Blogs

Good bye 2020

The solstice, the shortest day of the year is for me the real turning point of winter, the start of the New Year as the days begins to lengthen. On that day I always like to reflect (as I wait for the sun to finally appear over the horizon so I can go out and do chores!). 2020 was a terrible year for so many and I feel that every day in the reports we hear and the stories we tell and share. The way society dealt with the pandemic this year has both elated and depressed me. But for us here, 2020 was a great year. What...

Things you HAVE to know about Vitamin E.

Of all the lines on the nutritional analysis you can find on the bags of feed you might have in your feed room one line, in particular, has come under quite a bit of attention in the last few years: vitamin E. The last four or five years have seen some conclusive research on the importance of it and more importantly: how much our modern way of keeping horses has created a severe deficiency in a large number of them. If you hate reading all the way down to get the key messages I will make it easy for you in this case: Unless your horse is on...

What to feed growing foals- Part 3-the minerals.

Are my foals getting enough minerals in their diets? What of these new studies that say that foals and broodmare can really benefit from more Copper? Are my animals getting enough to ensure they have a long sound life ahead of them? Like any breeder and foal raiser, I ask myself those questions pretty regularly. We want the best start in life for our foals and I find myself pretty bewildered at the wide array of feed and supplements out there being offered and touted as the best solution to this niggling worry. But when I go looking for actual data on what foals actually need I am...

What to feed growing foals-Part 2, the proteins.

What should I feed my foals? How much? How do I know if it’s too much or not enough? Like any breeder and foal raiser, I ask myself those questions pretty regularly. We want the best start in life for our foals and I find myself pretty bewildered at the wide array of feed out there being offered and touted as the best solution to this niggling worry. But when I go looking for actual data on what foals actually need I am faced with a couple of challenges. the information in other blogs and articles are so vague that it is of no use. “Make sure the...

What to feed growing foals-Part 1, the source of nutrients.

New research shows that young horses do not need to be fed high calories or cereal-based supplement in order to grow well. For years we have supplemented our foals diet starting at about 3 months of age all the way to weaning and beyond with a combination of beet pulp, soaked alfalfa cubes, minerals, and some commercial diet formulated for foals (we use Hoffman developer-as it has no added grain or starches- more on that later). The idea was that beet pulp and alfalfa, being high in fibers, we were working with what nature intended for horses to eat but the added minerals and commercial diet supplements contributed...

You are enough!

One thing that bugs me is reading posts or ads for horses that are for sale (or  “looking for a new zip code”-as seems to be a popular way of saying things) it’s when I read that it’s because “I can’t do this horse justice “, or “this horse has too much potential. ” Now, I realize those might be formulas to make the horse seem more attractive than it might be in order to attract more attention but I really don’t like the sentiment. (Does it even work?) I don’t like to think that some owner thinks that if their horses are not out competing then it...

How tall will my horse be?

Perhaps the most common question we get as breeders is: "How tall will he be?" Can you actually predict the future height of a foal? The answer is yes you can predict its future height if you are willing to accept a range.  There is however NO methods that can give you a definite precise height (16.1 1/2!)  and we will see why. You will find a few rules of thumbs here and there (the string method and the cannon bone method are the most commonly used and mentioned- I will touch on that later) and a whole lot of anecdotal evidence of this and that. Some will...

From foal to maturity.

As foal mature they change of course, but how much? How can you tell what the foal you are looking at might look like at maturity? How do you train your eye to see into the future? One way is to look at a lot of foals as they mature and train your eye to see what changes and what stays the same. Here is some examples to practice on. Those are some of the foals we raised and we were able to get conformation pictures of later in life. The old adage 3 days, 3 months and 3yrs might be a fun one to remember but frankly,...

How do we breed for the amateur market?

With so many breeders focusing on breeding for the amateur market, I thought it would be an interesting exercise to define what WE mean by the term: “breeding for the dedicated amateur.” After all, here at Formosus, we breed for them, for you, we do not breed for ourselves, other breeders, breed associations, or for the judges. I think it is important to articulate this core value of our breeding program as it makes it clear to us and to others. So first of all: what are “amateurs riders”? If we look at what they have in common we can then find where we need to focus our...

Why are we making this so hard? (and so expensive!)

I read a discussion thread online the other day that made me sad on three levels. Someone (a somewhat experienced breeder and trainer) was asking how to best price her young warmblood gelding. By all indications, this was a good-minded young horse that was easily learning his A-B-Cs. Uncomplicated, willing, same horse at home than away: you know the type we would all like in our barn? I will add that he was also well-bred with proven, known bloodlines. Definitely not a shot in the dark here. The advice started pouring in and yes; I know that this is the internet and that the advice one can get...