Putting Weight On Horses

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MooreAcres

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Hey all,

Okay heres the deal. My mare Sandi foaled almost two months ago. She was in awesome shape until about three weeks after Rebel was born. She isn't deathly skinny, but way thinner than I would ever like her to be. Her belly looks good, but you can feel (not see!!!) her ribs VERY easily and her spine and hipbones are highly visable. I wormed her last week with Ivermectin and am going to do a Panacure spurge this next week. Heres what she gets to eat...

1 (regular sized) butter tub of dry beet pulp

1/2 butter tub of orchard grass/alfalfa pellets

1 butter tub of LMF Development grain (for mare and foals)

1 full scoop (which is 1 ounce) of 100 Calories (basically a pure fat power that is used to put weight on horses)

Unlimited hay

* I put everything but the hay into a 8 quart bucket, fill it about half full with water and let it soak all night before I feed her. It practically fills the bucket. Shes getting almost as much as my friends full sized Appy mare who is also preggo.

Thats JUST BREAKFAST!!! At night she gets all of that PLUS an ounce scoop of vitamins.

What do you think will help? Dietary changes? Different wormer? What? I have no idea anymore. I've never had this problem. I am going to have her teeth checked, but she doesn't seem to have any issues eating.

Shes bred back for next year, so I need her to start gaining weight or it could be bad news for her and/or the foal.

Thanks
 
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My first thought where she's all this sudden dropped weight would make me think of a tooth problem. How old is she and when's the last time she got her teeth done? Maybe you can ad some alfalfa hay to her hay?
 
Get her teeth checked, maybe..

However..

Feed her more!

My mares with foals get A LOT and they need all of it. Mine would get 3 to 4 times that just at idle.. plus free choice hay..
 
Hey all,

Okay heres the deal. My mare Sandi foaled almost two months ago. She was in awesome shape until about three weeks after Rebel was born. She isn't deathly skinny, but way thinner than I would ever like her to be. Her belly looks good, but you can feel (not see!!!) her ribs VERY easily and her spine and hipbones are highly visable. I wormed her last week with Ivermectin and am going to do a Panacure spurge this next week. Heres what she gets to eat...

1 (regular sized) butter tub of dry beet pulp

1/2 butter tub of orchard grass/alfalfa pellets

1 butter tub of LMF Development grain (for mare and foals)

1 full scoop (which is 1 ounce) of 100 Calories (basically a pure fat power that is used to put weight on horses)

Unlimited hay

* I put everything but the hay into a 8 quart bucket, fill it about half full with water and let it soak all night before I feed her. It practically fills the bucket. Shes getting almost as much as my friends full sized Appy mare who is also preggo.

Thats JUST BREAKFAST!!! At night she gets all of that PLUS an ounce scoop of vitamins.

What do you think will help? Dietary changes? Different wormer? What? I have no idea anymore. I've never had this problem. I am going to have her teeth checked, but she doesn't seem to have any issues eating.

Shes bred back for next year, so I need her to start gaining weight or it could be bad news for her and/or the foal.

Thanks
Sounds like she needs both more protein and more calories. The nutritionist I work with says: thin on top (spine/hips), need more protein; thin through ribs, need more calories.

How big is your mare? Height? Weight? Age?

What size butter tub? 1# size or 3# size? What does the tag say for feeding directions on the mare/foal feed? Can you weigh your feed? Feeding by weight is better than by scoop.
 
I can tell you that you are not feeding that mare nearly enough! Of course, I don't know what size she is, but if she is thin, she is not getting nearly enough calories to maintain her weight and feed a foal too.

What you are feeding is fine, but I would at the very minimum, double it and probably triple it.
 
The mare is 9 years old and is 35" tall.

The butter tub is the normal 1lbs.

I will start to increase her grain intake tomorrow, along with a few more adjustments. Hopefully it will work.
 
OK Miss Buttertub lol......How ya doing Erin? Long time no see hugs (((((( ))))

Try this:

Go over to Walmart or Staples and get you a little cheapo scale and start weighing out your feed.

You might be very surprised. I never heard or thought of soaking over night. Could be you are soaking the calories right on out of your food but I don't know for sure but I wouldn't do that. You know with the heat coming on you could also be souring and spoiling it too doing that. A possiblity and getting the teeth looked at a good call there also. What brand food are you feeding by the way?

