<p><b><span></span></b><span>Finally January comes to bring an end to the cool and humid late autumn months. The sun has set off on its way towards summer in the northern hemisphere, but still has a long way to go before we see the first signs of green appearing in our pastures. Foals born last summer were taken from their mothers, and have for several months had to live and develop on rations which you as a breeder have formulated. </span></p>
<p><span>&nbsp;Most half-to-one year olds have acceptable development, but it is still common to see yearlings that are too much on the thin side at this time of year. This will be because they have had difficulty adapting to the herd to which they belong, have problems with intestinal parasites, or are temporarily struggling with their teeth. </span></p>
<p><span>&nbsp;January is a good time to closely inspect your foals. First of all you have to judge the body condition. A foal should not be fat quite, but still have rounded body forms as a result of good muscle development. This is best assessed by close examination of the ribs and the back with your fingers. <br /> Regular inspection of the mouth of young foals is the best way to discover and, if necessary, initiate treatment of teeth problems which potentially will reduce feed intake and reduce growth.<br /> <br />Foals grow a lot during the first winter and may need more feed than might be expected in order to develop harmoniously. Adult body weight for a horse is reached at about 3 years of age. It is determined both by the nutrition given when young, and also by the individual genes for growth that the foal inherits. There is a considerable variation in genetic growth potential within most horse breeds. Foals with the growth potential to become large relative to the average size of the breed often tend, in fact, to be thin, while those with a lower growth potential may more easily accumulate fat and tend to be on the “round” side. </span></p>
<p><span>&nbsp;During the first winter, it is not easy for a breeder to know for certain to which group a colt or filly belongs. We therefore recommend that you invest time and careful examination in assessing the development of each foal, adjusting their ration to match observed weight development and, in particular, correcting the feeding in case the horse has become too thin.</span></p>
<p><span>&nbsp;Young horses are particularly susceptible to intestinal parasites, since immunity takes time to develop. You should therefore have a systematic approach when combating parasites and take care to treat all young horses. The parasite load for horses varies regionally, and your treatment program should be made in consultation with a local veterinarian. </span></p>
<p><span> There are clear advantages in keeping your young horses outside with access to exercise areas. Water must always be available, and they should have free access to forage, whether it is hay or haylage, particularly in the coldest parts of winter. Individual feeding of concentrates gives the best opportunity to correct differences in growth and development, and “help” foals that are not growing at an expected rate because of competition in the herd. You should give concentrate to each foal at least twice a day.<br /><br /> <img alt="winterplay pregmare500" src="images-joomla/stories/seasons/winterplay_pregmare500.jpg" height="413" width="550" /><br /> </span></p>
<p><span>In January and February many pregnant broodmares approach the last third of the gestation period. During this time, nutritional need increases week by week and it is important to adjust the feeding gradually and in accordance with requirement. Broodmares should be in good general condition, without being too fat. A locally adapted program of treatment for intestinal parasites is also important for broodmares.<br /> <br />PC-Horse will assist you in feeding rations which meet the needs of your broodmares, and secure the nutrients required for maintenance and development of your foals. The PC-Horse program makes it easy to adjust feeding to incorporate additional requirements incurred by the extra activity of foals kept outdoors, and gives you a good tool to compare the actual body weight development with predicted growth curves for the breed. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">&nbsp;</span><span>PC-Horse will assist you in feeding rations which meet the needs of your broodmares, and secure the nutrients required for maintenance and development of your foals. The PC-Horse program makes it easy to adjust feeding to the extra activity costs incurred when the foals are kept outdoors, and gives you a good tool to compare the actual body weight development with predicted growth curves for the breed.</span></p>