losing weight

[debonhorse]

My 17.1 Ex Racehorse,(on Loan) is losing weight quite quickly over the last couple of days. She is up to date with the worming, and had her teeth checked 6 weeks ago.She is 17 years old and out of work at the moment due to lameness. normally only used for hacking.
At the moment she is having ad lib Hay/Haylage. 1.5, scoop speedi beet, 1.5 scoops cool mix, reccommended amount of blue chip balancer, 2 measures cod liver oil powder all split between 2 feeds a day. she is turned out between 10-4 (in at night)

She is not clipped, but also (owners strict orders, which I dont agree with) not rugged, at all, day or night.

Can anyone please suggest a good feed/conditioner that will help keep her weight on, does everyone agree with me she should be rugged?

Any help or suggestions would be more than welcome, as I really dont wont her to lose any more weight at this early stage of winter. (BTW my first winter with this horse so not sure how she normally is.)

 

[TGM]

There are lots of different ways you could feed her, but probably simplest suggestion would be to swap the cool mix for some kind of conditioning feed such as conditioning cubes or mix. You could also consider swapping the speedi-beet for Alfa-A Oil as this will help get more calories into her.

Unless there is a very good reason for her not to be rugged then rugging her will help to conserve warmth and prevent weight loss.

 

[debonhorse]

Thanks TGM, you have confirmed exactly what I had discussed with OH. Do you know if Alfa A is heating??

 

[air78]

IMO she should be rugged, especially if she is out a lot. My boy isn't clipped, but i still rug him.

I have tried almost every 'conditioning' feed on the market, and none had much impact on my ex racer, except balanced horse feeds show mix.

If you can get hold of it, it is really worth trying, and you wouldn't need to feed any blue chip etc with it- although i do add a squirt of oil.

www.balancedhorsefeeds.co.uk

 

[TGM]

'Heating' feeds are traditionally thought of as being cereal feeds, so in that respect Alfa A is not heating. As regards the effect they have on the liveliness of the horse, I have heard a few people say that their horses got fizzier on Alfa A, but I must say haven't had that problem with mine at all (all on Alfa A).

 

[UKa]

Alfa A Oil is the unmolassed alternative (also gives extra calories through the oil) and may in that sense be less 'livening' for a TB

 

[JaneSteventon]

Would say she should defenitly be rugged, even more so in the stable during the night when she can't keep warm by moving around, than outside, although i would rug a horse which was losing weight during the day as well.

 

[jemima]

You posted this a couple of weeks back! I have only had these mares a month, and I have put the oldie on vitamins for a veteran horse, they both also have farriers friend, for their hooves, and I feed the big one Mag calm, she seems to concentrate more while out hacking on this. They both have cod liver oil .Feedwise, I have just this week put them both onto blue chip original (slowly adding to their feed over the week up to amount reccommended) they both have 2 scoops of mixed meal, 1 scoop oats,1 scoop barley and 1 scoop beet pulp. (just one feed a day) they both at the moment are on light exercise,(I am still getting used to riding them) am I feeding the right foods? they are both quite fat at the moment, and living outside, but in a few weeks they will be out during the day rugged and in at night, (they will then be on 2 feeds a day) can someone please help me out with this??

You also said that the owner was worried about them losing weight if you changed their diet. Why don't you just go back to the regime they were on when you got them if they were happy and healthy on that?

 

[debonhorse]

thanks all for your replies, I am going to convince owner to let me rug her up, change Speedi Beet for Alf-A oil, and use Baileys top line (n0.4) conditioning cubes, to see how sho goes.

