INFO ON FEEDING

[drdoolittle]

Hi all! I've noticed several threads about skinny horses and what to do to get weight back on them. I have experience in this, having taken on a SEVERELY emaciated yearling Arab filly several years ago. I researched looking for the SAFEST way to get weight on her, and got her to looking amazingly gorgeous within a few months.

I don't have photos, but what I did was feed her a mix of horse feed, calf manna, beet pulp pellets and alfalfa pellets 2x a day along with all the hay (2nd cut grass mix) that she wanted.

I now have 2 former pony ride ponies I bpught in September who also needed weight. I feed them each 1 cup of feed, 1/2 cup of calf manna, 1/2 cup beet pulp pellets and 1/2 cup alfalfa pellets 2x/day. I put out 5 flakes of hay for the 2 of them at both feedings.

ANY change in feeding must be done slowly and in small increments. Too much too fast could result in serious health problems or even death. Please always consult your veterinarian before making any drastic change to your horse's diet.

Hope this helps!!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

May be good to warn folks not to start that routine too quickly. Too much too soon and you could end up with a very sick or dead horse. A lot of skinny horses are full of parasites and possible dental problems. These problems could easily be identified and treated by a veterinarian.

 

[drdoolittle]

frustratedearthmother, I agree......I will add that! Thank you!

May be good to warn folks not to start that routine too quickly. Too much too soon and you could end up with a very sick or dead horse. A lot of skinny horses are full of parasites and possible dental problems. These problems could easily be identified and treated by a veterinarian.

frustratedearthmother, I agree......I will add that! Thank you!

 

[Baymule]

I have done that for Pearl, a Tennessee Walker mare we bought out of a slaughter pen. She is still thin. I even have her live culture yogurt to reset her digestive system because she had liquid farts. I’ve thrown everything at her, still thin. She was so skinny, so starved, no muscle mass, it made me wonder if she’d been that way all her life. Maybe there is no muscle to restore because she never had any. I am bumfuzzled. I’ve always been able to fatten up a horse, but not her. Since nothing was working, I now feed her the same as my other horses, free Feed Bermuda hay and 14% pellets in the evening. She still looks the same.

I’m thinking maybe the only thing that might fatten her up is grass, which I don’t have. We had the horse pasture forestry mulched and will plant grass in the spring. She’ll get grass, but it’s going to be awhile. We’ll see.

 

[HomesteaderWife]

Good info here- it is valuable for folks to know to not drastically try to fatten a horse up. And vet visits are so important to get their health evaluated, teeth checked, have a farrier evaluate feet. A good exam upon adoption is a great bet.