Delete..Have been helped c;

Kels309 · September 2011

Okay, well i have a horse who at the moment is kind of on the skinny side. We originally had two horses, but were not able to handle the other one, so we tried finding a home for him. A couple came along who told us that they would train the horse we kept in return for us giving them the other one. They seemed like nice and honest people so we agreed but when we came back at the end of the month nothing had been done with my horse and they had sold the other one. We took him home right away but he lost a decent amount of weight and alot of muscle and it didn't seem like they were feeding him. So i was wondering if anyone had any tips on how to help gain all of that back??? anything you know would be helpful im sure c: thank you

Garnet · September 2011

Let him/her graze and make sure he/she has plenty of hay and feed him/her oats a few times a day 0.0 That's what I did with the horse that I bought that was underweight and looked terrible. within a few months he was back to good weight =D

Kels309 · September 2011

Okay thanks thats what ive been doing im glad im moving in the right direction

Minx · September 2011

Try feeding vegitable oil in his feed. Bring him back to feed SLOWLY. You can send his system into shock. Find something with low nutrients and work him up to the stronger stuff. His system is basically eating itself alive and if he suddenly has a lot of food he will stuff himself and his body woulnt have anywhere to put soo much food. Work on getting a little bit of feed at a time into him and work on his muscle. Dont just get him fat. His muscle was being eaten up as well soo he will need to have a lot of work to get that put back up as well and usually its even harder to aquire. I have a mare who was starved for a while and even on pasture 24/7 without being worked every day she gets not skinny, but her muscles shrink to where her bones stick out

Kels309 · September 2011

okay i might try the oil. and i think its more muscle then now because the bone on his hip area is sticking out

Minx · September 2011

A halter trainer told me to use oil on horses whom you want to pick weight up on. But yea. Definitally try lunging over hilly areas to bring muscle back. Build his lessons up though.

Kels309 · September 2011

thanks for all your tips!

Minx · September 2011

No problem ;D Ive never personally rescued a starving horse but ive been around quite a few whom have been severely emanciated soo ive seen the tricks and tips of the trade in action.

Kels309 · September 2011

ya, i felt horrible when i picked him up

Jackdaw · September 2011

The first thing you want to do, to put weight back on a thin horse, is allow him full access to good pasture (if that is an option) and/or free choice hay. If you do have the ability to put him on pasture, make sure that there is enough grass for him to actually sustain himself. Many times a pasture will look green and lush when really most of it is roughs and weeds. Also, if he hasn't been pastured recently, introduce him to grazing gradually so he doesn't end up with colic or laminitis. Just put him out for an hour or so at first and slowly build up to full turnout over a few weeks. This will give his system time to adjust. If it isn't feasible to keep him turned out full time, or if your pastures are starting to get rather used up by this time of year, another option is to provide him free choice hay. Usually a quality grass hay is best. Just let him eat as much of it as he wants. I'd make sure to deworm him right away also. A horse with a heavy wormload will have a hard time gaining weight no matter what you feed him. And who knows what he may have picked up at those people's property or if they had him on any kind of deworming schedule. If he's still not picking up weight fast enough after you've tried the above mentioned things you could also- Add some beat pulp to his diet. That works wonderfully for packing on some extra weight. Add a small amount of oil to his diet. I've had luck with Weightbuilder in the past. A small amount of grain or pellets can help as well, but be careful not to overdue it. Make sure it's a quality horse feed and consult your vet on the proper amount to feed your horse based on the animals weight, age, health, ect. Hope this helps! Edited to add: Is he legitimately emaciated or just a bit underweight? Where would you estimate him on the Henneke Scale? If he is seriously malnourished you have to worry about re-feeding syndrome.

Kels309 · September 2011

thank-you!!

Mileysmybaby · September 2011

Jackdaw wrote:

The first thing you want to do, to put weight back on a thin horse, is allow him full access to good pasture (if that is an option) and/or free choice hay. If you do have the ability to put him on pasture, make sure that there is enough grass for him to actually sustain himself. Many times a pasture will look green and lush when really most of it is roughs and weeds. Also, if he hasn't been pastured recently, introduce him to grazing gradually so he doesn't end up with colic or laminitis. Just put him out for an hour or so at first and slowly build up to full turnout over a few weeks. This will give his system time to adjust. If it isn't feasible to keep him turned out full time, or if your pastures are starting to get rather used up by this time of year, another option is to provide him free choice hay. Usually a quality grass hay is best. Just let him eat as much of it as he wants. I'd make sure to deworm him right away also. A horse with a heavy wormload will have a hard time gaining weight no matter what you feed him. And who knows what he may have picked up at those people's property or if they had him on any kind of deworming schedule. If he's still not picking up weight fast enough after you've tried the above mentioned things you could also- Add some beat pulp to his diet. That works wonderfully for packing on some extra weight. Add a small amount of oil to his diet. I've had luck with Weightbuilder in the past. A small amount of grain or pellets can help as well, but be careful not to overdue it. Make sure it's a quality horse feed and consult your vet on the proper amount to feed your horse based on the animals weight, age, health, ect. Hope this helps! Edited to add: Is he legitimately emaciated or just a bit underweight? Where would you estimate him on the Henneke Scale? If he is seriously malnourished you have to worry about re-feeding syndrome.

Well said! With you,Vampy, and Garney around I have no need to post info xD

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Delete..Have been helped c;

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