Underweight Thoroughbred

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sjdp92

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Hey, I'm very possibly about to buy a gorgeous TB, impeccable manners, easy in everyway, however he is very underweight. According to his current owners (they seem genuine/knowledgable, but can never take that chance!) they bought him severely underweight and his current condition is very much an improvement, however they've had him for about a year, and I would've thought he should look better than he does. His ribs and hips are poking through and his spine very prominent, however his belly seems very rounded.
I know TB's are prone to lose weight easily and be difficult to put weight back on etc etc but assuming the current owners have done everything they can in the past year to get him back up to health, is there anything else that could be hindering his weight gain? Or is the rate that he's putting it back on considered normal? I am able to give him the right home providing that all he needs is some TLC, lots of food and careful work etc, however if theres likely to be something else wrong I need to know about it. Obviously I will be vet checking him before I potentially buy him, I just wondered if any of you lovely people could pass on some advice :)
 
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Or is the rate that he's putting it back on considered normal?
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No, I would say it's not normal. Contact Janet George on here for some really great advice on getting weight back on this horse (she is currently rehabbing something similar).

And for the record, thankfully, I've never come across an underweight/malnourished/neglected TB out of racing. But yes, they are around.
 
Hi ive just taken on a skinny ex racer and i would say get teeth done first and worm,to give you a starting point. most people dont realise how much food tbs need to get back to "normal" my feeding is adlib haylage 24/7 and then 2 feeds a day of a large stubbs scoop of alfa A with oil ,the same of baileys no 4 and sugar beet. i also feed something for ulcers like coligone or aloa vera juice. feed a scoop of alfa before riding to stop the stomach acid . it shouldnt have taken more than 6 months to get the weight back on so if you dont start seeing results pretty quick id have a chat to your vet:D
 
Hi, thanks for your advice! I haven't actually bought him yet, He's still with the current owners, but as they've had him for a year I'm not sure why he hasn't put the weight back on :S
 
could be ulcers or stress or simply not enough food/haylage or adequate rugging . theyre very delicate and need much more attention than other breeds-personally thats why i love them -all that fussing!!:D:D
 
I bought my TB underweight and windsucking :(. They had owned him for 8 months and not managed to get weight on. I had weight on him in two months and he's not windsucking anymore!.. Chucked him in the field, changed his feed (to Calm & Condition, Sugarbeet & Alfa A), good quality ad-lib haylage and lots of cuddles :) :) He's now a much bigger & much happier horse! :D:D:D
 
amymay said:
What have they been feeding him?
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They were a bit vague, but the jist I got was chaff, some form of general "pony" mix, and a probiotic (fed large amounts of all of it twice a day, they didn't specify any brands). As well as constantly available hay/grass. As far as I known this was advised to them by someone else (not sure if it was a vet or not)
I would guess that this isn't the right diet for him as he doesn't seem remotely stressed in himself, so wouldn't put it down to stress. His teeth are fine (dental records as proof) and he's been wormed as far as i'm aware.

Any idea's? I fell in love with him when I first saw him but can't afford to take such a risk without asking around first.
 
it took me a year and a half to get my TB out of racing from skin and bone to a healthy weight with his ribs covered. he got stuck at the point of what a fit event horse looks like for ages but then eventually put alot of weight on all of a sudden.
I fed protexin probiotic but you are not meant to feed them constantly because they stop producing it naturally so just two months at a time for me, then countrywide conditioning nuts and showshine chaff. calm and condition can bring them out in barley spots so be careful (although I LOVE it if it doesnt! miracle cure!)
 
Definatley get him wormed first off,and teeth done. We got ours last year off the track and she was skin and bones and full of worms,took a good 7month programme to fully clear her system but the weight piled on after that. Bulk up on hay andd try mix with some haylage if you can without blowing his head. Also coolstance is a really good feed,and allen and page calm and condition,cant reccomend it enough.
 
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