Yearling Boot Camp

[Flatbroke Farms]

What do you all do to get your yearlings show ready? What sort of exercise and for how long? I am so new to all of this, I am clueless! I know that even with the big horses, doing too much when they are too young is damaging, and I'm aware of how much exercise is or isn't safe. But is it the same with the minis?

How much time a day or week do you spend exercising a yearling? What is your regimen?

 

[Leeana]

If you tweak the feeding program enough you shouldnt really have to condition them. I have a larger roundpen and i do feel safe roundpenning (its 18 pannels, all 15ft long) a yearling in it as its not to hard on the knees. If you have an area where you can free lounging (not on a line) and i think you would be fine.

I do think if you tweak the feeding program (hay, grain and suppliments if needed), keep them up to date on worming ext you really shouldnt have to work them to much ..if any.

This is narko as a late yearly ..he had NO roundpenning or sweating, i mean NO roundpenning at all.

These two guys are yearlings this year (pictures from today, first show is next month) and have had very little work in the roundpen, they are younger yearlings. They have been roundpenned maybe 4x (if that) since i have had them up in the barn.

Flyte ..

Stetson (with my nephew)..

The secret is in feeding and worming and good care

. Also, the three above are all paternal brothers

.

 

[Flatbroke Farms]

I do have a large roundpen as well. I just didn't want to do more than was necessary. Uucy has a bit of a belly, perhaps just tweaking feed/hay will take care of that, then.

 

[kaykay]

I agree feed is the most important element in a yearling. As long as they are let out to play they keep themselves in pretty good condition. Hard to know without pictures but the belly could be due to lack of protein (in which case you need to feed more and better feed) or it could be hay. Our show horses get the majority of their feed in complete feed and less hay. Yearlings here get equine jr and hay but less hay during show season and more feed. For sure do not work a yearling too much as they are in growth stages and you could mess up their legs

 

[Indian*R*A*I*N*Dance]

How much equine jr do you feed your weanlings? We feed Rain 1.5 cups in the morning and 1.5 cups at night and free choice hay. [not all day long but we usually feed 3.5 flakes for a weanling and 5 year old (they share)] Should we be feeding less hay? When I go to take Rain out (like to day) all he wants to do it bolt. we don't have any type of enclosed area where he can run in except for the paddock but when theres snow on the ground we let them out in the yard. Heres what he looked like in December (i think):

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd154/X...partyday067.jpg

 

[kaykay]

That pic is so small hes hard to see. If he was mine and I was going to show him I would slowly up the equine jr and decrease the hay. Normally when they are getting enough equine jr they dont want as much hay. 1.5 cups is not much at all.

My girls are 32 & 33" and they get 6 cups in the morning and 6 cups at night

Make all feed changes GRADUALLY

 

[Indian*R*A*I*N*Dance]

wow! thats alot! Rain is about 32''

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Ah, the on-going battle of nutrition! *LOL* I'm too tired to get into it in detail but I'm definitely a firm believer in feeding considerably more roughage than complete feed or especially grain. If you're concerned about a hay belly you can substitute beet pulp for some of the hay and keep them slim and trim that way. On the other hand, I do think you're probably giving your guys too much hay. My 7 year old gelding in heavy work gets about a 1/4 of a flake of good grass hay three times a day along with a little low-starch complete feed to mix his medications in. If you've got that much snow on the ground and no turnout you may have no choice but to feed to keep them busy and warm, but when your weather improves I'd cut back.

Good luck! There's a lot of different ways to feed and all that really matters is what works for you and your horses. Let their condition be your guide.

Leia

 

[Indian*R*A*I*N*Dance]

We were going to put him on beet pulp but there is none up here b/c the person who supplies it didn't grow enough and there was a high demand for it. Thank you everyone.

 

[Mini Three]

If you tweak the feeding program enough you shouldnt really have to condition them. I have a larger roundpen and i do feel safe roundpenning (its 18 pannels, all 15ft long) a yearling in it as its not to hard on the knees. If you have an area where you can free lounging (not on a line) and i think you would be fine.

I do think if you tweak the feeding program (hay, grain and suppliments if needed), keep them up to date on worming ext you really shouldnt have to work them to much ..if any.

This is narko as a late yearly ..he had NO roundpenning or sweating, i mean NO roundpenning at all.

These two guys are yearlings this year (pictures from today, first show is next month) and have had very little work in the roundpen, they are younger yearlings. They have been roundpenned maybe 4x (if that) since i have had them up in the barn.

Flyte ..

Stetson (with my nephew)..

The secret is in feeding and worming and good care

. Also, the three above are all paternal brothers

.

 

[nootka]

I do not believe in forced exercise for yearlings. I think much of what they need is in the form of being taught to lead/taken on walks and free exercise as well as being taught ground manners.

I would certainly not round pen or lunge one more than a bit each way to get the feel for moving off of pressure (i.e., a few minutes of walking/trotting in either direction, and learning whoa is probably not going to hurt them as long as they're not having to be pulled into the circle).

I love to show young horses, both weanlings and yearlings, and have had some decent success considering that they are on pasture most of the day, and have free choice hay as well as a very generous helping of grain at feeding time, beet pulp and BOSS. Read the label on the grain, and feed according to weight. If you are not getting good weight gain, then increase it by a little until you see a good amount of weight.

The beet pulp and BOSS should help add weight, too.

