Care and Management of Foal Creep Feeding
By Greg Powers, Equine Specialist
If one wants to start a heated discussion with equine producers, just bring up the topic of creep feeding. Most everyone in equine production has a different view of how and when, and yes or no, when it comes to creep feeding foals. As with many things in animal production, it all comes down to how well the practice is managed.
Most foals will start eating with their mothers during the first week of life. However, some mares are very dominant when it comes to eating habits and will not let the foal eat out of her feeder. So, how do you make sure the foal gets the nutrition it needs? You can build an enclosure large enough for the foal to get in to eat unbothered, and small enough so the adult equine is unable to enter. You can also use feeders designed with bars spaced across the top so only the small muzzle of a foal can reach through and retrieve feed. If labor is ample, you can separate the foal for a short period of time and let it eat while its mother eats on the opposite side of the fence. This works to help the foal become accustomed to being handled and will prepare it for separation at weaning time. Manually opening the foals’ mouth and inserting feed may need to be done to start more timid babies on creep.
The mare will usually peak in milk production around 60 days after parturition. You may also be rebreeding her at 9 or 30 days. If the mare is struggling to produce adequate milk for her vigorous foal, she may not be able to produce enough hormones for estrus and maintain a resulting pregnancy. Creep feeding the foal can reduce the amount of milk needed from the mare during nursing and will provide the extra calories the foal needs to maintain good health. Thus, creep feeding the foal can help manage the pregnancy rates in the broodmare band.
It is important to use a pelleted or extruded product when creep feeding. This will provide easy eating for the foal with inadequate teeth to chew grain and break seed coats. You also want it to be highly fortified because when a foal is born, trace minerals have been stored in its liver. If a mare is not fed a properly fortified diet during pregnancy, the foal may not have sufficient stores of trace minerals in the liver to stay healthy. Mare’s milk will lack proper trace minerals a foal will need. Creep feeding may help correct this situation. Once you have the foal eating, it allows you a vehicle to transport any needed deworming or medication.
Products used for creep feeding should reflect ingredients that can be digested by the enzyme system of a young foal. A mare’s milk is specifically designed to be digested by a foal's enzymes while heavy amounts of plant proteins and cellulose may not be digested efficiently. Gradually this changes and at around 90 days the foal can begin to digest more plant origin feeds.
By creep feeding the foal, you are starting a process where the foal can be weaned early. Weaning early can keep a foal from learning unwanted behavior and can reduce the stress of milking from the mare. It can also be used as a way to keep the mare in better body condition and prepare her for the next baby she should be carrying at this time. It is preferable to have foals weaned by 120 to 180 days of age. However, some show operations may wean at 90 to 100 days of age. Creeping is a necessity for these earlier weaned foals.
Creep feeding the foal can be a very good management tool for your equine operation. However, you must weigh the benefits and labor required with what is available. Personally, I like to start creep feeding my foals at 45 to 60 days of age. You don’t want the foal to become too fat and stress its joints, but you do want it ready to wean and readily eating an amount to sustain itself. At this stage, you can supervise the foal’s intake more easily, thereby decreasing the possibility of problems with enterotoxaemia and diarrhea. When the foal is eating 2% to 2.5 % of its body weight in creep, it is generally ready to be weaned. Creep feed or not, we always need to be cognizant of the body condition of our mares and foals. Good luck with your foals this year.