Feeds for Mini's

[Mini Gray Heart Mini Horse]

Heres pics of my mini's and my 13.2hh Apndix QH Mare.

My 37" AMHR Bay Appaloosa Mare named Treasure 9 year old? And How much should I feed her as I plan to Show her in 2012.



My 33" AMHA/AMHR Sorrel Paint Mare named Rosie 10 year old?



My 28" yearling filly?



My 28" AMHA blue roan stallion hes 16 years old.



My 34 1/4" AMHR Strawberry Roan Stallion 4 year old? Hope to show him Maybe



My 13.2hh Apendix QH buckskin paint mare 4 year old?



What is best to feed these horse as I'm feeding 12% sweet feed and alflfa pellet feed? And how much should they all get or do yall think they look good what i'm feed has to be pretty cheap feed.

 

[Matt73]

Your appendix mare looks very underweight. She should be getting pretty much all the good-quality hay she wants and a good quality grain. Your minis look okay (I wouldn't be feeding them sweet-feed...they need a low starch/sugar pellet/grain...or IMHO you're asking for trouble down the road). I feed my guys a ration balancer (Gro 'n Win...32% protein). Feed programs vary, but I'm really concerned about your mare...

 

[disneyhorse]

Hello... the same "rules" apply to feeding horses, regardless of size. Miniatures tend to need more protein than a lot of people think, their digestive systems are very small and need extra help.

I will agree with Matt that your appendix mare looks extremely underweight. She needs calories AND protein. Horses with big bellies and no "meat" over their spines and hips need more protein, and horses with no fat over their ribs need calories. Your yearling filly looks like she needs more protein, she's got that big belly that a lot of malnourished (not the right word I'm looking for, but close) yearlings get ("pot bellied"). The pot belly does not mean "fat" it means "not a good diet."

Unfortunately, it's not "cheap" to feed horses... they are very large animals! And "cheap" feed does not mean "quality" food, either. Sometimes it's more expensive to feed "cheaper" food because you have to feed more of it for the animal to get the required nutrients out of it (such as dog food. Premium dog foods are "expensive" but you only feed small amounts of it because it is nutrient dense.

I would think that adding alfalfa to their diets would be a wise move; it is high in calories and protein and yet is still a forage. I would weigh your hay and make sure your horses are getting at LEAST 1.5% of their body weight.

 

[Mini Love]

I use Purina Miniature & Pony feed, I started it 2 months ago and could not be more pleased, I had some that were over weight and 2 new rescues that were under weight - I am seeing the hay belly look going away to, nice coats to. I am in TN it runs around 15.00 a bag.

Your appendix mare looks underweight - Do you feed them alone? if not she may be low on the pole & not getting what she should. How are her Teeth? How long have you had her? looking at the others it seem odd she is that under weight, like something is going on????

I dont have Big horses now, But the 1 rescue that I did work with that needed weight I feed perina 100 with free hay & it only took a month or so before he started to fill in.

I will agree cheep food is not so cheep - most of the time the serving size ( per horse weight ) is lager then it would be for "good brand " PLUS cheep food has so much junk filler.

I would all have a mineral block Purina 12-12 it does cost around 30.00 but would last a long time and that will help with what they may be lacking, if you have different pens and pastures You can use a pick ax to bust it in a few pieces so everyone can get some.. If there all together leave it whole and protect it from the rain.

I would not feed sweet feed to a miniature horse, The less sugar the better, you could end up dealing with founder down the road. Cheep feed could cost you more down the road in vet bills.

I hope you find what will work for them and get some weight on the appendix mare.

 

[ruffian]

I love Purina's Strategy - all my show horses get it. They get 1/2 pound twice a day and it keeps them in good weight.

I agree with others - sweet feed doesn't work well with minis.

A "cheap" feed is usually more filler and poorer quality ingredients, not worth the "savings" because to get the same results as a good feed you need to feed much more.

Good luck with your herd - You've certainly come to the right place for questions, there are some incredibly intelligent folks on here.

 

[wingnut]

Feeding and feed types/brands is a huge topic! Everyone has a different idea of what works best, usually based on their specific animals.

I have 6 horses, all mares. A 13 yr old, who is my hard keeper (i.e., I can't keep what I think is a "good weight" on her). A 3 yr old who could gain weight just by breathing. And four 2-yr olds that are all about a 6 on the body score scale.

I happen to like and use Purina products. I feed my 5 younger horses, the easy keepers, Strategy. Based on their ages and weight, they all get approximate 1/4lb 2x a day.

The hard keeper gets Omolene 300 which is a sweet feed product with 16% protein. It's what she'll eat so it's what she gets. We have tried a variety of other foods, supplements, and other add-in products (oil, rice bran oil, molasses, beet pulp, etc.). She will walk away from anything in her bucket she doesn't like. So while sweet feed is something many mini owners (and some big horses owners too) try to avoid, it's what works for my horse. She gets 1lb of this 2x a day. Plus a weight supplement and Gastro Guard powder.

The hard keeper gets to be on the pasture more than the rest simply because she can afford it, weight wise. I use a combination of grass mix hay and alfalf/grass mix hay. I'm feeding the younger 5 horses roughly 1% of their body weight a day in hay. On days they are allowed on the pasture, the amount of hay they get is modified by how much time they are in the pasture. At each feeding, I give the hard keeper up to 2lbs of alfalfa/grass mix hay of her own and leave her separate from the rest so she has a chance to eat as much of it as she wants. I then give her up to 2 hours to eat before letting the others back in with her.

When it starts getting cold, I will up the hay amounts to help them keep warm through out the winter.

It has taken me a full two years of research and asking questions to get to my "program" and I am comfortable with how my girls are doing on it.

 

[ironbessflint]

Agreed with the posts above, and I also don't like sweet feed for QHs either as they're very prone to PSSM/EPSM and other conditions related to disgestion of carbs.

Your mare definitely looks like she needs more feed, and more protein rich feed as opposed to fat supplements (introduced gradually).

To your original question, I feed Triple Crown Lite to my horses (minis at about 1/2 lb per day, 2 pounds to the Haflinger, and 4 to the Paint) Supplements are added to that based on each horse's needs. Over the years of trying things I keep coming back to TC feeds, and I've been very happy with several of their products.

 

[miniblessingsfarm]

Hi!

 

 

For your appendix mare, I would recommend lots of good quality hay (feed free-choice). Second cut hay would be great! As for her feed, I LOVE Purina Strategy Healthy Edge. This is what I feed my two Paints. It is nutrition-packed, but low starch. Strategy HE also has the famous Athlete pellet. This feed will help your mare gain weight at a healthy rate and give her a beautiful bloom. By the way, is she a senior mare (maybe she needs a senior feed)? How are her teeth (do her teeth need floating)? How about deworming? Does she need deworming? Have you sent a fecal sample to your vet to determine if she has a large worm burden? If she needs deworming, your vet can advise you on the best deworming product to use for the type of parasites she may have. Good luck!

 

[Mini Gray Heart Mini Horse]

Thanks every on my Apendix QH mare is gain her wieght back now as we bought a round bale of hay for her and the boys shes with the girl got there own pen now so they got a round bale of hay to.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Glad you got some hay. But that mare needs protein and calories and minerals. Pls consider spending the money it requires to properly feed her.

Thanks every on my Apendix QH mare is gain her wieght back now as we bought a round bale of hay for her and the boys shes with the girl got there own pen now so they got a round bale of hay to.

 

[Mini Gray Heart Mini Horse]

Ok I will get them a mineral block that has protein in it. thanks for all your help