One of my minis has a big belly.

[seattle]

I have a small yearling mini and she has a big belly that drops down. Our other mini is fine...it's just the one that is significant. I feed them the recommended amount of Purina Equine Junior per day, as well as free choice high quality hay. They get a salt block and plenty of fresh water. What am I doing wrong??? I had such a good handle on their food for a while (these are my first minis), but now with fall approaching, the belly has gotten bigger. Can someone please offer some suggestions? Thanks so much!

 

[chandab]

What is your deworming schedule for your minis? With youngsters, worms can be a problem.

Are you sure you're feeding enough of the Equine Jr? Weight tapes don't work very well on minis, so if that is how you estimated her weight, it could be off and she's not getting enough.

So, others can help you more... How big are your minis? And, how much are you actually feeding them?

 

[seattle]

I've actually decreased the amount of Equine Junior I'm feeding them because I thought they were looking to be a good weight verging on looking a bit plump...so maybe that's what's backfiring on me. Maybe I should just stick at one amount of Equine Jr. and not decrease it. I just wormed them, so that should not be the problem.

What is your deworming schedule for your minis? With youngsters, worms can be a problem.

Are you sure you're feeding enough of the Equine Jr? Weight tapes don't work very well on minis, so if that is how you estimated her weight, it could be off and she's not getting enough.

So, others can help you more... How big are your minis? And, how much are you actually feeding them?

 

[2minis4us]

Is she getting enough exercise ? If not I would decrease the amount of hay and make sure you are feeding enough of the Equine Jr, it will not give her a pot belly.

Worm her if she needs it.

 

[cretahillsgal]

All mine eat more than the recommended ammount of Equine Jr. Getting fat will not give them a belly. If I were you I would up the ammount of Equine Jr she is getting back to what it was previously or even more.

My weanlings started to get bellies on them when they were on SafeChoice and hay. So I switched them over to the Eq Jr. They get free choice Eq Jr. As much as they want to eat. Plus some good grass hay, but they dont eat much hay. I've noticed a huge difference in the way they look just in 2 weeks.

What was she last wormed with? And when?

 

[Marty]

Worms, ulcers, and eating dirt will contribute to giving any horse a big belly that hangs down like that. So will coarse hay.

I usually treat my babies for ulcers right before I begin to wean them and keep them on something for ulcers for about 40 days just in case.

 

[ohmt]

I'm with cretahillsgal-i have found that I have to give a bit more than the recommended amount of feed for all of the purina products, but especially their complete feeds. I think deworming her with a 5 day course of panacur would be a good idea if you haven't aready. I always make sure my younguns have some alfalfa as well as grass hay (I mix) because that helps with the bellies too. Have you had your hay tested by chance? Some hay can look good but still be barely there nutritionally-if it's just a little bit too much mature, the fiber in it can cause the big belly by keeping the horse from being able to digest properly-not just the hay, but everything else as well.

 

[AnnaC]

I would agree with the others - up her feed, probably to more than the recommended amount. I would not be worried about any yearling looking a bit more than 'tubby' going into the winter months.

Good luck, dont forget to let us know how she progresses.