I saw in another thread a connection with sweet feed young somewhat confined horses & cribbing. I'm wondering about my weanling fillies' cribbing/wood chewing habit. We feed them Frontrunner Phase 1, oats, hay free choice & mineral block. Does anyone have any opinions on this diet??
cribbing
- Thread starter jesse
- Start date
It all depends of what the horse is doing. If the horse is standing in the stall for 22 hours a day, think about how bored the fillies are. Get them out everyday for at least 8 hours, give the youngsters somthing to do. They like to play with traffic cones, barrels, balls, milk jugs with a few rocks in it.
I know your post was about feed, but cribbing, IMO, is caused by boredom more then to hot feed. If they are in a stall most of the time cut the protien and sweet feed down... give them less gas and more grass hay, but give them somthing to do.
JMO
Alan
I know your post was about feed, but cribbing, IMO, is caused by boredom more then to hot feed. If they are in a stall most of the time cut the protien and sweet feed down... give them less gas and more grass hay, but give them somthing to do.
JMO
Alan
Happy to help, you may also give them something else to chew on, a mineral block, a hanging lick that is harder for them to get in their mouth, therefore lasting longer. But sometimes once they start to chew it's hard to get them to quit.
While I think they have plenty of room, a 30x90 can only be explored so much. How old are they, have you started any training yet?
Alan
While I think they have plenty of room, a 30x90 can only be explored so much. How old are they, have you started any training yet?
Alan
jesse":2v7agnle said:
I have no knowledge about Frontrunner, but if it contains molasses it could be very well be contributing to your fillies wood chewing. I read an article in Equus magazine some time back that stated - the condensed version - that sweet feed can cause gastric upset and that the act of 'cribbing' causes a ph change in the stomach, thereby relieving the upset. This was borne out by a young colt that we had at the time. He was a very laid back, easy going horse, whom we were feeding a small amount of sweet feed - he nearly ate the barn! After reading the article, we cut out the sweet feed, and he stopped chewing wood. Of course, there is also the possibility that these fillies are the type of horse that 'needs a job', so to speak, to keep them from becoming bored and fretful. That is something only you can answer, but I would definitely check the label for molasses, then go from there. I hope this helps.
smart_slider
Well-known member
we have to weanling filly's who do the same thing when in stalls... we usually have them outside with free choice hay, equipride mineral, and grain sweetfeed 2ce a day... when it rains/snows, we have to bring them in and feed hay and sweetfeed; anyway, nomatter what we do, they still chew: they chew, but they don't windsuck/crib... sorry, i wrote alot... Merry Christmas!
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spinandslide
Well-known member
jesse":1wqlc0va said:
I think cribbing is more of a boredom issue then a feed issue. I would definantly find something to occupy their minds, a toy, something similar to those "pony pops" I see on TV.
Young horses tend to get bored so easily..like children!
chippie
Well-known member
Are they cribbing (swallowing air) or chewing the wood.
I read research that horses with ulcers are prone to start cribbing (windsucking). The cribbing produces endomorphins which gives the horse a good feeling.
I know what you are talking about the sweet feed = cribbing article/study. I'm not sure if I agree with it.
I think that maybe the sugar makes the horse fidgetty and it needs something to do. Like a kid that gets overactive on candy.
If they are chewing wood, try painting it with cheap lemon dish soap. It tastes nasty and will discourage the chewing.
Some horses just like to chew on wood like a person chewing on the end of a pen or pencil. The horses are just more destructive.
I read research that horses with ulcers are prone to start cribbing (windsucking). The cribbing produces endomorphins which gives the horse a good feeling.
I know what you are talking about the sweet feed = cribbing article/study. I'm not sure if I agree with it.
I think that maybe the sugar makes the horse fidgetty and it needs something to do. Like a kid that gets overactive on candy.
If they are chewing wood, try painting it with cheap lemon dish soap. It tastes nasty and will discourage the chewing.
Some horses just like to chew on wood like a person chewing on the end of a pen or pencil. The horses are just more destructive.
