Weight gain for tb racehorse

[Autsuz]

Recently got a 7 yr tb ex race horse who is back in schooling so being worked she wind sucks so put her on healthy tummy as believed it was a all round feed and she is on 2 feeds and 2 bales of hay a day as well as being out but feed seems to have made her wind sucking worse so this is really a vice but worried as she is losing weight, any help or advice on what feed to give her to build her back up she has a good healthy coat and otherwise fine

 

[lucylockett]

Speak to Mary at Moorcroft reacehorse centre they use science supplements Linseed conditioner and also the pro kalm to deal with the vices.

 

[bonny]

If you have reasonable grass I would just leave her out 24 hours at this time of year. Hard to believe that she's eating 2 bales of hay ! If your grass isn't good enough then consider moving her to somewhere that is, you shouldn't be needing to feed hard feed at all in the summer.

 

[SpottyTB]

Good grass, plenty of good quality hay.. out 24/7 (rugged if needs be)...

As for feed, my gran rescued a 17hh (don't ask me why) nutty TB who came to her like a hat wrack - you could see all his ribs, tail bone and spine.. it was horrendous.. she fed him simple systems stuff.. not sure what he had but i know he had linseed fed alongside it.. three feeds a day..

Might be work a look into?
Good luck

 

[Autsuz]

Thanks for the advice, I have thought about the pro kalm just don't want to keep changing and trying different supplements etc. too soon but her feed has got to change

 

[Autsuz]

If you have reasonable grass I would just leave her out 24 hours at this time of year. Hard to believe that she's eating 2 bales of hay ! If your grass isn't good enough then consider moving her to somewhere that is, you shouldn't be needing to feed hard feed at all in the summer.

She is not on 2 bales yes it would be hard to believe.... 2 hay nets sorry, the grass is ok but just feel she isn't getting sufficient plus she is losing weight quiet worrying at times

 

[Annsboroughlady]

Most of the time, when horses windsuck (especially ex-racehorses) they actually have ulcers in their stomach and the air they suck in glides over the ulcer cooling it down and trying to stop it hurting. My advice would be to treat the ulcers first otherwise the windsucking will just continue and it is extra work trying to get weight on a horse that windsucks than one that doesn't. She may still windsuck because it is a habit but hopefully less. If you look on natural horse supplies they have a fantastic range of herbal supplement that aid the healing of ulcers.
I hope everything works out!

 

[Autsuz]

I have had her checked an no sign of ulcers so it just a habit not that bothered by the wind sucking as she has a huge appetite just not being satisfied with her feed I don't think will keep looking at supplements but it seems the linseed oil has good results on gain and satisfying horse.... Long road I'm travelling but we will get there lol and thank you for your advice

 

[Busybusybusy]

I feed my ex racer TB cool stance copra, rolled oats, linseed & a handful of chaff split into 4 feeds a day. plus salt, mag ox and pro hoof. High protein, low sugar low starch, good amino acid balance. he's on this as he needs seriously building up following surgery and no work since last november. But he's always been difficult to keep the weight on.

 

[Miss L Toe]

She is not on 2 bales yes it would be hard to believe.... 2 hay nets sorry, the grass is ok but just feel she isn't getting sufficient plus she is losing weight quiet worrying at times

1)Losing weight, plenty of grub. Get an EDT to do the teeth.
2)Buy a tape measure and take measurement, to calculate the weight, do this very week and write it down.
3)Ask a knowlegeable person to help you in the monitoring process.. someone who has worked with TB s.
4)Get a vet out: there is no way weight loss is acceptable.
OK, maybe in a different order, depends on your available resources!

 

[Polos Mum]

She is not on 2 bales yes it would be hard to believe.... 2 hay nets sorry, the grass is ok but just feel she isn't getting sufficient plus she is losing weight quiet worrying at times

Does she finish all of her hay? If so I'd up that and keep increasing until she always has a little left.

My big horse in winter is out with hay in the field and has a whole bale over night/ evening so I suspect he probably does eat close to 2 bales a day.

 

[Miss L Toe]

I have had her checked an no sign of ulcers so it just a habit not that bothered by the wind sucking as she has a huge appetite just not being satisfied with her feed I don't think will keep looking at supplements but it seems the linseed oil has good results on gain and satisfying horse.... Long road I'm travelling but we will get there lol and thank you for your advice

You make not be bothered by windsucking but it is a vice, an abnormal behaviour], only rarely do they do it in a field, by which time it may be too late to stop. I compare them with humans who have an addiction, the whole thing takes over their life.