What about your hay quality and pasture? Is she grazing naturally enough?

I think what I would do in a case like this is your program is just obviously not working so I'd do a major over haul of the whole thing. Slowly of course. Could your mare just be a nervous horse?

And how's the baby?

I have one mare who is 34" and by golly when her babies hit about 3 months old her body goes to crap. Just kaboom like over night just that fast.

Last year I ended up with an early weaning because of it.
 
Could be you are soaking the calories right on out of your food but I don't know for sure but I wouldn't do that.
It doesn't quite work like that
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All processed grains can be watered down, along with many supplements. Watering the grain down can make it easier for the Mini to eat or more appetizing in some cases. I water Tonkas grain down, because he seems to like wet food better ... the other could care less as long as he gets something!!

I totally agree with getting a cheapy scale, or even a fish scale will work. I weigh all my grain out before starting to feed it, because 'scoops' just doesn't cut it. A grain will only work if you are feeding enough of it, so that the horse gets its needed minerals and vitamins.

I've never had to fatten a Mini up so I can't give you any suggestions (ours are on Equalizer, by Purina -- its a blend of the minerals/vitamins that they need, without the added fat since they DON'T need it!)

But I agree with having your mares teeth looked at; it can make all the difference in the world!!
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Good luck
 
don't forget, beyond what was said already, you can add veg. or corn oil to the feed to increase calories. You need to start out with small amounts so the horse doesn't end up with loose stools.
 
I'm trying to get weight back on my "hard keeper" right now, and I've been using a lot of what everyone is suggesting...grain (by weight), beet pulp, alfalfa cubes, corn oil and ground flaxseed.
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What I've noticed with him though is that he can lose weight very fast, but then putting it back on takes much more time. So, IMO, the dietary changes you're making now may take a while before you actually see it on her body. Good luck!
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I don't know what size your butter tubs are, but a combination grass/alfalfa pellet might be best changed to straight alfalfa pellet. My nursing mares get anywhere from 1/2 pound to 1 1/2 pounds alfalfa pellets morning and evening plus free choice hay or pasture plus a 'diet balancer' for alfalfa based hays to keep their minerals balanced.

I would advise a big increase in calories and alfalfa is one of the safest ways to do this.....with some grain or grass hay included to balance the calcium / phosphorus ratio.

Charlotte
 
Does she have salt blocks available and when has she had her teeth checked? I always keep a plain salt and a mineral salt out, because they will use both or will trade off, depending on what they need.
 
Erin,

I know you have a good worming rotation, but I would still take a fecal sample in to the vet -- Daryl found that his mare had a surprising wormload despite regular and proper worming.

But no matter, I would still increase her concentrates

(grain), since she's eating for three...
 
I would increase her feed too. Just so that she can get lots of fat in her. Also, the best way to get weight on mares with foals is to let them out on pasture. Maybe you can let her graze in a backyard for a few hours a day.

If she doesn't start gaining weight, I would have blood work done. I know of people on here who have lost mares to hyperlipidemia. I'm also battling with cushing's disease on a gelding. So now after this, I'm more adament about getting blood work done at the first sign of problems.
 
I have a few hard keepers here, 3 to be exact. I suggest way more grain. If you are giving her free choice hay cut the pellets up the grain.

Do you have grass she can have? Thats another way to boost up weight. Didnt catch what kind of hay you feed but how about some alfalfa?
 
Our broodmares with foals on them get fed alfalfa 2x a day. Each gets a 1/2 flake (5" thick), as well as free choice rye and they're on pasture.

For grain we feed Nutrena Senior and with 10 mares we make up about a 3 1/2 gallons in a 5 gallon bucket (they eat out of group pans) of very loose (sloppy) grain. If they're losing weight we add oil and beet pulp but that rarely happens here. They also get their pysillium in this, Fasttrack, etc.

It's important (IMHO) to feed broodmares well if you expect good fertility. She's feeding herself, a foal and if she's bred back another new life. At weaning I prefer to see a healthy weight on a mare - not fat but definitely not thin! As we wean at 4-6 months (September), they're going to be growing their winter coat and if bred back building the next foal! She needs the calories.

The only horses skinny here in June are the stallions that have been in breeding. For some reason between the breeding/pacing, etc., most of our guys get on the thin side - not from lack of feeding, but lack of eating.
 

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