# Feeding Oats To Miniatures



## Little Wolf Ranch (Mar 12, 2010)

I didn't want to steal another persons thread so I thought I would do my own. Someone mentioned that they feed oats to their horses of all ages (that's what I got out of it, if I am wrong, please correct me) along with a mineral/vitamin supplement and I would like to know some more about this.

About how much do you have to feed per feeding (twice per day) do keep a horse at a steady weight? What about weanlings, yearlings, stallions breeding, pregnant mares, underweight horses, etc.?

Are there any adverse side effects from not feeding a true "feed" per say?

Thanks to anyone who can offer input!


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Mar 12, 2010)

Our first 2 minis were fed oats and grass hay. They had salt and mineral block along with free choice mineral and salt. Their weight was very good




. I feed moorglo now,but never had any trouble with feeding oats and hay.One was a 2 year old the other was 10.They each got a 1cup 2x a day,it doesn't sound like much but they're easy keepers with plenty of hay.They are the ones in my avatar or whatever you call it.


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## PondlakeMinis (Mar 12, 2010)

Hi, I feed oats to three of my minis that are allergic to molasses. one had been foundered when I got her so she is on oats also. they get 2 to 3 cups aday with beet pulp ( no molasses) and a mineral supplement which is in wisconsin called Equi shine. sorry, but I don't know what that would be similar to in other mineral supplement. A vet clinic in my area makes it and puts it out.

they keep weight on very well. I feed rolled oats. I use to do the steamed oats which they like much better but it is more expensive and the rolled oats are just as good for a lower price.

cyndia


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## ohmt (Mar 12, 2010)

My stallions do very well with oats and keep at a great weight when on them. Depending on the stallion I feed a cup-2 cups morning and night. I've never had a problem with it in over 10 years and my stallions seem to look and feel better when on oats than when they're on the expensive feed I buy at the feed stores. I like to feed my open mares oats as well. My preggos and younguns/oldies get different stuff to keep them healthy and growing. For the ones that don't need the extra, oats is perfect


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## Robin (Mar 16, 2010)

Hi- All 400 horses here are fed whole recleaned race horse oats. God made oats for horses- not molasses and floor sweepings



. We basically feed a 10% protein to all mature horses- oats are approximately 8-9% alone. We add a supplement that is soy base pellet- no molasses, no corn called PNC. It is a 30% protein that we mix with the oats to increase the protein for horses in conditioning/show programs or young growing horses, or underweight mature horses. We have been feeding this for over 15 years.

Hope that helps. Robin-LKF


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## AJ (Mar 16, 2010)

quote (from not feeding a true "feed" per say?)

Oats IS THE true horse feed..........


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## h2t99 (Mar 16, 2010)

We also have always fed oats, when we had several old rescues that were severaly underweight we built them upto having oats in a feed tub 24/7! I have to say that was large horses and we do that with our QH weanlings. They also have access to minerals, salt, and hay 24/7!! Our minis have always done great on the oats!! Our reining trainer also has always fed oats and his hard keepers that are in training had access to oats 24/7 also!!


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## rabbitsfizz (Mar 16, 2010)

I feed Barley, but only because, at the moment, good clean Barley is cheaper than Oats. I will feed oats quite happily, it is a very good base feed.

Like Robin, I also use full fat soya, although I can get the pure soya, no additives, and I use it as a supplement. The soya is 42% protein and obviously high in fat (oil) it is micronised and ready to eat, but I soak it, along with the Beet Pulp, and mix in the barley.

I also add soaked Alfalfa pellets to all this.

I suppose they get about two cups each, it is hard to tell as I feed in bulk.

I add loads of grass chaff to the mix, and it makes a lovely "long" feed.

I do not have the problems with molasses, but I think we are all geared up to feeding as little as possible, so in summer I drain the water off the beet pulp and get rid of most of the molasses that way.

I think this is the nearest to "natural" that you can get, but you do have to remember that horses do not eat any cereals "naturally", so I treat all grain feed as an "additive" to the base of hay.


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## Tony (Mar 16, 2010)

AJ said:


> quote (from not feeding a true "feed" per say?)
> Oats IS THE true horse feed..........


I certainly agree. I was born into a horse family and whole oats and alfalfa has done well for us for over sixty years.


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## Relic (Mar 17, 2010)

Yes oats and a Tim/Alfalfa mix is what we've always fed. All our horses have done well on that along with salt blocks/free choice minerals. Late term and nursing mares do get a bagged complete feed mixed in with soaked beet pulp as do all the minis till they are yearlings. But other then that everyone is on oats summer once a day winter twice a day including the ones we show and they're healthy seldom sick and look as good as any store bought bag fed horse


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## chandab (Jan 7, 2014)

I know this thread is a couple years old, but as I started feeding oats with a vit/min supplement instead of a commercial feed this past September, I'd like to bring this up again, and see who else is feeding oats and more about the why's and wherefore's of it all. I'm trying to simplify my feed room, but yet feed the horses well and within my budget. Oats and the vit/min supplement is definitely less than feeding the recommended amount of the commercial feeds available around here.

