Feed Question

[Blameitonbrio]

My sweet boy Brio is now 17 months old. I have been feeding him Triple Crown Growth -- a scoop in the am and pm. (I know I should know how much is in that scoop, but I don't -- a quart maybe?) Here's my question: When should a Paso be moved from a growth feed to an adult feed? Thanks in advance!

[appyday]

You should know the weight not the volume...

I talked to my nutrionest yesterday about the 16% my orphan yearlings are on and they said to keep them on that till they are two then cut them back to the 12%

[Blameitonbrio]

So he might have a few more months to go then. The TC Growth only has 14% protein. Am I a bad horse mom? :shock:

[LynnG]

Jeany, keep Brio on the 14% at least until 2-3 years. Pasos are slower maturing. I have used the 16% P in the past for horses under 1 year of age. BUT I have been reading/researching on the OCD problems in younger horses... one cause is young horses being fed too high a protein diet causing rapid growth spurts. 14% was suggested for young growing horses to help prevent any growth spurts. The ones fed 16% might get taller a little sooner, but the ones on 14% catch up in time to those on 16%, but with a more even growth range.

16% may be fed up to 6 mnths of age, then go to 14% up to 2 years of age. Pasos again mature slower, so keeping him on 14% won't hurt him. I drop down to 12% then on all my other horses. You can also take into account the quality of the hay you are feeding in level of protein. Hay can be tested by NCSU or the ag extension.

Triple Crown is good becuase it has so many other nutrients in it also besides protein. Take a weight tape on Brio and you can get an idea of his weight. The feed bag will give you the pounds range of feed to feed his age and weight. Weigh your scoop and then with feed in it to find out what each scoop of feed weighs.

I've got my young horses on Purina JR which is a 14.5%P, and also the Purina Horseman's Edge 14% P...for the mamas and daddy. The SS store closed nearest me, so doing mostly Purina which is convenient to get to.

Got any new pics of him to post? How tall is he too?

P.S. Another cause I found on OCD in young horses is improper hoof angles... especially the long toe low heel deal. This adds stress to the growing joints.

[appyday]

Jeany, keep Brio on the 14% at least until 2-3 years. Pasos are slower maturing. I have used the 16% P in the past for horses under 1 year of age. BUT I have been reading/researching on the OCD problems in younger horses... one cause is young horses being fed too high a protein diet causing rapid growth spurts. 14% was suggested for young growing horses to help prevent any growth spurts. The ones fed 16% might get taller a little sooner, but the ones on 14% catch up in time to those on 16%, but with a more even growth range.

16% may be fed up to 6 mnths of age, then go to 14% up to 2 years of age. Pasos again mature slower, so keeping him on 14% won't hurt him. I drop down to 12% then on all my other horses. You can also take into account the quality of the hay you are feeding in level of protein. Hay can be tested by NCSU or the ag extension.

Triple Crown is good becuase it has so many other nutrients in it also besides protein. Take a weight tape on Brio and you can get an idea of his weight. The feed bag will give you the pounds range of feed to feed his age and weight. Weigh your scoop and then with feed in it to find out what each scoop of feed weighs.

I've got my young horses on Purina JR which is a 14.5%P, and also the Purina Horseman's Edge 14% P...for the mamas and daddy. The SS store closed nearest me, so doing mostly Purina which is convenient to get to.

Got any new pics of him to post? How tall is he too?

P.S. Another cause I found on OCD in young horses is improper hoof angles... especially the long toe low heel deal. This adds stress to the growing joints.


To prevent the OCD etc they get 3 lbs between them of TDI 10 suppliment.

[Blameitonbrio]

He's a big boy; in fact, he has passed Marisa by a smidge in height. We taped Marisa at 13.3 when I bought her, so he is a little taller than that -- unless she has grown. I will get the weight tape out and measure them both.

Yeah, I need to get pictures, but I need to get a camera first -- mine died! Then I can post pictures of his cuteness....and Marisa's divaness.

edited to add...I may as well admit that I had to look up what ocd in horses is. I knew you didn't mean obsessive/compulsive disorder, but that was a new one for me. More stuff I don't know. :oops:

[LynnG]

Jeany.....didn't a certain online daughter get a new digital camera recently?
:PICS

hehe... you wanted to see that didn't you? He got more growing to do to get to mom and dad's height... he's still a big baby though. Itty Bitty ESP...I hope gets to her mom's size and I would love taller more like Davina.

Merlin the black bro will be the tallest of them all ... I bet.... and about to be weaned. ;-) :lol:

[Blameitonbrio]

Poor Grayson...I hate to tell this, but her camera was stolen. :( She left her purse unattended for a few minutes and it was gone...a hard lesson to learn.

And the camera I had died, so we are presently camera-less. I had no idea how much I used a camera either until I was without one! I have my eye on a Canon PowerShot S2 IS. I would love a Rebel for Christmas, but I don't think I can be that good or wait that long. ;-)

[LynnG]

Can insurance cover that loss? I love my Kodak EasyShare Zoom digital camera DX6340.

Bestbuy probably has their no interest on digital cameras over a certain amount. Get a small camera shouler length bag where it stays on your body....as to not get lost, stepped on or stolen.


PS. maybe Brio has a new little itty itty sister/bro in the oven?

[CarolU]

But, I agree with Lynn...keep him on growth diet (and I perfer 14% to 16% protien...too much growth too soon can cause problems later on) until he's fully 3 years old. Then cut him to 12% and keep him there through his training years, and then cut to 8% for maintenance if he isn't ridden a lot (very FEW of us ride our horses hard enough to warrent more feed).

Weigh your scoop. Weigh your scoop + food...know what you are feeding.

[Terry Wallace]

Jeany...don't forget that your hay is contributing some amount of protien...so consider the total picture...the 14% grain and what the hay adds..and you will likely already be at 16% ....

I'm with Lynn...14% is fine for a 17 month old Paso...which IS slower to mature than say a QH...

[Blameitonbrio]

Thanks for all the good input. I will get a scale and stop estimating amounts too. I will keep the critter on his TC. As for hay, we don't have a consistent supply due to lack of storage space. We go out and get what's available when we run out, so its is not always the same kind. But I am working to change that. 8-)