Help!-Ponies weight gain

D

darkbay12

Active Member
Joined
15 August 2012
Messages
36
Visit site
Hey i have a 13.2 throughbred x welsh and he is hard to keep weight on but hes been fine the last year or so but this summer he hasnt had as much grass as he should of done and lost alot of weight but he was being fed alot and coming in and now he has a big net of very rich haylege every night,his hard feed with conditioning mix sugarbeet alfa a garlic ect and out with alot of grass in the day but he just doesnt seem to be rounding over hes not skinny just not as good conditon as he could be any help would be much appreciated!X
 
darkbay12 said:
Hey i have a 13.2 throughbred x welsh and he is hard to keep weight on but hes been fine the last year or so but this summer he hasnt had as much grass as he should of done and lost alot of weight but he was being fed alot and coming in and now he has a big net of very rich haylege every night,his hard feed with conditioning mix sugarbeet alfa a garlic ect and out with alot of grass in the day but he just doesnt seem to be rounding over hes not skinny just not as good conditon as he could be any help would be much appreciated!X
Click to expand...

Have you had his teeth checked?

And, have you wormed him?
 
Are you feeding morning and evening or just giving him his hard feed in the evening with his haylage and chucking him out on the grass in the morning?

Ditto ladyinred, have his teeth been checked and has he been wormed.
 
How old is he?

How long has he been getting the big net of haylage overnight and has he eaten it all by the morning?

What quantities of hard feed are you giving him (in kg not scoops) and what brand of mix?
 
TGM said:
How old is he?

How long has he been getting the big net of haylage overnight and has he eaten it all by the morning?

What quantities of hard feed are you giving him (in kg not scoops) and what brand of mix?
Click to expand...


erm about 2months now hes 14 ..erm in kg he has exactly to what it says on the back of his feed bags to his amount of exersise and height/weight. he has baileys topline condition dengie all good brands :)
 
Will he eat more haylage if you increase the quantity overnight?

If you are feeding the amount recommended on the bag, have you checked you are splitting it to enough feeds. With cereal containing feeds such as Baileys Topline Mix, it is important that the feed size is no greater than 2kg (and probably less than that for a pony his size). If the feed is too big then undigested starch can get pushed through to the hindgut which can upset the delicate balance in there.

I know you say he has been wormed, but has he been done for tapeworm recently?

He should really be putting on some weight on that diet, so it is possible that he is not digesting fibre as well as he could - worth putting him on Yea-Sacc - this is a probiotic yeast which help improve conditions in the gut so the horse can make the most of the feed he gets.

How is he to ride - has he changed at all? Got a bit lazier or stiffer? At his age it is possible that he might have arthritic changes which might affect the way he moves and therefore his topline might not look as good as previously.

Have you got any photos of his current condition.
 
As TGM says it may be muscle loss rather than just fat. As he is an older boy, it may be worth thinking about having a cushings test too, as this can cause loss of topline amongst other things. If he's fine medically, then a good dollop of vegetable oil in his feed may help. :)
 
TGM said:
Will he eat more haylage if you increase the quantity overnight?

If you are feeding the amount recommended on the bag, have you checked you are splitting it to enough feeds. With cereal containing feeds such as Baileys Topline Mix, it is important that the feed size is no greater than 2kg (and probably less than that for a pony his size). If the feed is too big then undigested starch can get pushed through to the hindgut which can upset the delicate balance in there.

I know you say he has been wormed, but has he been done for tapeworm recently?

He should really be putting on some weight on that diet, so it is possible that he is not digesting fibre as well as he could - worth putting him on Yea-Sacc - this is a probiotic yeast which help improve conditions in the gut so the horse can make the most of the feed he gets.

How is he to ride - has he changed at all? Got a bit lazier or stiffer? At his age it is possible that he might have arthritic changes which might affect the way he moves and therefore his topline might not look as good as previously.

Have you got any photos of his current condition.
Click to expand...


Yep try and give him as much as possible at night:) Thank you so much for all your help and tips hes putting it on slowley! Too ride nope hes usuall hes a very spritley pony very fast aswell hes very much himseld riding :) Will get a pic
 
hollybear said:
As TGM says it may be muscle loss rather than just fat. As he is an older boy, it may be worth thinking about having a cushings test too, as this can cause loss of topline amongst other things. If he's fine medically, then a good dollop of vegetable oil in his feed may help. :)
Click to expand...



Okay thanks!!! :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top