Equine Health

Foal Care and Nutrition

A healthy foal, from birth to age two, will achieve 90 percent or more of its full adult size, sometimes putting on as many as 3 pounds a day! Although genetics will partly determine your foals growth rate, nutrition will play a hugely significant role in the development of the foal, and a balanced dietary intake that supports moderate growth is less likely to cause developmental problems such as contracted tendons, epiphysitis, osteochondrosis, and cervical instability (wobblers).

As early as 10-14 days a foal may begin to show an interest in feed, and by sampling learns to eat solid food. At 8-10 weeks of age high quality grains and forage should be added to the diet.

It is essential that the ration be properly balanced for vitamins and minerals. Deficits or excesses of calcium, phosphorous, copper, zinc, selenium and vitamin E can lead to skeletal problems. If you have concerns on the quality of your feed, we recommend that you get an analysis of your ration. By taking feed samples and having them analyzed, we can use a computer program to adjust and correct the imbalances.

In general, as the foals dietary requirements switch from milk to feed (beginning around the third month as the mare’s milk supply naturally begins to wane) you should begin feeding one pound of feed for each 100 pounds of body weight (you can use a weight tape to approximate the foals size).

Supplement with grain or concentrate beginning at about four weeks of age. It is also good to divide the daily ration into 2-3 feedings as foals have small stomachs. To prepare the foal for complete weaning (5 to 6 months of age), its ration should be increased over a 2 –3 week period to make up for the nutrients being lost in the diminishing milk supply. Once no longer nursing, a 500 pound weanling should be eating approximately 2.5% of its body weight in feed and forage a day.