help - horse on loan

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SDH

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Due to my own horse being injured & requiring a long layoff, I got myself another horse on loan a few weeks ago. His owner has been doing nothing with him and he was a bit underweight when he arrived.

He was only being fed fibre so I have introduced calm&condition and some oil and this week i'm also gonna add some sugar beet. He also gets 4lbs alpha-a per feed - which i'm gonna change to alpha-a-oil as soon as I have used up current stock of alpha-a.
I actually talked this all thru with her (via email) as she didn't want me to put him on heating-conditioning type feeds as she thinks he will go bananas on that type of food.

Anyway she popped by to visit him at the weekend and seems outraged that he is 'so thin'.

She is making out that he came to me the picture of health and now looks like an rspca case (he isnt that bad btw!) and that I have been thrashing him round a XC course every other day. She has given me a fortnight to get some weight on him else she is gonna take him away from me!

I have to say I am little cheesed off. I have explained than yes I am doing more exercise with him that she was doing but I have upped his feed whilst sticking to her specifications i.e. non-heating.

I get the impression that nothing I do is going to please her and to be honest I think it might be easier to just let her have him back but he is such a lovely horse, and once up to full weight I think he is gonna perfect for me - its just the owner proving a bit of a nightmare!

What would you do?
 
I'd weigh him witha weigh tape (or even better a bridge) and then check him in a week to see if he's gaining condition. I'd also condition score him (take photos) and do that again in a week to compare. I'd get photos of all this and also any pics of when you first got him, so that when you next see her you can show her he's putting on condition. If he isn't putting any on, cut down the exercise a little until he's looking better, maybe?

I think the condition score should help - the dodson and horrell site has some good guidelines.
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Poor you! That is awful. Some people are so mean! there are weight gain mixes availble but surely the good old spring grass will make him put on a bit! My boy starts to look like a Brood Mare this time of year. Yes lay off the exercise for a bit or if it is gonna be a headache give him back to the old bag! x x x
 
What about turning it round on her, and asking her for her advice on improving his condition and his exercise regime? After all, if you DO want to hang onto the horse, you need to keep the owner onside so this would be a good way to handle it.

If he is dropping off a bit, maybe it would be a good idea to give him a couple of days off to just stand in a field and stuff himself with grass, or if you really must ride him, just do gentle walking to help build muscle without burning off all his hard-won weight gain.

If he is really dropping off at this time of year, then something isn't right. The grass is shooting through, he should be packing on the pounds. Maybe he needs a bit less exercise, a warmer rug (or A rug, if he is naked), a bit more hard feed, or needs his teeth doing or worming.

How come he was underweight if the owner wasn't doing anything with him?
 
I have just spoke to the people at Allen&Page who make calm&condition who told me I am doing the right thing, i can up the amount he is getting slightly but other than that i have to be patient as weight doesn't appear on horses overnight!

Feel reassured :-)

and thank you - a weight tape sounds like a good plan, then even if she does take him i'll know in my heart he has been gaining weight
 
I know you said you like the horse, but if you have only had it a few weeks and the owner is already acting like this i would be worried that if you got the horse looking good and going well would she want it back, or how often is she going to accuse you of not looking after it. I would walk away now before you get to attached to the horse. Even with a contract she could still take it back at any time, only has to give you notice, she sounds if she is going to be a pain in the a** for you. Don't get me wrong i have nothing against loaning, my horse is out on loan now. If you really want the horse maybe just talk to the owner about your concerns she may nor realize what a pain she is being.
 
I think it's quite possible that as she hasn't seen the horse for a few weeks, she has forgotten how thin it was when it left her. She's probably been looking at horses in good condition for a few weeks, then saw her own and it was thinner than she remembers.

I'd persevere, try to keep her informed about what you are doing and record the horses weight/condition so you have written evidence of improvements, and keep going. Just because the owner is concerned about the horse (rightly or wrongly) doesn't mean she is about to take it back at a moments notice. I'm sure there are plenty of loaners out there who have decided they want the horse back out of the blue.
 
Welcome to the forum. Ahhhhh - the joys of loaning
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I assume you have a formal loan contract with the owner of this horse? TBH with you, if the owner is unhappy so early on into the loan period, I would return the horse now. It sounds as if she will interfere with whatever you want to do with the horse, be it feeding, worming, shoeing, competing, travelling etc. Sadly, a lot of loans don't work out well and I have a feeling this is one of them. Good luck
 
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