I’m hopefully buying a lovely 2 year old(vetting next week!) and he’ll be the first baby that I’ve owned. He currently lives out 24/7 in VA, lots of pasture available. I’m not sure what he’s getting for grain yet but will certainly ask. I’m hopeful that he grows quite a bit and want to feed good nutrition for his growth, but not accelerate it to the point where it might cause any unsoundness issues. I know there are lots of folks on here with experience feeding youngsters. I will be reaching out to the vet next week to pick her brain as well, just looking for any additional information!
I really like feeding youngsters with the base as a ration balancer, whether they’re 6 months old or 2 1/2 years old (or 3).
At 2, they get around 2lb of a balancer, give or take, depending on their expected mature weight. IME most young horses who are getting plenty of good forage don’t have huge calorie requirements beyond that, so balancers work great
Throw in a cup or so of alfalfa/hay pellets, and increase/decrease those as growth spurts require more or fewer calories. That makes it very simple without short-changing nutrition to keep calories low, or making them fat to keep nutrition high.
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JB is spot on.
Buckeye makes one called grow and win that is higher in protein, to help provide the building blocks for growing horses without adding a ton of weight. There are lots of other good ones out there. Everyone likes a cute, chubby, baby but leaner is actually better for their joints as long as they are getting the nutrients they need. In a PA winter, you will need a quality hay.
Agree with the others. My 2yo is on about 2lb ration balancer, 1lb soaked beet pulp, and about 20-25lbs alfalfa or O/A.
Mine just turned 2. He has been on 1 pound Purina Enrich RB and 3 pounds of Purina Impact Mare & Foal since I got him in Feb and has grown and filled out almost too well.
I have recently cut him back on the Mare& Foal feed and once I am done with what I have on hand I will reevaluate what he needs. I am thinking 2 pounds of the RB may be all he will need going forward.
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I know. I am waiting for another growth spurt to thin him down a bit. I hate to lock him up overnight, but I may have to if the spurt doesn’t happen soon!! He get s no hay, just the grass and his feed.
@candyappy - I feel ya. I’ve got a 3 year old 17.1h warmblood who is on 1.5 lbs Gro-n-Win and 24/7 good grass and definitely got heavier than I wanted this summer while he had time off for some abscesses. The grass is dying out here and he’s back in “regular” work (3 days a week of very light work) and has slimmed down a bit. There was no way I was going to put a grazing muzzle on a 3 year old in a 20 acre pasture with 10 other horses - I’d spend hours looking for it every day.
Turnout on good grass 24/7 and Gro-n-Win with the addition of alfalfa pellets works very well for my young horse. When the grass is gone, the horses that live out get enough good hay spread out in the field that they never run out. When he was stalled overnight last winter, I tried to use a hay net to keep something in front of him all the time - so probably around 20 pounds of grass or grass/alfalfa hay per day.
He was getting a RB and 4 lbs of grain at the breeders farm before I purchased him at 2 years old, but once he got on 24/7 grass turnout, he really filled out and kept weight on during growth spurts.
Today is my guys last feeding of the mare & foal feed . Even with our dryer fall the grass is too good I guess. He will get 1 cup of RB each morning and evening. I just purchased 2 bags of it because my Purina dealer special ordered it for me, but it is in my tack room in a plastic barrel with a lid so it will keep if he ever slims down enough to eat it this Winter!
I can’t fathom mine in a muzzle either. What he can do with (and to) a fly mask is irritating enough:lol: I am lucky he doesn’t do the same to the ones the mares wear.
