Effect of two different nutritional programs on orthopedic alterations in mangalarga marchador foals

This study was carried out to verify the effects of two nutritional programs (TA: supplementation with concentrate plus mineral mix between two and 12 months of age, and TB: supplementation with concentrate plus mineral mix from weaning at 165 days of age to 12 months on growth parameters in 22 Mangalarga Marchador foals. Data recorded were: cortical index (CI), time of epiphyseal cartilage closure of distal metacarpus and proximal phalange, epiphysitis and flexural deformity occurrences and weight/height ratio (W/H). Body measurements were taken monthly and radiographs every two months. Animals were born from September 1993 to February 1994 and were allocated to treatments according to the following criteria: each two subsequent foals of the same sex, from the same stallion were randomly assigned to opposite treatments. Data from the randomized block design were submitted to analysis of variance and their means compared by F test. TA foals showed less epiphysitis until 272 days of age and better CI from 228 days on. W/H up to 2:1 did not influence epiphysitis occurrence. Feed restriction (TB) delayed epiphyseal cartilage closure of distal metacarpus and proximal phalanx. No flexural limb deformity was observed in foals on either treatment.