Foal feeder with small bar/holes to pervent horses small noses

[Phaedra1]

I have a foal that is almost two months old. I am currently using a 6-quart Little Giant feeder with a grill, but the problem is that the dam and other mare in the paddock use their noses and tongues to get the pellets out. Has anyone else had this problem? Does the Little Giant foal feeder with a moveable grill work well?

This is what I currently have.

[EventerAJ]

I didn’t have any luck with the adjustable-bar style feeder either. I had an orphan filly that I grafted onto another foaling mare; she still needed supplemental pellets and milk replacer, but the mare was a houdini about getting into any foal feeder, drinking the milk replacer and snarfing the pellets.

I had to create a “feeding area” that was short enough that only the foal could enter. In the stall, I had a fence board hinged to the wall that pulled out to block off a corner where the foal’s milk bucket hung (big foaling stall, plenty of room for mare without that corner). The board was high enough that the foal could go under easily, but the mare could not.

Outside in the field, I used three round pen panels to make a “box stall” that had a single 2x6" secured across the front, about 4’6" high. Again, the foal could easily go inside to eat her pellets, milk replacer, or alfalfa, but the mares were kept out. (other foals eventually followed her in, and sometimes snacked on the hay, but typically left the milk alone)

[Phaedra1]

I was thinking about this setup, but I’m a little hesitant because there is only one foal currently. How tall are your horses? The other problem is that we might put a pony in the field with them. How long do you keep your foals on creep?

The cat looks very serious

[EventerAJ]

The cat is a very serious predator. She thinks she’s a full size panther. Don’t tell her otherwise. I have no rodents, lizards, or birds in the barn.

My mares are 16h+. I don’t generally creep feed my foals, this was a special case for the orphan filly. I had the pen set up until weaning at 5 months. A pony might be a problem, depending on its height compared to foal’s.