How Much Should Babies Eat? Help!

[HollynIvysMomma]

Hi guys!

As you may remember, I just got my first two minis. They are now six and seven months. Mom is at home all day, so she lets them out to graze on grass during the day and then in the afternoon puts them back in their stalls with just a little hay to munch on during the night. A couple times a week (not daily) we let them have a little grain.

Their little bellies are ROUND and looking at pictures from when we got them just a month ago, they look fatter. I can still feel their ribs...but I am worried about the chubs. How much do I ration food for such young horses? Should they get to eat more bc they are growing? They always act as if they are HUNGRY and they have put a hurting on their salt and mineral licks, too.

Thank you so much in advance! Because I am a first time momma, I am very paranoid.

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

I think babies should have food in front of them 24/7 if at all possible. Once they are past their second year you can start to ration them but not while they are so young. If they have big bellies they are probably not getting as much protein as they need and instead of a handful of grain a couple of times a week I would start them on a growth feed (some people use senior feed) and that will help to be sure they are getting all the minerals and vitamins they require too.

 

[targetsmom]

Check this out on our website: http://www.ontargetminiatures.com/images/pdfs/Weanlings_care_feeding.pdf

Weanlings need a LOT of protein (grain) - ratio of forage (hay) to grain should be about 30:70.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

A lot of harm can be done by spasmodic feeding- they need to be fed at least once a day- as you can do it I would feed twice, and they need a lot more protein. Foals also need hay in front of them all the time, and if possibl;e you should find out how much protein is in your hay- I know that can be hard! Anyway the fact that your babies have big bellies would indicate the hay is pretty low protein. Get a good pellet weanling feed and weigh them (your vet will have scales or get a strong person to pick them up and stand on the scales at home!!) and feed according to the bag instructions. You should see an almost immediate difference. My babies are out all the time, but if this is not possible then the way you are going is OK, just more feed...

 

[Field-of-Dreams]

Your babies ARE hungry! They need more protein and more/better hay. Feeding them grain just a few times a week is a bad idea. You overload on one day and underfeed on the next. CONSISTANCY is critical in feeding horses! They need grain every day.

We feed our babies a mixture of Equine Jr topped with Enrich 32. They easily get two cups twice a day and can eat alfalfa whenever they like. None are rounded and fat. They are turned out all day to play and run but stalled at night.

Make sure they've been dewormed recently, too. That also puts a belly on them. Do not use Quest. Use ivermectin or Panacur/Strongid.

 

[wingnut]

I have a five month old weanling filly. She's getting 1/2lb of Mare and Foal feed both morning and night. She has hay available 24/7. She's on our pasture from 11:00-6:00pm. When she's more fully acclimated into the herd, she'll be allowed out all night with the rest. The pasture is pretty much done for the season which is why we have hay available. I have a feed calculator printout that is for minis of all stages (age/weight) from Purina. If you'd like a copy, just let me know.

 

[Debby - LB]

weanlings need food always available. Good advice has been given above! I'm so glad you noticed and asked. Good luck with your little ones.

 

[wingnut]

And to make you feel better (if you were feeling bad about it), when my two current 4 yr olds were weanlings, I didn't take into account their growth. So they seemed to do well for a while then all of a sudden, I saw that "hay belly" appear. I got to thinking and realized I was still feeding them the grain amount for when they were 25lbs smaller. It can make that much of difference. Thankfully, we learn, make corrections and move forward

 

[Magic Marker Minis]

We have one weanling. He is with the main herd and fed alfalfa 2x a day. He also gets 1/2 lb Mare and foal 2x a day. He is nice and chunky and doesn't have a hay/pot belly.

 

[Marty]

Don't be paranoid. First time mama's mess up a lot and that's normal. We've all been there. Your situation is alarming to me. These little horses are very hungry and need to be fed up properly. First, they need to be on a daily schedule and fed the same times daily. Not just when someone feels like it. Here, if its time to feed, rain or snow, its still time to feed. AM and PM so you have to get up and put your gulashes on and get wet and cold and go tend the horses cause they are waiting. .

I feed my weaners and all horses 2 times daily, so prepare to start paying a feed bill. Every now and then just doesn't get it. Every day, 7 days a week. 2 times a day ok? No exceptions.

The grass is dead and has no nutrients in it. So you need to be feeding hay during the day, and again, not junky cow hay, good quality hay or they can't chew it. They will choke on hay that is "thick" and coarse like straw so find a clean grass hay with no weeds, no thistles, no junksand certainly no mold, and prepare to pay a good hay bill too. You have to go find some fast so get to stepping and stock up big time.