So far, I do like how my horses are doing with the oats and vit/min; but still working out the how much they need part of it. [i think I was going a little light, so I increased the amount, and then ran out before I could get get more, so waiting on my new batch of oats to arrive; place delivers once a month to our area.] They are also on mostly grass hay, with just a bit of alfalfa mixed in here and there.


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## lucky seven (Jan 7, 2014)

I use the purina mini and pony grain and grass hay. Is feeding oats better? I'm always interested in learning about feeding grains to my boy. There are so many out there that it's hard to figure out which one is best as all companies say there's are best. Also my boy is only getting 1/4 cup of grain. He's 39", a small pony in size so does he require more?


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## 7fluffyfriends (Jan 7, 2014)

I have been feeding oats to our bunch (along w/ good hay, salt, water, water, water!) for about 2 years now and they are doing super. I no longer feed a sweet feed and I believe their weight is excellent. They are a bit 'puffy' in the winter but we feed big round bales free choice beginning November/December, whenever the temps get below freezing on a regular basis. Their coats are soft and have a good sheen to them. We have a semi -retired riding horse that foundered about 10 years ago and the vet recommended we stick to oats for him and he has been doing very well. The oats also come with very little to no dust which must be good for the horses as well.

The oats in our area are a bit over $7 per 50 pounds (from the local feed co-op) while the 'blends' run around $12 and up depending on the product and the company.


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## Jenny (Jan 7, 2014)

I feed oats and a complete supplement. I only feed the oats because the supplement is a powder and it's easier for him to eat it with oats. The supplement is Pureform Full Support Mini. I think it's $150 for around a 200 day supply for a mini his size (300 lbs). The oats he gets are organic rolled oats, but this is just what we had in our storage room right now, so I'll probably just get a big sack of oats from the feed store next time. I have no clue what the oats cost. He gets 1 cup (0.25 lbs) oats and 1 tablespoon (1 teaspoon per 50 lbs) twice a day. I haven't noticed any difference with the oats than when he was getting no grain and no supplement, but it gives me piece of mind in knowing he's getting everything he needs. I have noticed a difference compared to when he was on a complete feed. He was on it for only two weeks and he went crazy with energy. Plus, I was having to feed 1.5 lbs a day to reach the minimum amount and that just seems like too much for him as I had to decrease his hay amount and I didn't like that. I am a big believer in natural horse care so I'm all about grass, grass hay and minimal grain. I also just don't trust what is in those little pellets, at least with oats you know what your getting.

Lucky seven, make sure you always feed by weight and feed the recommended amounts on the bag. If you don't feed at least the minimum amounts, he won't get the appropriate amount of vitamins he needs. That is what's great about oats and a supplement! You can just feed the recommended amount of supplement (which with a powder is a very minimal amount) and feed the amount of oats your horse needs to keep weight/energy as a carrier. It's an especially good choice for easy keepers.


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## Tab (Jan 7, 2014)

I was very excited and believed it would work, I'm all for tradition and going back to nature, so I tried rolled oats for the first time this year but it's possible I didn't transition slowly enough. Hoof quality plummeted. I'm very glad so many have such success with it but my horses hooves just didn't do well, nor did overall body condition. Grass, grass hay, and maybe even grass pellets for us in the future, w/ supplements as necessary. I trim my own horses feet and I was just shocked at how quickly the hooves became poor. Took them off the oats and the hooves improved within a month.


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## MyMiniGal (Jan 7, 2014)

Lucky Seven, I feed Purina Miniature Horse and Pony and by what they recommend, my mini, who is around 32" should be getting around 1 lb. Which I weighed it, and 1 lb. = 3 cups...you can feed less, if you feed more hay, and they do give an amount on the feeding chart, on how low you can go. I give my mini 1 cup, twice a day, or 2 cups total for winter feeding. Will probably drop that down to 1.5 cups a day in summer. So I think you are feeding too little, for your 39" pony. You can go to the Purina Mills website for horses and find the feeding recommendations for that feed, and figure out what you should be feeding by his weight.


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## Jean_B (Jan 7, 2014)

I feed cleaned, rolled (or crimped) oats and good, clean hay. I use the crimped/rolled oats because the horses can digest it better than whole oats with less "pass through". A little more expensive but a whole lot more 'efficient.'


