# Feeding my new weanling!



## newdonkeymom (Apr 27, 2010)

This is my first post, as I am not only a new donkey mom, but also new to the forum. We just got our little guy, a miniature jack, this past weekend. For now I have been feeding him 1 cup plain soaked beet pulp morning and night. He also gets a small amount of a general multivitamin designed for our region.

My question: Should I continue this or switch him to a growth formula grain? He is 6 months old. If so, how much.

Also, has anyone had success raising babies on plain beet pulp and vitamins? I currently feed this diet plan to my big guys and it works great for us.

Thank you!!!


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## minimule (Apr 28, 2010)

Welcome to the World of Longears and the forum!

This is on top of a good quality grass hay right?

Donkeys don't need a lot of rich protein. That's what builds up thos cresty necks and makes fat bubbles on their backs/rumps. They do need a good long stem grass/hay of some kind.

My donks get a small amount of alfalfa hay with their grass hay. Kilroy being a breeding jack gets 2 cups of Kent Pro 2x a day on top of his forage. He also stresses about the big mule and jenny here so he wears him self thin all the time.

A good website is www.lovelongears.com. It's the ADMS website and they have a lot of information posted there.


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## CloudNine (Apr 29, 2010)

Welcome again! I would choose something a bit lighter. Like minimule said, donkeys gain weight too easily! Mine gets coastal all year round, but this winter was harsher than usual, and we supplemented with sudan; he loved it! Right now Owen just gets a small amount of all-stock grain. He's not working right now ( MY fault!




) He shares hay with a horse, and since the grass is coming in they graze on that most of the day. Yours should be fine if you slowy wean him off, and slowly graduate on to whatever you choose. I would feed a supple grain as a base, and then maybe add in a little beet pulp; if you think it helps him, I'd mix!

Good luck!


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## krissy3 (May 4, 2010)

I agree less is more on the grains...however I firmly believe in Vitamins , minerals , and selinium.the stemmy grass is a must , and mine seems to need a bit of straw from time to time. He also eats pine tree branches. But a small amount of the beet pulp witrh vitamins and minerals, with a good quality (not rich, but nice hay) and that should be a good base line , then add whatever you need as needed. I also like the hymalian salt blocks, they are full of natural minerals , and will keep them from eating dirt , or digging up roots.


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## PaintedPromiseRanch (May 19, 2010)

i feed my donks a combination of rye and bermuda grass hay, which i mix myself as it does not come in a mix without alfalfa... and add mare and foal for my soon-to-deliver jennets and my moms and babies. when the foals are weaned they stay on the extra supplement for a while to make sure they are doing well...

and of course psyllium and a mineral block


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