Until weaning, the mare's milk has been an important source of nutrition. In the first couple of weeks it is a primary source, but foals start to get nutrition from other sources pretty early on. When weaned, the foal needs to get essentially all of its nutrition from forage, feed and water. As they have likely been eating all these things alongside their mare's milk for months already, they are pretty well set up to be weaned off milk as a nutrition source. That said, when we wean, we are removing a nutrition source that was once depended on, and sometimes we need to consider whether the foal needs some additional nutritional help.
The goal when feeding a weanling is to provide enough energy, protein, vitamins and minerals to support steady, balanced growth without encouraging excessive growth or creating nutritional imbalances. The National Research Council's Nutrient Requirements of Horses remains the principal reference for determining nutrient requirements in growing horses.
"What should I feed my weanling?" is a question that comes up frequently on social media horse forums. Like anything involving horses, there are going to be wide-ranging and differing opinions. You will get anything from "all my weanlings get grain" to "never feed a weanling anything other than hay."
The real answer is that it depends on the individual horse and the circumstances. If you feel really stuck, you should consult your vet. What we have here in this article are just some pointers.
What should a weanling eat?
A well-fed weanling's diet should generally consist of:
- Good-quality forage
- A correctly formulated concentrate or ration balancer when/if needed
- Adequate protein and essential amino acids
- Appropriate vitamins and minerals
- Plenty of clean water
- Salt
The exact proportions depend on the individual horse. A Thoroughbred weanling destined to become a large performance horse may have very different nutritional requirements from a small pony, a Quarter Horse, or an expected 17-hand warmblood.
Forage is the foundation
There aren't many things in horse nutrition that everyone agrees on, but the importance of hay comes pretty close. The University of Minnesota Extension says high-quality forage provides young horses with most of the energy and nutrients they need, and recommends maximizing forage intake.
Good-quality grass hay, mixed grass hay, or appropriate pasture can provide a substantial amount of the calories and nutrients a growing horse needs. For some weanlings, hay is where it starts and hay is where it ends — good-quality forage may provide most of what they need. For others, the forage will need to be supplemented with protein, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, calories, or some combination of these.
Many people feel that they should be feeding grain to support growth. One of the most important things to understand about feeding young horses is that more energy does not necessarily mean better growth.
Young horses should ideally grow at a moderate and steady rate. University of Minnesota guidance notes that weanlings are particularly susceptible to developmental orthopedic disorders between approximately three and nine months of age, and that excessive energy intake and rapid or uneven growth can increase risk. Yep — the dreaded OCD!
You want steady, controlled growth. And you really want to avoid your young horse getting fat. The University of Minnesota recommends that weanlings and yearlings have visible ribs, with some fat covering the ribs rather than being excessively fleshy.
Ration balancer
A ration balancer is a concentrated feed designed to provide protein, vitamins and minerals without supplying large amounts of calories.
When a weanling has access to good-quality forage that provides plenty of energy but doesn't provide all of the protein, amino acids, vitamins and minerals required for growth, a ration balancer can be a good solution. In terms of what we have just discussed — that more calories are often not the answer, but adequate amino acids and minerals are important — the good old ration balancer offers to do just that: balance things out.
Instead of feeding a large amount of calorie-dense grain, you can feed a relatively small amount of a balancer to supplement the forage you are feeding. University of Minnesota specifically describes ration balancers as a way of providing vitamins and trace minerals that forages commonly lack, and recommends selecting one according to the forage being fed.
Of course, not every weanling needs a ration balancer either. The point is to use one when it fills a nutritional gap.
Should my weanling get grain?
The important question is not the one most people ask.
The answer may be that your weanling's current diet isn't missing anything and is completely fine. Or it might be that the forage you are able to provide does need supplementation. If you don't know, and you are worried that your hay might lack some things, you can have it tested.
Hay can vary considerably in its energy, protein, mineral and other nutrient content depending on the plant species, soil, maturity at harvest, and other factors. A forage analysis can tell you much more than simply looking at a bale and deciding that it looks good. If you know what is in the forage, you have a much better starting point for deciding what, if anything, needs to be added to the diet.
Sources and further reading
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
- National Research Council. Nutrient Requirements of Horses: Sixth Revised Edition. National Academies Press, 2007. The principal reference for nutrient requirements in horses at different stages of life, including growing horses.
University of Minnesota Extension
- Hathaway, M. "Feeding the weanling and yearling horse." An especially useful practical reference for this article — it covers moderate growth, developmental orthopedic disease, body condition, calcium/phosphorus, copper and zinc, forage, concentrate feeding, weight estimation and nutrient requirements for weanlings and yearlings.
- Martinson, K. & McIntosh, B. "Using hay in horse diets." Useful information on forage as the foundation of the equine diet, forage quality and feeding growing horses.
- "Providing your horse vitamins and minerals." Useful reference for ration balancers, calcium/phosphorus balance and trace minerals.
- "Ten things you should know about feeding the mature horse." Although written for mature horses, this provides useful general principles regarding forage intake, water, salt, gradual feed changes and calcium/phosphorus balance.
- "Evaluating amino acid levels in forages and horses." Useful background on variation in forage amino-acid profiles and the particular importance of amino acids to growing horses.
American Association of Equine Practitioners
- American Association of Equine Practitioners. "Help Your Foal Grow with Proper Nutrition." Practical guidance on feeding foals, including forage, balanced concentrates, weighing feed, dividing meals, vitamins and minerals, water and avoiding overfeeding.