And you need to stock up on the feed and hay too beings winter is here because when you run out and the roads are bad, the horses still have to eat.

And never put them in a stall with "a little" hay. That is all kinds of bad. They need hay to keep them occupied and chewing to avoid ulcers and colic. Confinement without hay is wrong and cruel but I guess you didn't realize that. Especially now at night when they are going to be needing hay badly to keep warm. You'll be ok and they will be ok once you get your kinks ironed out so don't be paranoid. Just fix the situation and best wishes to you.

 

[jandjmc]

Great advice all. I really like alfalfa for youngsters, it has increased protein, calories and calcium. It also prevents ulcers and gives them "mouth" food. I wouldn't feed it free choice. Small meals, frequently if you can. If their stools get loose, reduce amount. Of course, start them on it gradually.

 

[disneyhorse]

They should have as much good quality hay as they want... They should never run out. You can feed them this way until they are at least two. Feeding something "a couple times a week" is useless and can actually cause colic. They should get grain once daily... And feed waft the bag says.

 

[HollynIvysMomma]

Okay, THANK YOU all for all the good advice~!

We were dong the opposite of what we should because we've never had young horses, just full-grown ones that we have to fight to watch to make sure they didn't get too much and get foundered.

We had just letting them out in the yard to pasture during the day to eat grass...and then bc they had had grass all day, we cut back on hay, other than some to nibble on at night. Obviously, after reading all this, I realize this was the absolute worst thing to do. The good news is it was only about a week. We have lots of hay, and its got alfalfa in it, so we're good now.

The grain wasn't anything good, just sweet feed as a treat, and then I read the wonderful 4H handout one of you posted (THANK YOU!) and realized that was horrible. So no more of that! I promise.

I went out yesterday and got a big bag of growth feed with 16% protein and we will do a morning feed and an afternoon feed. That's not a problem. And we now have hay in the hay rack all the time, so that's good.

Their potbellies are already much less after a day with hay and feed.

And we had already wormed them with ivermectin, so that was good.

I DO feel bad that I goofed so badly, but live and learn, and at least it was only this past week. We have lots of hay and lots of feed so we're good now.

Thank you again!

 

[chandab]

The only thing to add... Start somewhat slow with the grain, since they haven't had any to speak of on a regular basis, giving the full amount right off could make them sick, so... Start with like a quarter of the recommended amount, give that for a few days; then increase to half for a few days, then 3/4 for a few days, and in about a week they'll be on the full amount. If they haven't had much grain, they might pick at it at first, but they should get the hang of it pretty quick. Directions on the feed bag are usually for full-size horses, so if they just list a total amount daily to give, like say 6# daily; minis would get 1/4-1/3 of that depending on how big they are. If they give directions in amounts per 100# bodyweight, you'll need to get a weight on them, and then figure out how much to feed.

 

[Marty]

Ahhhhh Well done!

 

[disneyhorse]

Sounds like you're on the right track!

 

[sfmini]

Great job! You did well to ask for help and to share what you were doing. Trust me, those of us with big horses have made the same mistake.

As for keeping to a strict time schedule, I no longer agree with that, as long as you feed 2x on a somewhat erratic schedule, 1 am, 1 pm, the horses will be confident that there will be those 2 feedings and will be fine. Horses on strict tie schedules get really wound up if you don't get the feeding done right on schedule. That ca be a problem, real life gets in the way, you kow?

You are doing great!

 

[rabbitsfizz]

I love people like you! You make posting on this place worthwhile. You asked for help, you got it, you cherry picked intelligently and now your babies are set to flourish.

BRILLIANT

 

[AnnaC]

Ditto to what Jane says above - it's a pleasure to have you around!

Well done you!

 

Once they've been introduced to the grain and are doing it with no difficulty, I do creep-feeding here with all weanlings up to a year old, which means I make sure there is grain in front of them at all times. Then they can nibble as they want -- learning not to wolf down their food, and it's as normal as them nursing from momma whenever they wanted to as foals. Then at a year, I start feeding them on a schedule at set times. By then, they've learned that food is always coming, so they still eat contentedly without wolfing down.

I'm an Alfalfa guru, and strongly believe in adding Alfalfa to the diet for the extra protein boost it gives, and it's also a natural tummy soother. Alfalfa can be given in hay form, or pellets or cubes. And all the horses get just Alfalfa for their hay here.

You've done extremely well, and those little ones are lucky to have an owner who is so dedicated to caring for them !!