats for older horses who need more energy, or needs
    more food in their bucket.  
    
    I guess I'll go search the web and see if I can find anything on oats.
    
    Louisa

If Foalac is anything like Calf Manna (maybe someone else can chime in here) I
don't think it can hurt him. Especially if it is not his only feed - but is
being given to him as a supplement.

We used to feed a little "box" of Calf Manna (pink pellets - smells like
licorice) to adult horses as a supplement - it helped fatten them up and make
their coats shiny.

Ask the vet - but I think keeping it simple is best. What ever you switch him
too - do it gradually - He will be under alot of stress when you wean him - you
don't want to add to the problem by changing food on him too. That could be a
formula for his first big tummy ache - or he goes off his feed and loses weight
during a time you want him to be gaining.

Your vet should have some good advice.

	Good Luck,
		JoAnne

p.s. Mary has shown me some pictures of him and he is REALLY a  C U T I E!!!! If
I wasn't about to foal myself (2 legged variety) - I'd be thinking about buying
a baby to work on too ;-)

Wow, I'm really surprised!

No nutritional value?

My friend has a yearling that had surgery on her right rear leg
and is on stall rest and can only be handwalked.  All she eats
is oats and hay and she is very, very good for being in since
June.

When you go to farms out West they crimp their own oats and then
feed them.  

I'll check some of my articles for backup information.


Karen

    Lou, 
    
    I've never heard those thinga about oats, especially the hyper part.
    Sweet feed *does* make horses hyper because of all the moleasses in it.
    A sugar-high effect. SO, avoid that if your horse has a tendency to be
    hot.
    
    Hay has a lot of nutritional value. If it provides energy for older
    horses, why wouldn't it provide energy for foals? Doesn't make sense to
    me. 
    
    As to the hay, I'd use a good early cut grass hay or a grass & clover
    mix. Early cut grass hay can test 16% to 18%. We've got about 10 tons
    of orchard grass hay in the barn right now that tests about 16%. Late
    cut grass hay will test much lower(10% - 12%).
    
    I don't like alfalfa in horse hay at *all*. It's too rich to be fed
    straight. It makes too much chaffy dust which makes it useless (IMHO)
    in mixes.
    
    Clover mixes are hard to find out here in the west. Alfalfa grows
    better in the dry lands which is most of the west. So, people out here
    who don't like alfalfa in horse hay use hay of the type we've got. I
    know  a couple breeding farms where they buy several tractor trailer
    loads of early cut grass hay every year. That's what they feed to their
    foals.
    
    Good luck.
    John

    Hi Lou,
    
    My vet recommended a vitamin supplement for my foal for the first
    year. (I'll be darned if I can remember what it was), and as much
    good quality grass hay as the foal wants.
    
    As far as grain, he recommended not going over 14% protein because
    the bones actually grow too fast and the muscles and ligaments 
    don't keep up. I have seen many a horse with club feet caused by
    overfeeding as a foal.
    
    Just my two cents,
    Have fun and enjoy!
    Tina
    
    
    
    
    

I think the last note was referring to epiphysitis.  A very expensive
lesson in overfeeding or horses with more rapid bone growth than tendon growth.

Actually, we had a filly that got a (could be wrong but I think) "protein bump"
in the middle of her forehead from too much protein.  We were feeding her the same amount all the
others colts had been eating prior to her. Baby girls usually aren't as active as colts
and we think that is what happened.  It made an otherwise very attractive filly have an 
unattractive head through no fault of her own!

To be safe with a baby, less weight is definitely better on all those joints, tendons, etc.

Karen