Feeding underweight 2yr old *also in breeding

[TPO]

Looking for feeding advice for an underweight 2yr old QH. He arrived last week and was most definitely NOT in the condition he should have been. I have lots of grass; it’s long, old grass so not short, sweet, sugary grass so Dr Green will work his magic but I feel he needs something else to help him out having clearly gone without for a length of time. My vet has seen him, feet are getting done this weekend and EDT has been contacted. I was told by breeder he’d been on a worming programme and has been done with Pramox and Equvalan this year, but then I’ve been told lots of things that aren’t ringing true now, however the whole yard is getting worm counted so he’ll get double checked too.

I’ve no idea how to get photos from my phone onto HHO without using photobucket but can email them if anyone else could post them. I’ve had him a week and he has put on weight with the grass and adlib good quality hay at night. He’d allegedly had bucket feeds but he seems confused by the concept… I keep my horses barefoot so in his defence the food offered isn’t very tempting: hi-fi unmolassed, linseed, alphabeet or Fast Fibre as a carrier for a balancer (Pro-Balance).

Ideally I’d like to avoid high starch/sugar/cereal feeds so looking for suggestions as I didn’t envisage being in this position with him. I’m not looking for a “quick fix” and am aware of the issues feeding underweight horses so just really looking for feed suggestions and experiences of anyone else that’s been in this position.

Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[NellRosk]

Unless he's really really skinny I would honestly just leave him and let the grass work it's magic so he can fill out at his own rate. If you're really worried then micronised linseed is amazing for putting on weight, along with speedibeet, alfa A (or non molassed chopped straw to pad it out a bit) and some soaked grass nuts.

 

[TPO]

Unless he's really really skinny I would honestly just leave him and let the grass work it's magic so he can fill out at his own rate. If you're really worried then micronised linseed is amazing for putting on weight, along with speedibeet, alfa A (or non molassed chopped straw to pad it out a bit) and some soaked grass nuts.

Thanks for your reply.

He is very underweight; I'd condition score 1.5/2 out of 10.

In almost every circumstance I'd say grass but feel he could do with a helping hand for now.

I've tried him with linseed & plain chaff and beet with no joy. Wondering if it's worth trying something more tempting to give him the idea if bucket feeds and to get vit/mins into him.

Does anyone have opinions and/or experiences of Suregrow or equilibrium growth? Would just be short term use.

Thanks again

 

[NellRosk]

I haven't had any experience with Suregrow but have heard good things so can give it a go! I used calm and condition on my youngster when I first got her and that really worked, although it is just mainly beet and linseed I think. They seem to love it though so you could try that too?

 

[soloequestrian]

If the horse is really bad, have a look at 'refeeding syndrome' - you need to be very careful with reintroducing food, especially larger quantities of food, if there has been any sort of starvation or malnutrition over a period of time. Rescue centres might be best placed to advise if the horse is in a real state.

 

[TPO]

Thanks Soloequestrian; not quite that bad but had read up on it anyway. Thanks

 

[Pearlsasinger]

If the horse is really bad, have a look at 'refeeding syndrome' - you need to be very careful with reintroducing food, especially larger quantities of food, if there has been any sort of starvation or malnutrition over a period of time. Rescue centres might be best placed to advise if the horse is in a real state.

Yes, please do be careful. I once bought a mare who had been rescued by her breeder from the next owner , iyswim. The mare had had everything you could think of thrown at her to help her put weight on. Several years down the line, we discovered that she had become completely intolerant of a cereals and refined sugar. They made her seriously ill and definitely compromised her quality of life. She was so bad that even a polo mint given by a passer-by would set off her reactions.
We recently bought an underweight 3 yr old, although more 1 1/2 - 2 out of 5. 12 months of good grass and hay with soaked grassnuts as necessary (fed with grass chaff) have seen her gain weight steadily and she is bang on target now.

 

[twiggy2]

do you have an pictures?

 

[jm2k]

Micronised linseed or soya meal, increase and build up to 1kg a day. Add this to either grass pellets or an unmollased beet as a mash base. Soak and serve well watered. Add a little alfalfa oil chaff if you need to slow the eating rate down but this is not needed if you want to get the calories in but keep within the weight of feed giving at each meal. Nutrition rate is not worth adding but only to bulk out and encourage them to take more time to eat.
add spirulina (the main ingredient in Equitop Myoplast) and lysine.
Split into several small meals, no more than 3-4 kg each meal.
Possible to add rice bran (Equi-jewels).
Consider also a balancer to ensure all vits/mins are included, esp Vit E, such as top spec or blue chip pro.

