Moth and Minerals and Water

When my new Fell Pony stud colt Globetrotter Moth arrived from England, I was pleased that he was content with the hay I had to feed him, and he learned quickly where water was available. I was also pleased at how sensible he was about going into the shed in his paddock where the free choice salt and minerals are available. I wasn’t too surprised then that the first few days into his life here went well. And then one day, he wasn’t right.

Stud colt Globetrotter Moth investigating the loose free choice minerals shortly after arrival.

I checked him before dark, and he was lying down and uninterested in a handful of green grass. Not a good sign! I went into emergency mode and within a few hours, he was back to normal after several heavy doses of probiotics. Then I began wondering what had happened. I concluded it had to do with water and minerals.

For most of the year, the waterers for the ponies are fed by spring water. Sometimes, though, well water is in the pipeline when the spring can’t keep up with the number of cattle and other animals on the ranch’s water system. The spring water has been tested as the best quality in our area; the well water is heavier in minerals. I have noticed that my ponies change how they use their free choice minerals when the water is switched from one type to the other.

On the day when Moth didn’t feel well, the water had been switched from the spring to the well. I realized he hadn’t had time to learn to use the free choice minerals to keep his system balanced when the mineral content of the water changed. Sure enough, while Moth had been willing to go into the shed where the mineral feeders are, he hadn’t used them. I made sure he had spring water as well as well water as he recovered.

A few weeks later, after it was clear that Moth was using the minerals, I weaned him back onto well water only when I also saw him drinking it regularly. I checked him several times, and sure enough he did fine. I was very thankful with how sensible he was about learning to use the minerals. And I was thankful for free choice minerals and that the ponies use them to keep their systems balanced. I can’t begin to adjust their mineral supplements as well as they can do it for themselves.

© Jenifer Morrissey, 2024