A holistic approach to raising horses is the best way to ensure your young horse becomes a healthy, well-balanced adult. Correct nutrition and exercise are essential to meeting a horse’s physical needs.
Your young horse’s nutritional requirements are met through eating a combination of roughage (60% to 95%) and concentrates (40% to 5%).
Correctly feeding a young horse is the first step in ensuring they remain healthy and receive all the nutrients needed to grow correctly. Horses grow at different rates, with heavy draft horses maturing slower than light breed horses.
It is best to be cautious with horses and treat medical issues during the early stages. Medical problems can quickly escalate and become very difficult or even impossible to treat.
Drafts and slow maturing breeds need longer to mature before being ridden and are often only ready at 5yrs. Fast maturing breeds like Arabs and Quarter Horses are ridden much younger.