Suggestions, my filly not interested in her creep feed

[hookedoneventing]

So my 8 week old filly is not at all interested in her creep feed, I do not have a seperate feeder, because I have heard that Mom will just destroy it, so I try and just feed her when Mom is eating. She would much rather eat Mom's food. I am offering her a mix of Seminole milk foal pellets and a little ration balancer. I am getting worried that she isnt going to get the nutrition she needs out of her creep feed. any thoughts or suggestions?

Mom is eating a mix of nutrena mare and foal and oats and beet pulp (this is not my mare, she is just with me until filly is weaned, so I didnt really want to change her feed that much, but could if I needed to for the sake of the baby). I did ad ration balancer to the mare.

[siegi b.]

In my opinion an 8-week old foal does not need its own concentrate. They will gradually get used to eating grain by stealing some here and there from their moms and by the time they're about 3.5 to 4 months old I start feeding them their own grain in the stall next to mom.
Good luck!

[stoicfish]

This might sound weird but I found that what the mom ate came through in the milk, taste wise. I found this out because my mare has an addiction to black licorice and the foal went nuts for it first time I offered it to him. I tried her milk after I feed her some and, yup tasted a bit like black licorice.
I also agree with the above advice, plus I like the Nutreana feed. But if you want to get the foal on your choice of food, try mixing it in with the mares other food, slowly increasing the amount. By the time the foal is another month older he will be used to the taste.
Btw, I have some really good articles about the importance of feeding the foals before they are weaned so the transition is not stressful (there are some other health issues too). But you want to be consistent in the food, as in the feed you get your foal used to now will be the one you want him on when he gets weaned and several months after. Do you want a 6 month old eating Seminole as a primary food?

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=14266&eID=140558
http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=300
http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=6866
http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=3606

[Fairview Horse Center]

I agree.

Babies do not need to eat creep feed, unless you are having a growth problem.

I found that getting babies to eat has a lot to do with the bucket you offer it in. The best are these small, shallow, wide round buckets. http://www.doversaddlery.com/product.asp?pn=X1-2850&ids=750313247

I hang one on the wall about 6' away from mom's bucket, and lower when baby is about a week or 2 old. Baby plays with the bucket when she is bored in the stall. Begins to trust it. Each meal, I give the foal about 1 cup of mom's feed in it. Mom eats it after she finishes her own. Baby gets curious, and begins after a few weeks to eat from her little bucket, while mom eats her meal. Mom continues to clean up as soon as she finishes, and that helps to teach baby if she wants it, she better eat it now, or it won't be there.

By the time you wean, baby is chowing down her bucket, and happy to graduate to the "big" girls bucket.

[sfstable]

I agree.

Babies do not need to eat creep feed, unless you are having a growth problem.

I found that getting babies to eat has a lot to do with the bucket you offer it in. The best are these small, shallow, wide round buckets. http://www.doversaddlery.com/product.asp?pn=X1-2850&ids=750313247

I hang one on the wall about 6' away from mom's bucket, and lower when baby is about a week or 2 old. Baby plays with the bucket when she is bored in the stall. Begins to trust it. Each meal, I give the foal about 1 cup of mom's feed in it. Mom eats it after she finishes her own. Baby gets curious, and begins after a few weeks to eat from her little bucket, while mom eats her meal. Mom continues to clean up as soon as she finishes, and that helps to teach baby if she wants it, she better eat it now, or it won't be there.

By the time you wean, baby is chowing down her bucket, and happy to graduate to the "big" girls bucket.

I do the same as above except I use the "flat back" version of the bucket.