I never feed any cereals or haylage.

My diets are high fibre, low sugars/starch (deal with exracers borderline anorexic thin and usual ulcers!)

Introduce everything slowly and build up to the 3-4 kg dry weight meal so you dont overdo the gut / stomach with too much too soon!

Bear in mind, it takes a very long time to gain weight, but super quick to lose it.
Take photo to compare once a week to see weight gain, not tapes or rely on eye to monitor.
My lad put weight on with photo but the weigh tape didnt move for 6 weeks! and my eyes would deceive me thinking he had sometimes lost weight but when comparing the photo's it was fine

 

[TPO]

Thanks for advice

He's not eating any chaff, beet, dry feed, soaked feed, damp feed, pellets or powder (ie linseed). Not interested in grated apple etc either but wolfing down grass and hay. So any advice on this appreciated!

I have photos but don't know how to upload - could email them to someone that does?

Already taking loads of pictures to track progress and changes abd everything else cute that he does!

Thanks again

 

[AmyMay]

Contact Maesfen on here. She's recently had a similar situation. The transformation in a few weeks has been amazing.

 

[NZJenny]

He's probably never had hard feed and doesn't know what to do with it. Can I suggest a plain lucerne chaff to start, with maybe some oats? Another really good idea, if you can, is to chaff the hay he is eating. He needs to recognise that what you are putting in front of him is food. Apples, processed feeds, soy or copra or anything processed like that probably just don't register with him as food.

I purchased a young horse last year, who while she wasn't starved, had certainly never been bucket fed and hadn't a clue! It didn't take her long though. Once he has the idea, then you can start to add some other stuff - probably a good vitamin/mineral mix, but I am a fan of just feeding basics, especially when it comes to babies. Good luck and I look forward to seeing photos in a few months time.

 

[Maesfen]

Thanks for advice

He's not eating any chaff, beet, dry feed, soaked feed, damp feed, pellets or powder (ie linseed). Not interested in grated apple etc either but wolfing down grass and hay. So any advice on this appreciated!

I have photos but don't know how to upload - could email them to someone that does?

Already taking loads of pictures to track progress and changes abd everything else cute that he does!

Thanks again

That was the same for Poppy when I had her. I had the luxury of a stable so while she was kept separate for a while she had ad lib hay, I grazed her in hand several times a day (at least 45 min's at a time) and I gave her very small feeds of a plain chaff mixed with Speedibeet and a few Countrywide pony nuts sprinkled in. By small I mean altogether it was less than a double handful. At first, she wouldn't touch them but I just left them with her; if there was any left at her next feed time I chucked it out and replaced with fresh. Within two days she was shouting for her food and every scrap was gone. By keeping it very small and not changing the ingredients, she got used to the taste and started enjoying it too so that I could start adding more to it (just some Suregrow I still had from Merlin) but if you keep changing things they'll never get used to the taste (it's like someone preferring one brand of baked beans, you give them another which they don't like as much but if you go back to the first brand immediately, they'll never get used to the new taste if that makes sense!) When I did turn her out into a small paddock on her own she was still given a feed out there which she always ate and then one day she decided to jump the rails into the other fillies! Four foot high and not a mark on her - or them! Since then she has been out 24/7 and she is only having grass because she suddenly blossomed and knowing there's pony in her somewhere I didn't want to get her over topped too quickly. She's changed a lot already in a very short time.

Contact Maesfen on here. She's recently had a similar situation. The transformation in a few weeks has been amazing.

Thanks AM, here are the before and after pics, she's improving all the time.

when she came off the trailer -

about four days later while I was grazing her in hand -

about a fortnight ago now; hopefully you can see what I mean about ballooning hence the no extra feed! - If she needed it, I would give it but she doesn't and as she's a long yearling (nearly two we think) her joints are already formed, nothing I can give her will improve them now because of the bad start she had and our grass is old turf so has a fair selection of different minerals and herbs in it, but when she does have feeds again I will give her a balancer if nothing else and Suregrow is a very good one; luckily, it's also the most reasonable one too!