This age of horse can be the hardest to keep condition on. Some will not be so difficult. it is important to judge weight by the topline rather than the look of the belly. The belly will decrease as proper nutrition for the age and activity level is achieved, IMO....

Here's a photo of one of my yearlings on "my" program (which is not a program, rather a way of life for my young horses):

She looks just fine to me...I pretty much just took her straight from the pasture to this show (of course, bathed and clipped, and she knew how to lead/tie/whoa). NO conditioning, but plenty of good feed. She was a hard keeper, too.

Just my feeling that young horses should be allowed as much play time to develop as possible. Short sessions of training are often all they need as they self-exercise.

It is rare, IMO, to see a truly fat yearling.

Liz

 

[kaykay]

Yep its a lot but these girls are growing like crazy right now and it takes a lot to keep up with them. Actually TEase the taller one is going to have to be upped again as her tummy is bloating slightly which tells me shes nto getting enough.

Also our hay this year (due to hay shortages) is not high quality hay like I usually have. Keep in mind Equine Jr already has beet pulp in it so you dont want to add beet pulp or you mess up all the values. They both get a flake of hay morning and night. These girls are going to be B division so they are probably going to mature bigger then your guy.

With winter coats you really have to use your hands. If hes at the right weight his back should be flat and you should have to press slightly to feel ribs. IF the back is up or you can easily feel ribs under the coat then hes not getting enough feed/protein

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Keep in mind Equine Jr already has beet pulp in it so you dont want to add beet pulp or you mess up all the values.

That's true of adding extra grain or especially vitamin/mineral supplements but I thought beet pulp was pretty balanced for calcium/phosphorus ratios and worked mostly as a fiberous filler?

I've avoided learning about this nutrition stuff in detail as long as I can because I hate it and makes me want to do this

or this

, but I'm finally forcing myself to get educated. *sigh* The things I do for my horses....

Leia

 

[ClickMini]

Leia, beet pulp is heavily weighted toward the calcium side of the ratio. That is why you should feed grass hay if you are using beet pulp. If you feed alfalfa, also way high in calcium, you will get that calcium/phosphorous ratio way out of balance.

If you start feeding beet pulp, you should cut back on hay somewhat. It is more of a hay replacer than grain or fortified feed.

 

[txminipinto]

Ok this is what I do and I show a lot of yearlings. It works for me but it may not work for everyone.

First and foremost, STOP MEASURING FEED IN CUPS. Measure in pounds. Vets and most other horse people do not understand "cups". Get a gram scale, measure your scoop, then measure the amount of feed that you feed. What I have done is take my 2lb scoops and mark them in half pound increments. That way it's easy to tell how much to feed each horse. I feed everything from A minis to 44" shetlands.

Now, I start EVERYONE off at a pound of grain (I like a pelleted 12-14%, high fat grain for my show horses). Depending on their body condition I go up or down from there. Currently my feeding scale ranges from 0.5lb-3.0lbs 2x a day.

I also feed ~0.5lb - 1.5lb of WET beet pulp on top of that grain. In the winter, it's warm, and in the summer cool.

Then, I feed hay. All of the show horses get alfalfa (I've been feeding alfalfa and beet pulp for 4 years w/o issues). I feed very little hay. I have those small feed buckets and my scale on alfalfa is 1/2 bucket - 3 buckets 2x a day. My hard keepers also get coastal.

This is what I do and it works for my situation.

You'll find MANY ways to feed successfully.

 

[nootka]

Carin is right...weigh your horse, weigh your feed. These two things will really give you a leg up when trying to assimilate a feeding plan.

My "cups" are weighed first to determine what they weigh (I check these things from time to time with a postal scale). Then read the labels on your feed. These will all help you determine what's best.

As Kay mentioned, it's necessary also to determine level of condition. In a hairy horse, it is important to feel the condition since it will be hard to see with the extra coat. So many times a hairy horse is mistaken for fat, and that first clip of the year will show ribs, backbone and a dull undercoat, hallmarks of too little feed, or too little nutrition for the amount of feed (some poor quality hay can have volumes of quantity but will have no nutrition and the horse will lose weight on it even if they have free choice, especially a growing horse).

In beet pulp, it's important to determine the "dry" unsoaked amount before you feed the wet amount, as adding more or less water can change the volume and weight of the wet stuff.

I believe it was Robin C who pointed out that Black Oil Sunflower Seeds or BOSS, can help balance the extra beet pulp in a diet. At times when I dropped beet pulp, I found that some of my yearlings became thin. After adding it back, it became much easier to keep weight over their topline for me.

It really isn't rocket science, but the weight thing is important. Many junior or "development" feeds need to be fed for a projected mature weight rather than the current actual weight, at least in my determination. Hence, my yearling gelding who will be likely 250 or so as an adult, would eat the same amount as if he WAS that weight (and he needs it). He would not eat the amount for the 175 lb. horse that he is now. Check the condition of your horses weekly using your eyes and hands, and feel how they change in accordance to what they are eating and doing. Adjust the feed that way.

Liz

 

[disneyhorse]

Didn't see it mentioned yet (unless I missed it) but I like to feed daily wormer to my young horses to keep the bellies down. Don't know why or how it works, but it really does seem to work. I feed Strongid C 2x daily. My horses are paste dewormed every eight weeks with rotating Ivermectin/Pyrantel Pamoate as well.

Good luck, you've gotten some good feed advice too!

Andrea