Feed News Quarterly
Understanding The Basics
Feeding your horse: Choosing the right feed
Micronizing: Improved feed efficiency
Why is fibre so important to horses
Vitamins and Minerals in horses
What is digestible energy in horse feed
Discipline related
Common Equine Ailments
Laminitis - Feeding the Laminitic Horse
Feeding your horse after colic
Ulcers in horses:Why and what to do?
Joint structures and problems arising from their failure
Breeding
Management Issues
Pasture management for horses with metabolic disorders
Energy requirements of a racehorse
Bringing horses back to work after a spell
Feeding horses during a drought
Feed Supplementation
Feeding the stallion
The goal of any breeding program is to produce strong sound foals. To do this there are several factors involved including genetics, environment and nutrition. Nutrition is a critical piece of any successful breeding operation and must be considered at every level: stallions, mares and foals. In part one of this 3 part series on feeding the stud farm we will focus on feeding the stallion.
The stallion is expected to be in top health, physically fit and able to perform on demand when a mare arrives at the breeding shed or when semen is artificially collected. Nutrition certainly plays a key role in maintaining the health and condition of the stallion, before, during, and after the breeding season. Stallions generally have higher nutritional maintenance requirements than mares or geldings. The energy requirement of the stallion during the breeding season depends on his breeding or collection frequency. Breeding stallions, on the average, have daily nutrient requirements that are 25% above maintenance of a mature stallion during the off season. To meet the increased nutrient requirements associated with the breeding season, stallions should be provided a properly balanced concentrate.
On average stallions will need a combination of roughage and concentrate ranging from 1.5% to 2.5% of bodyweight daily. It is important to select a concentrated feed such as HYGAIN® GROTORQUE®, that when fed at levels to maintain weight and support activity, will also meet protein, mineral and vitamin requirements.
Routine evaluation of your stallion's body condition can be an effective tool for determining if you are underfeeding or over feeding your stallion. An extremely thin stallion may not have the energy stores needed to make it through an active breeding season without compromising performance and fertility. Similarly, the stallion should not be allowed to become fat. Fat-supplemented concentrates can be very practical and beneficial for old stallions that may tend to be thin and for horses that are extremely active. The fat supplemented feeds provide more energy than a traditional cereal grain based concentrate.
Ideally, stallions should be maintained in a moderate body condition year round. A moderate body condition will provide enough fat cover over the ribs, making them hard to see, but still easy to palpate. The withers will appear
rounded and the shoulders and neck will blend smoothly into the body. Some stallions may lose weight during a breeding season while others are able to maintain themselves in good condition. For stallions that tend to lose condition, a higher degree of body fatness should be established before the breeding season to ensure stallions do not become too thin during the season.
Recent research has revealed the benefits of supplementing stallions with Omega 3 fatty acids. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; an Omega 3 fatty acid) has been shown to significantly increase the number of sperm per ejaculate, increase motility of sperm and decrease dead and abnormal sperm compared to non-supplemented stallions.
Supplementation with DHA also increases the number of motile sperm after cooled or frozen storage. A further improvement in stallion semen quality (motility, longevity, morphology as well as total sperm count) has been shown after dietary intake of antioxidants in combination with Omega 3 fatty acids. Vitamin E is the primary antioxidant in seminal cell membranes and acts as a protector against oxidative stress. Antioxidants in seminal plasma protect sperm against oxidative stress which may be induced by the cooling and freezing process used in the transportation of equine semen. All of the HYGAIN® Stud Range (HYGAIN® BALANCED®, HYGAIN® GROTORQUE®, HYGAIN® PRODIGY® and HYGAIN® STUDTORQUE®) contain quality sources of omega 3 fatty acids and Natural Vitamin E.
During the off season most stallions can be maintained on good quality forage and a concentrated vitamin and mineral pellet such as HYGAIN® BALANCED®. During the breeding season most stallions require additional grain supplementation to maintain body condition and energy levels. HYGAIN® GROTORQUE® is a concentrated, micronized sweet feed that contains quality protein for fertility and reproduction, essential amino acids for muscle building, and Bio-Mos® for optimum gut health. The pellet in HYGAIN® GROTORQUE® provides the carrier for the minerals and vitamins ensuring even distribution throughout the feed and preventing separation in the feed bin, which is especially important for those picky stallions. HYGAIN® GROTORQUE® may be fed with grain such as oats or HYGAIN® MICRBARLEY® to provide additional energy.
The most important aspect of stallion nutrition management is feeding a balanced diet and realizing that there are huge variations in energy intake required to maintain adequate body condition from one stallion to another. A balanced ration of good quality hay and grain fed to maintain optimum body condition is the key to successful stallion nutrition management.
For more information of feeding the stallion please contact HY GAIN FEEDS on 1300 HYGAIN (494246) or email us.
