Influence of Calcium and Magnesium Supplementation on Foal Growth Parameters
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Date
2024-12
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
Adequate nutrition is vital in promoting foal growth and development. Essential minerals such as calcium and magnesium play an important role in this early stage of life. To evaluate the influence of calcium and magnesium supplementation on foal growth and development, eight Quarter Horse foals were blocked by gender (5 males, 3 females) and randomly assigned to a treatment (TRT) or control (CTL) group. Foals and their dams were kept in outdoor group housing at The Ohio State University Equine Facility and had access to shelter, forage, and water ad libitum. A commercial feed supplement was fed in a crossover design for 28d with a 14d washout period between diets. Body weight, body length, body condition score, topline score, wither height, hip height, girth circumference, upper leg length, lower leg length, cannon circumference, toe growth, and hoof width were assessed weekly. Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED and PROC CORR in SAS v.9.4. There were no differences in any of the growth measurements due to supplementation (p > 0.05). However, there were several differences in growth measurements due to foal gender. Colts were heavier compared to fillies (458.72 ± 5.56lb vs 409.96 ± 7.18lb, p < 0.0001). Colts were taller at the withers compared to fillies(119.96 ± 0.58cm vs. 115.49 ± 0.75cm, p < 0.0001) but not different in hip height. As expected,
there were several positive correlations among growth measurements. Additional studies with increased periods of supplementation are needed to further evaluate differences in foal growth.
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Keywords
Calcium, foal, growth