As show season is coming upon us, what do you do to keep your weanling a looking show ready and healthy, not fat, yet growing properly with all necessary nutrition?
Feeding a proper balanced diet with full turnout (with other horses ideally other weanlings) is the ideal routine to keep them fit and healthy. Of course, coming in am and pm for feeding, grooming and a checking over etc. is optimum.
I guess my real question is how do you stay ahead of the growth spurts without them getting skinny and playing catch up each time?
[QUOTE=rosebudranch;6822838]
I guess my real question is how do you stay ahead of the growth spurts without them getting skinny and playing catch up each time?[/QUOTE]
It can be tricky with some youngsters based on their body type but I find that by paying very close attention and keeping good records, it can be done. I adjust in small increments based on when they begin showing a hint of ribs or approximately every month. This seems to keep weight gain consistent and avoid drastic weight fluctuations. Also, I find that most people understand a growing youngster will have some minor fluctuations in their weight. Better that than keeping them too heavy an jeopardizing their future performance career.
Yea, the last five youngsters I’ve had were easy keepers, this little filly is just growing so fast!!! What do you do to “catch up” if anything?
It depends on how much the youngster needs to “catch up”. If too much condition is lost, sometimes it is very hard to regain it again since they require the extra calories to grow plus additional calories to put on weight. The youngster will require more volume of concentrates than if he was just eating to keep up/maintain condition. Bottom line is that you will need to up his concentrates from whatever your feeding now.
This is my 10 month old today. I plan to show him in HB this summer.
He is very big for his age and has not had an awkward stage yet. (except his yak like facial hair by boyfriend call his beard.) 
I feed him free choice Bermuda hay. He also gets triple crown growth and Alfalfa pellets soaked in the morning and before bed.
He is out all day with my old retired gelding and they share grain so some days he gets more or less depending on who is more hungry.
He is very shiny and great weight, I don’t plan to make him any fatter then he already is.
He is still a colt, I am not sure if that helps or hurts his growing right now.
His face is super hairy and yak like, but I think when he sheds he will be ready to show!
I also give my 5 year old rice bran pellets, since his coat isn’t great.
My pregnant mare is also on this diet and does very well. As soon as she has her foal I add soaked beet pulp and alfalfa to her diet to help with her calorie loss from the baby nursing.
Here is the other side, you can see his neck better without his puff ball mane in the way.
I do wish that they didn’t have to be so fat to win the hb. Honestly fat hides a lot of flaws and also hurts the babies in the long run. 
Samotis,
I think yours looks great, I just clipped my girl, she will be 10 months at the end of this month, shes a little ribby… hence why I feel she needs to catch up. I definitely do not want her “fat” but just looking to help her catch up and stay there. Shes was getting one scoop two times daily of her 13% protein, 3% fat, 12% fiber textured feed. I have increased her to 1 1/2 scoops twice a day, and recently I added a cup of ground flax twice a day and 1/3 of a cup corn oil twice a day. Plus her Horse Manna vitamin and mineral supplement. I also increased her hay intake - she lives outside 24/7 with two older mares who are tied during feeding time, then during the day my broodmare and another weanling spend their day there then go back inside at night. Once my broodmare foals out I’ll turn her out with them, as they love each other and I like my babies to live in a “herd” situation. I’m considering adding some alfalfa pellets (i dontlike cubes, and can’t seem to find straight alfalfa anywhere except the condensed bales which I hugely dislike).
This was her a few days ago, she is ribby, and butt high… I wish she wouldn’t do this every time she randomly spurts up! Each time she does I get her back where I like her for about a month, but I can’t seem to get her in a spot where she keeps up with it!!
She could use a little weight.
The thing I like about triple crown is that it is higher fat then most growth feeds for babies, so I don’t need to feed oil.
I would put her on canola oil instead of corn only because it has a tad better omega ratio. Or try rice bran pellets which are great.
My guy does get alfalfa pellets with some water on them just in case he try’s to eat one too fast. (happened with my last foal and he was snorting green stuff)
Good luck! When is your first show? We don’t really have any in Arizona so I won’t be taking him until the IHF finals which is in California in August.
That’s if I can keep him in one piece until then! So far he has ripped the hair off his back leg and got a bone bruise, peeled a chunk off his heal from over reaching and bloodied his nose twice by sticking his head through the fence!
Accident prone is the understatement of the century!
The first show I want her to go to is March 27th. Last time she grew she looked like this and I got her back fast. I haven’t had much luck with any horse (I’ve had a ton of hard keeping tbs) with the rice bran. I like the amplify pellets… and may go to that to just get her caught up, but not on a regular basis. I just moved from CO to VA so I definitely know what you mean no shows… lol. There are so many here I have no idea what to do! I’m excited, but don’t want to take a skinny girl out in public for my first east coast debut!
Yeah, I would love a spring/fall house in Virginia or Kentucky.
I just don’t do cold well. Hence why I am in AZ!
You need a feed with a MUCH higher fat content. Protein could be dialed back a bit. Our feed is 10% fat and they do great on it. 3% isn’t nearly enough.
Ok, see I always thought that high protein was a big help, but then again that’s what my older tb gelding needed, is it different for youngsters? Ill see what I can figure out to higher her fat up.
So here’s what I think I’ll switch to : 12 protein 10 fat 16.5 fiber. Ill continue with the oil and flax and vitamins minerals as before. Laurie how much so you feed?
Triple crown growth is by far the best feed IMO.
Although I switched to tribute, once my mares are in foal I will get and keep them on that and then babies will stay on it as well.
I can’t help too much but what I did was consult a nutritionist. They took into consideration what I was feeding my adult horses and my pastures etc. I’m feeding a balancer with added oats and fat for the yearlings (as well as some flax). She stressed the need for yearlings to get some legume hay (several pounds a day). So mine come in and get alfalfa hay…basically as much as they will eat. I’m surprised you can’t get any in VA…I’m in PA and it isn’t hard to find.
It is hard as one of mine is a June baby and the other is April…and is HUGE. As big as some 2 year olds. She had a bout of epiphysitis before she came home to me so getting the nutritional balance right is critical.
Yea my coming 2 yr old had some epiphysis when he was a yearling, so I’m very cautious of what I feed my babies now. I find it strange that I can’t find alfalfa either but I’m not the only one who can’t seem to find it. I found alfalfa Timothy compressed bales but that’s about it…
[QUOTE=rosebudranch;6830789]
Yea my coming 2 yr old had some epiphysis when he was a yearling, so I’m very cautious of what I feed my babies now. I find it strange that I can’t find alfalfa either but I’m not the only one who can’t seem to find it. I found alfalfa Timothy compressed bales but that’s about it…[/QUOTE]
I hate that compressed stuff. Only way to feed it that worked a bit for me was to put it in a bucket and fill it with water…then immediately dump the water. I didn’t let it soak but just got it really wet. That seemed to take the dust down.
I’ve never had a dust issue with it… But it’s
More expensive then buying a real bale of it (at least in Colorado) and IMHO its not even close to the same about of hay as they say it is!
