Need advice... Cowboy hasn't gained back enough weight

[Trish]

Good evening forum family.

I wanted to see if ya'll had some advice or ideas on helping Cowboy put the weight back on that he lost during his battle with the Pigeon Fever. I have been feeding him Stradegy 2 full cups twice a day along with good quality coastal hay. With Stradegy should I need to add extra vitamins or Red Cell or change to alfalfa hay?

I'll try to post some pictures tomorrow evening.

He and Duke (the gelding) are doing great together. I make sure they eat in their own stalls to make sure Cowboy eats all his feed.

Thanks, Trish

 

[JMS Miniatures]

Poor Cowboy. Try weighing your food to see exactly how much you are feeding him. You may want to think about adding some alfalfa hay, certainly wouldn't hurt. I don't think Red Cell would help in this situation.

 

[chandab]

I wouldn't be surprised if fighting the illness put his system out of whack, so I'd probably look into a good probiotic to help him get his system straightened out again. I've been feed Smart Paks Smart Digest, and really like it; currently only one horse with issues, so he's the only one getting it. Also, would consider a course of ulcer meds; if he's not showing outward signs of ulcers, then something like U-Gard (I like the pellets) just to help get him normalized (if showing outward signs, then something stronger like Gastrogard).

Also, be sure you are feeding the recommended amount of Strategy; so know Cowboy's weight and weigh the feed and be sure how much you are feeding. [Not sure what Strategy weighs, but 4 cups daily is probably only about 1-1/3#. Most pelleted feeds run about 5oz per cup, maybe a touch more. (as long as you are talking about a standard dry measure kitchen cup).]

 

[REO]

Poor guy. He sure is lucky to have you! Yes I'd add some alfalfa. Maybe some beet pulp too?

 

[Trish]

Cowboy is my mini stallion he is 33.5 tall, very refined. He dropped some weight during the battle with the Pigeon Fever and also because of the Pit bull dog attack back in Feb. So he has been thru alot this year.

I've always used a household measuring cup to determine how much I'm feeding it seemed easier then a coffee can. I'll try weighing the feed tonight to determine how much a cup of feed weighs to see and compare with the instructions on the feed bag. I've never had a problem with keeping weight on any. This is probably because of what his body went thru. His output has not changed, so his body seems to be processing feed and hay normal.

I will look into beet pulp and alfalfa hay. I've got the gelding on a reg diet due to him being overweight. He is looking better.

Thanks for the tips.

 

[shorthorsemom]

I have a boy that dropped off some weight this year.. I was feeding aprox 1 cup Enrich 32 daily with fine grass hay and he dropped off over the topline with exercise. I didn't want to start feeding grain and alfalfa hay makes him hyper and since he usually is rather round, I didn't want to make any drastic changes in his feed, so I went looking for something to add . The feed store told me to top dress his Enrich 32 with Purina Ultium (like adding strategy mixed with beetpulp in a pellet). She told me to feed about 1/4 cup a day. My boy started looking better in a week and after about 3 weeks he has picked up nicely over his topline and has his butt shape back.

I am pleased with how he looks on this, his coat is shiny and his color looks great. Just my 2 cents on something that worked for us without a big change. best wishes. PS, I also feed a bit of ground flax too and probiotics on occasion.

 

[Trish]

I called my feed store in regards to the Purina Ultium. He asked me about Cowboy, what and how much I was feeding and determined I was on the right feeding program. I weighed the feed and I have been giving him 1 lb two times a day. We are going to switch over to the Purina Miniature and Pony feed, will blend over 7-10 days to make the change. I am adding 1/4lb more each feeding. Also my feed store guy said with all that Cowboy has gone thru it take about 30-45 days after the recovery for him to be back to his pre-illness weight.

Thanks, Trish and Cowboy

 

[chandab]

Sounds like you got some pretty good advice there. After all he's been through, I'd still consider some probiotics on a short-term basis, just to cover all your bases. [Medications often wipe out the good bacteria in the gut needed for digestive health.] If you don't want to be stuck with a huge tub of dry probiotics, then perhaps one of the types that comes as a paste, and just use a couple tubes to help his system normalize. Probios comes in paste form, I've bought it from several places, I think Horse.com has it: http://www.horse.com/item/probios-probiotic-gel/SLT121154/ [Probios comes in treat form, also, I don't know if its as effective as the paste, but my horses love the treats, so I use them after deworming: http://www.horse.com/item/probios-probiotic-horse-treats/e001589/ ] I've also used Smart-pak's SmartDigest, usually I get the powder, but I've used the paste a time or two: http://www.smartpakequine.com/smartdigest-ultra-paste-8686p.aspx?cm_vc=Search [if you decide to go with the paste, the directions are usually for full-size horses, so I give a 1/3 or 1/4 dose depending on size of mini.] Just a thought.

 

[BeamerCorgi]

You got some really great advice here. Flax, higher fat is the way to go. I strongly urge you to look at a probiotic that you can get through your vet. Equiotic is made from Live Horse bacteria. I have used it alot the last couple of months and it puts everyones else to shame. I had a real problem keeping weight on a couple and decided to do some research. The hind gut can cause tons of problems due to high carbos. The ph can get out of wack. Goto equiotic.com and watch the video and read the research. It is way different. I would be very surprised if you didn't get satisfactory results after following the high fat advice above and the wequiotic.