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## Marty (Jan 8, 2014)

I'm still feeding oats and have no problems at all. Everyone is shinny and healthy so no complaints here.

I'm not feeding a vitamin. I put out 50 a pound salt block and 50 pound trace mineral block and purina 12 12 free choice minerals. That's it with hay and grass pasture. My oats are presently costing me about $13.00


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## ohmt (Jan 8, 2014)

I feed rolled oats to mature mares and stallions in the warmer months when they are out on 40 acres of grass and don't need much else. For everyone else (and my little guy who gets cresty), oats is a no-no. It's high in sugar and I feed beet pulp for the fiber so I use safe choice instead. I think for mature horses who have slower metabolisms it does just fine, just be aware of the starch content.


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## Foxhaven (Jan 8, 2014)

MyMiniGal said:


> Lucky Seven, I feed Purina Miniature Horse and Pony and by what they recommend, my mini, who is around 32" should be getting around 1 lb. Which I weighed it, and 1 lb. = 3 cups...you can feed less, if you feed more hay, and they do give an amount on the feeding chart, on how low you can go. I give my mini 1 cup, twice a day, or 2 cups total for winter feeding. Will probably drop that down to 1.5 cups a day in summer. So I think you are feeding too little, for your 39" pony. You can go to the Purina Mills website for horses and find the feeding recommendations for that feed, and figure out what you should be feeding by his weight.


You beat me to it. I have had SUPER results with Purina Miniature Horse and Pony 1c/2x a day per horse, 1/4c/2x/day EquiPride supplement (from our vet, about $70/50 lb bag so kinda expensive), and grass hay fed to weight percentage. The donkey gets maybe 1/4c Purina max just because he LOVES it, and 1/2 cup EquiPride, 2x/day, along with a flake of grass hay 2x/day. All hooves and coats have shown a significant improvement (minis not bad before, but LUXURIANT now; donk is MUCH improved over rescue condition) and the donkey is holding at a good weight, we do have to watch the minis but I am not too worried about slight heft in the winter.

Oh yeah, and I do put a flake of grass hay in the NibbleNet for grazing in the mornings after we let them out and go to work. I would guess Sam the donk gets >1/2 of that, the minis split the difference.

The oats option is quite interesting but the starch would bother me with my guys. Reluctant to switch off of success. Growing up, the thoroughbred mares would get oats and alfalfa and kept nicely and produced well. Different metabolisms. But what works, works.


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## MyMiniGal (Jan 8, 2014)

Foxhaven, I agree...my mini has done wonderful on the Purina Miniature Horse and Pony. I do add a Purina vitamin and mineral supplement, because she doesn't seem to use the blocks. She loves it and it makes a good mash, when water is added to it. We end up putting in 3 cups of water, in each feeding, to add water into her, this winter. I put 2 cups super warm water in it, then stir, then once it is all breaking down, within seconds, I add another cup of cool water to make it luke warm. She loves it that way. And like you, I am very hesitant to change to something else, when this is working so well. I pay $16 for 50 lbs. here, so to me that is reasonable. Wish I could buy our dog food for that price! LOL


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## Foxhaven (Jan 8, 2014)

Price for Purina is $17 here, pretty reasonable. The local Big R started stocking it. I am fortunate with water this winter, the boys SUCK it down. I have to refill 5 gal. buckets daily for the stallion, every other day for his son and the donkey. Seems like they go through water more in the winter than the summer. They like the salt blocks in winter too...


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## MyMiniGal (Jan 9, 2014)

That's where I get it too...at Big R, in a town next to us. Only 15 mins. from me. They say they don't sell a lot of it, so I pray they continue to carry it. If not, I hope they will be able to order it for me. Since only having one mini, I don't have to buy it but every month and a half to two months. Halo seems to drink more in summer. She will drink around 2-3 gals. in summer, but only one gallon in winter. We started adding more water to her feed, so she is getting over a gallon now and seems to be doing well.


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## lucky seven (Jan 10, 2014)

I cut seven back when I decided to stop feeding him grain. With his grass hay, he was too chunky. When I purchased him, he was a tiny thing, and I mean a little on the skinny side. I was told to feed him 1 1/2 lps of hay 2 times daily and he put on weight but he matured to his present size and resembles a tiny qh. I 'm finding it hard to find an amount of hay that satisfies him. I still weight it but I'm feeding him 2 lps or more 2 times daily and a small snack at night in his stall. He doesn't like salt blocks so I guess I will continue with the purina feed if the oats has too much sugar in it. I worry about founder so his grazing on grass is very limited. The last time the vet was here, I questioned his feeding regimen but didn't get much of an answer. I find out more info here than what I got from the vet.


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