foal not eating or drinking - suggestions??

twisteddiamond

twisteddiamond

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i have posted this in breeding too just to see if anyone there has some other suggestions

so a brief history of the little guy, he was bought from travellers six months ago, he was only approx two months old when we got him (all they would say was he was born after easter, easter monday was the 25th of april, so we used that to guesstimate his age), he was eating hay and hard feed when we got him so is used to eating from a net/dish
two months ago he started sweating really badly all the time and lost a lot of weight, the vet was called, swabs were done as were full bloods and worm count, the worm count was average according to the vet, the bloods showed elevated enzymes, infection and some worm damage, the vet suggested a 5 day panacur, gave injectable antibiotics and to get him onto a supplement called event asap,
up until 3 days ago the vet was happy with his progress, he was a lot better, had put on weight (not as much as expected) but out of the blue he has stopped eating his feed and is only picking at his haylage, he hasnt drunk any water in his stable, but he is turned out during the day
the vet is stumped as in his words 'what we are doing should be working'
does anyone have any suggestions for tempting the little guy to eat and drink or suggestions on what else to look for that might be the cause

mince pies and mulled wine to anyone who got this far
 
What about really sloppy unmolassed sugar beet, that'll get the fluid intake up and most horses love the taste of the beet. A friend used to take very watery beet to competitions as her horse wouldn't drink water if he wasn't at home and it worked a treat. Positively messy though but worth a try. Good luck and let us know how things go. x
 
squirtlysmum said:
What about really sloppy unmolassed sugar beet, that'll get the fluid intake up and most horses love the taste of the beet. A friend used to take very watery beet to competitions as her horse wouldn't drink water if he wasn't at home and it worked a treat. Positively messy though but worth a try. Good luck and let us know how things go. x
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we have tried this, he just looked in the dish, had a sniff and left it
 
Has he got company? I had a poorly foal that did not eat and she shared with another, that got her competing for her food and despite a very poor start she did do well. Have you tried warm water or warm feed, it is colder now and it may tempt him more.
 
When he is turned out, does he graze normally, or just pick at the grass too? He has had a tough start to life and I think I'd be looking at getting him 'scoped, I'd say that he has gastric ulcers.
 
be positive said:
Has he got company? I had a poorly foal that did not eat and she shared with another, that got her competing for her food and despite a very poor start she did do well. Have you tried warm water or warm feed, it is colder now and it may tempt him more.
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i have tried him with company, he still isnt interested in his feed but will share some of the other babies food so this may be the way forward for now

elderlycoupleindevon said:
When he is turned out, does he graze normally, or just pick at the grass too? He has had a tough start to life and I think I'd be looking at getting him 'scoped, I'd say that he has gastric ulcers.
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he does graze normally when hes out, but he does have periods where he just wanders aimlessly round the paddock like he is looking for something he cant find
 
Maybe he is looking for something, can he get to any trees or hedges to browse, if not he may be lacking something that he is instinctively looking for. Give Hilton Herbs a ring they are really helpful and will do special blends or single herbs that may help satisfy his needs or give him some stimulation.
Have you tried a probiotic or brewers yeast to help his tummy, not easy if he wont eat though.
 
be positive said:
Maybe he is looking for something, can he get to any trees or hedges to browse, if not he may be lacking something that he is instinctively looking for. Give Hilton Herbs a ring they are really helpful and will do special blends or single herbs that may help satisfy his needs or give him some stimulation.
Have you tried a probiotic or brewers yeast to help his tummy, not easy if he wont eat though.
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the paddock he is in has a hawthorn hedge on two sides of it, and a few trees in it, he is on D+H suregrow (when he eats it) with chaff and alfabeet
 
he has started drinking again, not loads but is at least trying something, he had some apple juice and warm water

my YO has made him and his best friend a little paddock to go in by themselves, as he had noticed some of the bigger babies bullying him, they are out together both munching the grass happily, so hopefully he is feeling a bit better and things are looking up
 
We have a mare in her teens who is exactly the same at the moment, so would be interested to hear others thoughts on this.
 
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