 

[TPO]

Thanks for the replies.

While I was trying with the chaff and stud balancer another livery stuck in her bucket of pasture mix and he started munching straight away. Funny that, bit like me with chocolate instead of salad! I intervened and he only had a couple of small mouthfuls but straight away he started eating out of his buckets and has been eating his feeds ever since. He even insisted on trying a carrot that was in my pocket for the others so he's getting the idea if this food thing!

It's hard to see on my phone but I think he looked worse than your filly unfortunately. It's day 14 today and he looks much better; he's still ribby but we are getting there slowly. Nearly all of the winter coat he arrived with (in June!) has shedded and been groomed out, hooves trimmed and EDT out tomorrow plus worm count submitted. We'll get there!

I'll try and figure out this photo thing!

 

[TPO]

Just unloaded- 12/06/14

First time in his new stable

This is from last Saturday, so day 9, after a much needed hoof trim. He has massive ridges/event lines that I'd put down to worming but the expert opinion is malnutrition. I, shamefully, hadn't even considered that. Poor wee mite. Please excuse his rubbish bed, it had been lifted for his feet getting done and then he spilled a full bucket of water so he had his own indoor pool! He was exhausted after behaving perfectly to get his feet trimmed so needed a wee siesta!

Have also come to the conclusion, based on excessive tooth wear and overdeveloped neck muscle, that he'd been eating (or trying to) trees/bark. I'll try and get teeth photos (EDT out tomorrow) and hopefully time, gentle massage and exercises along with eating from the floor will rectify the neck issue.

 

[Maesfen]

Lol, believe me, the camera actually put weight on her, she was on a par with your boy in real life but had already had a week of better grazing before she arrived!

He's a nice boy and already showing some improvement; it does take time, no doubt about it and one day you'll suddenly look and think oooooh! I forgot that I also gave her some coarse mix to start her off and I'm sure that's what got her eager for feed after that; they both must have a sweet tooth!
I can't remember how big you said he was but the best thing about ponies being poor is it doesn't take too much for them to improve once their worms/diet/grazing has been sorted.
Do please keep posting the pics (now you know you can!) it's always interesting to catch up with them. I've just fetched my lot in for the farrier and it's funny how you notice growth or weight rates far more in a stable than when out in a field. Merlin has shot up a couple of inches and she is positively blooming and looking like a normal pony, she's grown a bit too; now if she can just grow to 15 hands that would suit me fine though I don't think she will; I'll have to do the string test when I go out next!

 

[TPO]

Sorry didn't mean to imply that she wasn't underweight just I genuinely can't see clearly on my phone screen!

Yes, the camera definitely does add weight (so I tell myself &#128521, I've never seen a horse in the flesh as underweight as Chip, that's not a rescue, and I've seen a few skinnies (including a TB I bought) before. You could actually see every vertebrae clearly. Poor wee chicken.

I was told he was 14.1(but then I've been told he was only running a but light after a growth spurt) although I'm not sure. Hi was thinking more around 13.1. He's supposed to make 15/15.1hh but I'll be happy if he makes 14.3 as he should seriously chunk out.

Now I've cracked the picture thing here are pictures of him next to a 15.1 and a (depending on who you ask!) 11.3-12.1 wee Welsh as a comparison. I'm useless at heights!

Day 1 - a wee hour out with company

Day 2

Field safe halter btw

 

[NZJenny]

Oh my goodness - poor baby. If you hadn't said a two year old, I would have thought yearling apart from the tail. Glad to hear and see you are making progress and so looking forward to seeing the "after" photos.

 

[sywell]

There is a danger in overfeeding fast growing young horses OCD can be a problem useable copper can help but care should be taken I would wait and watch let nature take its course. My vet says his biggest welfare problem is obese horses.

 

[TPO]

I'm not over feeding, not even close. I'm well aware about refeeding syndrome and how to introduce feed.

I'm sure no offence was meant but I've already made this point several times. I wasn't expecting this youngster to be so malnourished and underweight. The initial plan was to let nature and fibre run it's course but now everyone can see the pictures it's clear why it's evident that plan was not sufficient.

The thread was for feeding advice, specifically commercial stud balancers. Thanks to the forum I've got that sorted.

I'm grateful to everyone who has taken the time to reply and my question has been answered. Thank you