Hi Jemima, I changed their feed in the first place as they were 'wild whizzy fizzy, bad tempered, uncontrollable mad heads on the feed he was giving them, they were not being 'cared for' by humans at all, except a bucket of feed on gate. I have managed to get them both to be calm, loving, gentle, well behaved horses, in just a very short time, mainly due to changing their feeds, and giving them routine and lots of TLC. Basically, I took out the oats and barley, swapped it for blue chip and cool mix, and use speedi beet(un mollassed) instead of the sugar beet (mollassed) they have both changed 100%, (for the best) and they were both looking fantastic, in a very short space of time. It is just this last couple of days that the big girl has started to lose weight. the other mare who is only 5 is still looking great, she has a very shiny coat, and just looks fab.
The big mare unfortunately went lame 3 weeks ago, and will be out of action until at least the new year (she has another scan then to determine more) so I have to ensure she dosn't have feed that will heat her so Oats and Barley are definately out. Thanks for your suggestion tho. it would make sense if they were good on it.

I am sure the colder weather has a lot to do with it so will have to work hard tomorrow to convince owner. wish me luck

 

[merlinsquest]

See if the owner wears a coat to stables and then ask why they feel the horse would not benefit from a bit of help in the 'keep warm' dept. Especially at night. On my yard the only thing not rugged at the mo is a hairy little shetland!!!

My horse has the bare minimum clip (his idea not mine)! and he is native x and he is in a med weight stable rug and turnout rug!!

 

[debonhorse]

thanx merlinsquest, I will try that one!! I bet he will say, they have their own wooly coat!!! but I will give it a go.

 

[TGM]

[ QUOTE ]
I bet he will say, they have their own wooly coat!!! but I will give it a go.

[/ QUOTE ] That's a valid argument for a native, but presumably if the mare is TB she hasn't got much of a winter coat anyway!

 

[AmyMay]

Putting a rug on will most likely solve this problem immeidately. Even natives are struggling with this awful wet weather at the moment.

If the owners still say no - hand the horse back and get one on loan who is owned by people who actually know what their talking about!!!!

 

[miamibear]

Definately rug up!!

The food you are pumping in to her - which i think is a really good diet by the way and should aid weight gain will simply be lost through her spending energy keeping warm.

You are fighting a loosing battle really as no matter what you put in to her, if she is using it keeping warm she will loose weight.

Please try to convince the owners that rugging will help, you dont want to end up with a hat rack by summer as it takes so much time and effort to get it back on and its not nice for the horse

Good luck

xx

 

[filly190]

I agree with you that she should be rugged. T.b's feel the cold and in her old life as a race horse she would have been rugged up to the hilt!! and clipped.

It seems the owner is giving you little say in this subject and I would have a chat and explain, your expense, time and commitment and they should let you and trust you to do things the way you wish to.

I think the weight loss could be due to the no rugs and sometimes pain if she is lame. I dont think its down to feed.

I tried to winter out my old t.b last year, not clipped, heavy weight rambo with hood, hay and two feeds a day. She dropped to skin and bone in a matter of two weeks. I brought her in a night, and she began gaining weight immediately.

She was a little too old to fare living outdoors at night and I had noticed that she was'nt lying down and getting rest etc.

I think you need to stand up for yourself a little over this horse and sort the owner out.

 

[debonhorse]

Just wanted to give a huge thanks to you all for your help. This morning the owner wasnt around, so I rugged big girl up and put her in the field. When I got back at 3.30pm her rug had been taken off, I was appalled, and after all your comments, knew I had to really do something here. I marched to the front door and had it out with him 'big time' I did feel a bit awkward tho, as he is nearly 80 years old!!! eventually I said, 'I am paying (x amount) of money every month, just to be told by you ALL the time, how to take care of her, if you dont butt out and let me do it my way, we will have to re negotiate me having her on loan. (he is so scared of me leaving, as I also do everything for his other mare, from feeding to mucking out - he does nothing) he stood back, and I thought he was going to blow me out, but he said, OK dear, do it your way if that makes you happy, when I was putting her stable rug on tonight, he actually helped me, but under his breath the whole time, stating---she will get too hot and sweat!!! I just smiled and thought to myself, we shall see!!! hanks all for giving me confidence to see it through, I njust know it is for the good.

 

[AmyMay]

Well done you

I'm sure she will really start to pick up now.