need alittle help with new mini

[rimmerpaints]

I bought this mini for nothing from action i was afraid he would have been sent to a killer so my hubby and I bought him. He is very under weight but a sweet thing. They told me they only feed him a hand full of steamed oats a day and thats it. He is so thin and you see his ribs and spin. Taking him to our vet to be checked and vaccinated but didnt know if anyone can help till i get him to the vet. I gave him a handfull of sweetfeed this morning and some hay. Im going to try to get his weight up and gradually get him up to a small scoop of feed twice a day. Starting small right now cuz i dont want to founder him. I did worm him he looks terrible wormy. He also looks has a spot on right eye that makes me worry alittle about his vision. Can you give a mini a weight builder suppliment? I know i saved a racehorse and we feed him weight builder along with his feed and now he is beautiful,rideable and very loved. any help would be great im just worried about him. Thanks again

 

[jayne]

Bless you for saving this sweet guy! Only a handful or two of oats!!?? No wonder he was starving! I'm glad you're giving him some hay and being careful to build him up gradually. I bet if you searched the archives you can find lots of conversations about feeding up starved minis. I have seen it discussed many times. I really don't know about feeding starved ones (I always seem to get the FAT ones that need dieting!) but I am sure you came to the right place!

Thanks again for bringing him home. You are a saint for doing it!

Jayne

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Alfalfa is very good for underweight horses. I hope you are giving him good hay also? I would wait on vaccinations until you have his weight better.

I am not a fan of sweet feed because of the corn in it. Oats are better.

Good luck! Keep us posted on his progress.

 

[chandab]

I know you want him to be healthy and have more weight, but going slow is best. Give good feed a chance to work before adding weight supplements, you might be surprised at just how fast he gains weight just getting the proper feed in the proper amounts. Stick with good hay to start, then slowly add oats or your preferred grain (as he was already getting oats, I might stick with that, as he's already used to it). And, remember initially, small meals frequently would be best, if possible.

Good luck and can't wait to see pics of your little guy.

 

[Charlotte]

Bless you for taking the little guy in.

As for feeding starved horses, recent studies have found alfalfa to be the safest way to 'refeed' them. Small amounts many times per day, gradually increasing the amount.

Also, you probably want to hold off on deworming or vaccinating untill his condition improves. His immune system may be depressed and wouldn't respond to vaccinations but he might have a reaction to the vaccination because of his weak condition. Consult with your vet as to when to begin deworming.

Good luck with your little one.

Charlotte

 

[AppyLover2]

I don't have any advice, just wanted to say thank you for helping this little fella. Would love to see pictures.

 

[rimmerpaints]

I was always told to be careful of Alfalfa due to it will founder a horse so im very skitish of Alfalfa. We are feeding very good hay. My husband cuts our hay. My dad has 250 ac. of pasture land my husband cuts for hay. We keep what we need and sale the rest. We didnt have that much to sale this yr due to 2nd cut wasnt that great. It was so dry this summer. The hay we feed is beans and millet mixed with bermuda. The horses love it and its high in protein. Im am feeding him very very slow. I will take pics of him tomorrow for you to see. He is so sweet. I will also hold off on getting him vaccinated and weight suppliment also. I did get a bag of crimped oats and mixed alittle performance sweet feed in but not much at all. I gave him a handful of oats and half a hand full of performance feed and feed him twice today. I will keep it like this for about two or three days then increase alittle more. As far as thanking me i do appriciate your support. I love horses and couldnt stand to see him go to a killer and thats all that would have bought him. I paid 100 dollars for him and i had someone tell me after i paid i was crazy. I told them no im not 100 dollars is worth his life plus some! I did watch horses go for nothing and most were in ok condition but he was so tiny and so thin. Its actually sad someone could do this

 

[wwminis]

I was always told to be careful of Alfalfa due to it will founder a horse so im very skitish of Alfalfa. We are feeding very good hay. My husband cuts our hay. My dad has 250 ac. of pasture land my husband cuts for hay. We keep what we need and sale the rest. We didnt have that much to sale this yr due to 2nd cut wasnt that great. It was so dry this summer. The hay we feed is beans and millet mixed with bermuda. The horses love it and its high in protein. Im am feeding him very very slow. I will take pics of him tomorrow for you to see. He is so sweet. I will also hold off on getting him vaccinated and weight suppliment also. I did get a bag of crimped oats and mixed alittle performance sweet feed in but not much at all. I gave him a handful of oats and half a hand full of performance feed and feed him twice today. I will keep it like this for about two or three days then increase alittle more. As far as thanking me i do appriciate your support. I love horses and couldnt stand to see him go to a killer and thats all that would have bought him. I paid 100 dollars for him and i had someone tell me after i paid i was crazy. I told them no im not 100 dollars is worth his life plus some! I did watch horses go for nothing and most were in ok condition but he was so tiny and so thin. Its actually sad someone could do this

Hi rimmerpaints,

Welcome to LB!

I sent you a PM!

Bill

 

[Kellie in OR]

Here is a good on refeeding a starved horse, much research went into it.

http://www.completerider.com/nutrition.htm

http://www.petfinder.com/for-shelters/back-from-the-brink.html?printer_friendly=1

 

[rimmerpaints]

Thanks you so much for your help Bill about the hay and also go the refeeding articles Kellie. I will post pics of my little man tomorrow.

 

[Joanne]

We went through this with a starving mare we received this year. As mentioned, alfalfa is the feed of choice. Too many concentrates can cause them to "crash and burn", so be careful.

Try to remember that this starvation did not happen overnight and it will take a few months to get him back to his normal weight. It is a slow process. Good luck. I certainly know what you are going through.

 

[rimmerpaints]

i posted pics of him if you would like to go see. Thanks for all the help again!

 

[rockin r]

Bless you for taking the little guy in.

As for feeding starved horses, recent studies have found alfalfa to be the safest way to 'refeed' them. Small amounts many times per day, gradually increasing the amount.

Also, you probably want to hold off on deworming or vaccinating untill his condition improves. His immune system may be depressed and wouldn't respond to vaccinations but he might have a reaction to the vaccination because of his weak condition. Consult with your vet as to when to begin deworming.

Good luck with your little one.

Charlotte

I agree...When we got Gunny, most of you saw the pics, it was a slow process to the weight on him. We did not vac or worm him till he put on some weight and the vet thought it was safe to do so. I swear by alfalfa. I have had only one horse, a full size that alfalfa gave him a very loose stool. All of my horses mini and full size get alfalfa as their hay. Good Luck and let us know how he is doing..