I just purchased a half welsh, large pony that will be turning 4 in May. He is on the thin side, but he is still growing (mainly his frontend is catching up with his backend). I plan to get him going this spring, and want to help him start to fill out. He is quiet and chill, and hoping to be a pony hunter.
I live in a rural area, and have the best access to Purina and Seminole feeds. Any recommendation on which feed from those brands I should try?
I have had, trained, bred and ridden welsh cobs for years and have had a couple of welsh section B crosses. Mine have always done best on a ration balancer with good quality grass hay.
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I breed Welsh & hunter ponies and agree with what exvet has said. I also love to use beetpulp to fatten up any new ponies we get in. The ponies love it and it also gets them some additional water intake as well.
What does āon the thin sideā actually mean?
I would consider keeping him on the lean side for now - the last couple ribs visible is fine, no more than that, but a light covering but easily felt is fine too - as it will likely be easier to put weight on him later than try to get it off if he blows up as his growth slows and grass comes in.
To that end, Seminole Equalizer (ration balancer) is where Iād start. Work off a 1-1.5lb per 1000lb body weight (expected mature weight) basis, and see how he does.
for a young horse usually no feed is needed, just good hay and pasture (also for most aged horses too)
Sadly, most hay doesnāt contain enough, or optimal (or even decent) balances of nutrients. I see so many hays that have sky-high iron and too little copper and zinc. A lot of grass hays donāt have enough calcium - super critical for a young growing horse.
Older horses often need more quality nutrition, which makes these hays/grasses less than ideal for them too.
I am for optimal nutrition, not just whatever calories keeps a horse in good weight.
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Another factor to point out is that many of us, like those of us who live in the desert, have no access to green/fresh grass. I have to supplement my hay, which is good quality, with vitamin E. The ration balancer is necessary for some of the nutrients mentioned already. I do test my hay. I have had everything from stallions, to broodies to young stock and the retired - mainly all of one breed, Welsh, with a few other representatives just to keep things interesting 
A ration balancer really allows me to consolidate my feed room and my out going expenses in addition to keeping everyone healthy.
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You havenāt mentioned where you are located in the country, what your ponyās access to grazing is, or what your hay supply is like. For any horse, at least 80% of what they eat (by weight) needs to be in the form of roughage. Increasing the amount of roughage given (hay, or pasture time) or the quality of the roughage fed (legumes instead of grasses) is the best way to accomplish weight gain. With a 4 yo pony, Iād simply increase hay intake (by weight in amounts up to 2.5% of bodyweight daily). A ration balancer in amounts recommended on packaging per 100lbs of bodyweight will ensure sufficient intake of vitamins and minerals. A plain salt lick and lots of water are also necessary for optimal results.
āGrainā or ration balancers deliver protein, micro-nutrients, and vitamins, but are not an optimal way to add calories to a diet. In the case of senior horses that canāt chew roughages, the roughage is processed in, to create a calorie-dense, roughage-rich complete senior feed. These come in a āgrainā bag, but they arenāt really āgrain.ā Most pony breeds and many horses do not require ANY grains to stay in great health.
Additional things to check are teeth, and parasite control history (if itās unknown, have a fecal sample checked, and proceed according to findings).
If she has access to Seminole, itās a good bet (but not a sure thing!) Thatās sheās in the SE US.
Iāve been feeding my Fjord pony Seminole Equilizer since I got him as a 3.5 year old, Iāve been feeding Seminole feeds since the 70ās so itās fair to say Iām a fan. He has a fairly intense workload at this time of year, so he also gets tri amino and KER E and E/sel as diet supps, as well as soaked alfalfa cubes/canola oil (in addition to a fescue round bale and whatever passes for pasture at this time of year). Tri amino and cubes are to make sure he gets enough protein building blocks, E/sel + more E is for selenium deficiency in our soil+hay, E is for muscle, plus expected winter deficiency. Oil is for calories and slow burn energy reserves.
But he is a CDE pony, and trotting 12k is all in a dayās work, so his feed needs are different than other disciplines.
Come summer when he is dressaginā and we have good pasture, those supps and alfalfa cubes/oil are cut back. I donāt stop completely because he is still doing work and he is muzzled when on pasture and in a dry lot in the day with just enough fescue that they have something to nibble
Yes I am in the southeast. He is out 24/7 right now in a large pasture with free access to coastal hay. However, Iāve only had him a week and he was in a smaller paddock and was getting alfalfa, but I donāt know how much and he didnāt seem to like what was sent with him.
I guess patience is key at this point, which is hard when you have a new young pony that is in a bit of an awkward growing age.
Thank you all for the suggestions and advice!
With access to those feeds, Iād either do Ultium Growth and free choice grass hay until I have them where I want them, and then switch to a ration balancer and gradually reduce amount of hay. It depends on weight which is subjective. Iām thinking hunter show ponies. Iād do the Growth for a little more protein because Generally a half welsh large should be a pretty easy keeper, on the thin side at that age can mean it hasnāt had access to enough good groceries, could be wormy, or have an ulcer issue. Always a good idea to do a fecal on a new one.
I used to feed ultium growth to my broodmares who were in late term pregnancy and as a creep feed to the foals on up to about 18 -24 months of age depending on the bloodlines and their āeasyā keeping tendencies. I would switch the two year olds to ration balancer because the ultium growth would simply make them too fat on a still growing frame. The greatest difference in my situation is that mine live(d) on hay and no pasture. Of course to your point, this particular young welsh part-bred may not have had the best of starts nutritionally but I would be careful feeding ultium growth to a 4 year old, especially if a deworming is really what is necessary. They can become butterballs pretty quickly.
You guys! I forgot to post my after photo! You were right, that scary thick hair fell out in huge clumps and after she was clipped she never looked back. Already weāll started under saddle and leased through the end of her P.F. green year. Ć¢ĀĀ¤ĆÆĀøĀ
https://www.facebook.com/TrinityFarmLLC/photos/a.333641723461241/1532608316897903/?type=3
