I recently got a 4 month old donkey. Right now he is eating hay and grass with the horses but I know he needs vitamins and minerals too. One horse eats a low starch grain, the other soaked alfalfa cubes with v/m supplement, The breeder told me to feed a horse foal growth feed until he is bigger but I am not a huge fan of feeding soy and the growth feeds I’ve seen use soybean meal. I’m not finding much advice on the internet. The feed The Donkey Sanctuary recommends is not available in the US. Any suggestions from COTHers?
Our jacks were not that young when we got them, but they weren’t too far north of a year old.
We fed a mineral/vitamin pellet based on weight, hay and limited access to grass. Donkeys are arid climate animals and are not designed to ingest large amounts of highly nutritious feed, so I was advised by a local donkey breeder that even with very young donkeys one should be careful of over-supplying them with nutrients.
Our jacks are now closing in on four years old, both have matured very well and have zero issues based on what we fed them early on. One of them was allowed to feed off of a 2nd cut roundbale with a bunch of horses prior to us acquiring him and he is already prone to founder and gets cresty if he’s allowed too much high quality feed. He’s a testament to just how susceptible these equines are to overfeeding.
Donkeys are particularly sensitive to too much protein. I’d be hesitant to feed your youngster any complete feed that is designed for horses as those feeds are not created with the donkey’s highly efficient digestive system in mind. Horses are far less efficient and thus require far more in the way of nutrient density.
I feed donkeys first cut grass hay and a custom mineral supplement based on the hay analysis (same as what I feed horses and mules). The amount of hay or grass depends on their age and body condition. So a young mini or std donkey may be able to get enough protein and calories on grass hay and minerals, while a lg standard or Mammoth may need second cut plus a concentrate to get enough while he’s growing.
I’d go with what the Donkey Sanctuary recommends and just find a feed with the same analysis as the one they use. Just be sure the recommendations are for growing donkeys similar to yours rather than adult donkeys.
