How to determine the correct weight for my mini.

[christyinco]

I adopted a mini in June and at that time he was 6 months old and 144lbs. We recently had him gelded and at that time he was 180lbs at 10 months old. He has grown taller and filled out, which he needed to do since he received a body score of 3 when I first got him (still boney in his ribs and rear end). He's looking good, but it's hard to tell with his thick winter coat on. My concern is really about his gut. It's always been large from day one, but doesn't seem to go down. He's currently in a large pasture with free feed grass hay and some native grass, though not much this time of year, and gets a feed at night (vitamin & mineral supplement w/digestive enzyme). He gets a lot of exercise.

I've included a couple pictures for reference taken in the summer months when he was on just grass - no hay. I just don't know much about minis (I have larger horses) and what I should expect as far as weight, when they stop growing, etc. I originally posted here when I got him and was told to let him eat free choice grass hay. I'm also worming him every 3 months with Ivermectin, per vet recommendation, until he's 18 months old.

What do you all think? I'm sure I'll get lots of opinions!

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

I think he looks pretty good altho pictures can be somewhat deceiving . You can judge his condition when he is in his winter woolies best by using your hands to feel thro the hair . Is he thin over his back, can you feel his ribs, how do his hips and neck feel. The belly you are concerned about is probably a result of eating a high fibre diet that takes space to digest. Some people have success in getting the stomach to shrink by increasing the protein content in their horses diet. Especially with a youngster protein is important and many people will tell you that minis require higher protein than their full sized counterparts. You will probably get a dozen answers for every 12 people who respond

, each horse owner finds a different regime that works for them and their horses.

 

[chandab]

At 10 months old, he should probably be on a growth formula feed to be sure he gets all he needs to grow properly. [And, talking with a few nutritionists, I've found out that senior feeds can be fed to the growing youngsters too; just in case, growth formulas aren't readily available where you are.]

My now yearlings, were brought up on a senior feed; I started them on growth, but since I had to special order it and the store manager was difficult to deal with, I switch them to the senior and they are doing fantastic on it, along with their grass hay/pasture.

 

[targetsmom]

As a growing boy he needs more protein that he is likely to get from grass hay. Our grass hay was tested at 14% protein which would be fine, but most grass hay is closer to 10% which is not enough for a young growing horse of any size. I second the senior feed which is usually 14% protein, easy to digest, etc but other feeds will do. I myself would avoid sweet feeds fro the same reason lost of sugar isn't good for humans. Check out the information about feeding minis on the 4-H section of our website at http://www.ontargetminiatures.com/otm-4h.html. Also, it is the total protein in the diet which matters so you will likely find (as we did) that to get it high enough you need to feed quite a bit of grain in proportion to the hay/forage in his diet. Good luck with him!

 

[ohmt]

He is protein deficient and could use a good 16% protein feed if he is just on grass or grass hay. You could do a protein supplement if you'd prefer-they work great too. I like Enrich 32, myself

 

[christyinco]

The vitamin/mineral supplement is the ProAdvantage Progressive Grass Formula, which has 30% protein. My vet suggested the feeding schedule. However, based on the above link its too little protein.

Targetsmom - thanks for the link! Very helpful!

 

[chandab]

The vitamin/mineral supplement is the ProAdvantage Progressive Grass Formula, which has 30% protein. My vet suggested the feeding schedule. However, based on the above link its too little protein.

Targetsmom - thanks for the link! Very helpful!

the ProAdvantage Grass formula should be fine, as long as you are feeding him enough of it. Have you checked out the feeding chart for small equines on the Progressive website? For a 10 month old, 180# foal, he should be getting 1.5-2# of the grass formula. 1.5-2# is going to be 5-6 cups of the Grass formula (that would be standard kitchen cups); or 3-4 of the green Progressive scoops daily.

 

[christyinco]

Wow - no, I've been giving him about 3/4 of one green cup. The guy at the feed store told me 8 oz. for his size. That's a huge difference. My big horses only get 2 green scoops daily. Would you increase his feed gradually?

 

[chandab]

As long as the 180# weight is correct, then yes, increase gradually over the course of like a week to 10 days. Work him up to the 1.5# and see how he does. and wouldn't you know it, when he hits 12 months, the amount drops a little bit, but since he got a bit behind, I'd probably leave him at the 1.5# level for awhile.

He needs more than your full-size horses because he is a baby and still growing. [The full-size adult horses, should be getting at least 2 green cups daily (if not 3); the average 1000# horse needs 1-1.5# daily.]

I don't currently feed Progressive, as it priced out of my budget when it hit $35/bag, and I need 3 bags per month minimum (and that was before I added a couple more horses to the herd). My adult minis were getting 1/2# daily, my babies 1.5-2# (some a little more, due to age and weight).

Its on their website, but here's their feed chart for small horses; first page is the growth chart, second page is adults.

GrowthChart_DailyFeedPlanner(sm)_05.pdf

Study the chart, see where he falls on the chart, he might need a little less for his weight and age; but definitely needs more than the 3/4# recommended.

 

[christyinco]

Thanks for the feeding charts chandab. I'll give it a go and increase his feed to see if that belly will come down a little. Should he be getting any alfalfa hay or just stick with the grass hay and supplements?

 

[chandab]

A little alfalfa won't hurt anything, but if you are going to use the Grass balancer, then a mini his size shouldn't get more than around 1# alfalfa (no more than 1/3-1/4 of the total hay fed). [The Grass balancer is designed to balance the minerals in grass hay, so you don't want to mess up the balance adding too much alfalfa (a little is fine). If you were to decide to feed mostly alfalfa, then you'd need to switch to the Alfalfa balancer.]