FEEDING YOUNG HORSES FOR SOUNDNESS

What influence can feed have on soundness? Quite a bit, in fact, particularly when you’re dealing with youngsters. Specifically, diets high in glucose, carbohydrates and/or starch have been linked to developmental orthopedic disease (DOD) in growing horses. DOD, which is also associated with mineral imbalances, occurs when growing bones’ cartilage-forming mechanism is overstimulated or the conversion of cartilage to bone is somehow disrupted. If DOD is caught early enough and dietary changes are made, the damage can often be minimized or even reversed.

In many cases, however, a foal with DOD grows into a mature horse who is never sound or who becomes lame with the lightest work.

Obviously, it’s far better to prevent DOD in the first place. To do so, anchor the rations of growing horses with the best hay you can find. And as training begins, provide energy with pelleted or extruded feeds formulated specifically for young horses.

Avoid sweet feeds or other molasses-based formulations. Feed no more than 0.75 to 1 percent of his body weight and concentrates divided into three or more meals daily.