I have two two-year old minis (in addition to my big horses). Have had them for more than a year. They live together 24 hours/day in a large dry-lot field with a stall. I turn them out in the big horse field for a couple of hours a day, as well (when the big boys come in). The big horse field is grassless and weedless right now (summer in So. CA). I give them the occasional treat of turning them out into a grass paddock maybe twice a week for an hour or so. I take them jogging (great fun) a couple of times each week and longe them twice a week. They play very hard together, as well, with lots of running around. One mini is in great shape (he's 32 inches tall, weighs around 180); the other is Mr. Chubbo, no matter what I do! He's 37 inches tall, weighs close to 250 and all of it is in his belly!
For breakfast and dinner they get a total of 3 pounds of hay (split between the two of them), that is 95 percent grass and 5 percent alfalfa. I tried stopping the alfalfa completely but it made no difference (plus I worried about them not getting enough protein). I tried reducing the total weight of hay for a few months and it made no difference. For lunch they get a handful of grass hay.
So they don't feel left out when the big horses get their supplements, they each get 1/2 cup of TC Lite and platinum performance. I also throw in less than a handful of soaked BP (w/out molasses), just so they have "more" to eat. I know BP is fattening but would less than a handful really matter? I worry about sand colic and had read that BP was good for that. Can't get them to touch psyllium.
Any ideas of what else I could try? Can't really up Mr. Chubbs' exercise; he's still too young to do more than 10 minutes on the longe line and I can't jog any further or I'll drop dead! Thanks for any ideas.
For breakfast and dinner they get a total of 3 pounds of hay (split between the two of them), that is 95 percent grass and 5 percent alfalfa. I tried stopping the alfalfa completely but it made no difference (plus I worried about them not getting enough protein). I tried reducing the total weight of hay for a few months and it made no difference. For lunch they get a handful of grass hay.
So they don't feel left out when the big horses get their supplements, they each get 1/2 cup of TC Lite and platinum performance. I also throw in less than a handful of soaked BP (w/out molasses), just so they have "more" to eat. I know BP is fattening but would less than a handful really matter? I worry about sand colic and had read that BP was good for that. Can't get them to touch psyllium.
Any ideas of what else I could try? Can't really up Mr. Chubbs' exercise; he's still too young to do more than 10 minutes on the longe line and I can't jog any further or I'll drop dead! Thanks for any ideas.