Windsucking horses are more prone to being unthrifty, which yours is. They spend too much time not eating [a normal behaviour pattern]
It is indicative of abnormal behaviour, I would give them minimal time inside and when in a stable, provide ad lib hay AND a "bib" to stop the habit.
They should not be kept alone and they should not be kept "wired to the moon" on "racehorse diets"
Windsuckers are more prone to colics, so make sure she is insured, though perhaps she will be excluded, in which case there is less point. A colic operation can cost £5000-6000 pounds and there is no guarantee that she will recover. or that it will not recurr.
So, having totally made you keel over, I re-iterate, winsucking may not upset you, but there are reasons why it is considered a vice, a notifiable condition if you are selling her.

 

[Autsuz]

I feed my ex racer TB cool stance copra, rolled oats, linseed & a handful of chaff split into 4 feeds a day. plus salt, mag ox and pro hoof. High protein, low sugar low starch, good amino acid balance. he's on this as he needs seriously building up following surgery and no work since last november. But he's always been difficult to keep the weight on.

Thank you for your advice I will try this

 

[Autsuz]

1)Losing weight, plenty of grub. Get an EDT to do the teeth.
2)Buy a tape measure and take measurement, to calculate the weight, do this very week and write it down.
3)Ask a knowlegeable person to help you in the monitoring process.. someone who has worked with TB s.
4)Get a vet out: there is no way weight loss is acceptable.
OK, maybe in a different order, depends on your available resources!

She is getting her teeth checked next week and have started measuring her there are a few with experience on our yard with to ex racehorses just not with wind suck, she's been checked by the vet she's fine just muscle waste which is expected just a very slow process building her up which is fine but very frustrating

 

[Autsuz]

You make not be bothered by windsucking but it is a vice, an abnormal behaviour], only rarely do they do it in a field, by which time it may be too late to stop. I compare them with humans who have an addiction, the whole thing takes over their life.

Windsucking horses are more prone to being unthrifty, which yours is. They spend too much time not eating [a normal behaviour pattern]
It is indicative of abnormal behaviour, I would give them minimal time inside and when in a stable, provide ad lib hay AND a "bib" to stop the habit.
They should not be kept alone and they should not be kept "wired to the moon" on "racehorse diets"
Windsuckers are more prone to colics, so make sure she is insured, though perhaps she will be excluded, in which case there is less point. A colic operation can cost £5000-6000 pounds and there is no guarantee that she will recover. or that it will not recurr.
So, having totally made you keel over, I re-iterate, winsucking may not upset you, but there are reasons why it is considered a vice, a notifiable condition if you are selling her.

When I say not bothered obviously I would love her to stop but that is not realistically going to happen she's 7 now and assume she has done it for quite a few years and if i try drastic action now to stop her this may set her back in otherways, the vets advice is whilst it is her habit or vice and not affecting her food intake as such dont stress her out work on her schooling giving her more one to one and extra nourishment will be better in the long run. just so confused. She does eat all her food and the majority of her hay so her weight is not down to wind sucking rather than eating, she does only do this in the stable and she is only in when the weather was bad a few weeks ago. I am aware of the colic and the insurance but she is insured anyway. Thank you for your advice

 

[Hedwards]

Grass! get her on some good quality grazing, you want low starch/sugar and high fibre diet, i'd chuck the healthy tummy and use Alfa-A Oil, Micronised Linseed from charnwood milling and add Alltech Lifeforce, it works to make sure they get as much nutrients out of their diet as possible, plus excellent for digestive upset (quite possible if she wind-sucks)

 

[Lou_Lou123]

I've had a couple of ex-racers, and find that sometimes if they have too much high energy feed like oats or any kind of cube or mix it gives them more energy and so they tend to run around more in the field or 'stress' it off in the stable. I usually try to feed things that will not overexcite them but will help with condition. My current mare is on 1 scoop of Alfa-A, 1 scoop of sugarbeet, and a mugful of x-lint twice a day (1 scoop = 1 heaped round scoop). Also, try to get the best hay available as some hay is more nutritious than others!

Edited to add: and plenty of grass!!

 

[cellie]

End of july I bought tb hes 16 h and weighed 430,unfortunatley within days he injured himself badly on tape and had to go to vets and be box rested so stressed off weight although he was on 4 feeds a day.I had allen and paige out who brought weigh bridge he had dropped to 421kg .Within 2 weeks he has put on 14 kg this is on fast fibre,calm & condition and Im switching to molasses free alfa alfa to avoid ulcers.I also found my boy was struggling to eat his hay his teeth were horrendous hes only 4 1/2 so they had never been rasped.I think 14 kg on good turnout and right feed has really helped him.Calm and condition has linseed already added and fast fibre is good hay replacer.I will add oil if I think he needs it but hes adding weight really nicely and is very laid back on this feed for youngster that's been on 4 week box rest.Give allen and paige a ring they are very helpful and Ive fed other tbs on this feed it works for me.

 

[Victoria25]

Calm & condition is good - you could always add some linseed although it does already have it in - my two guzzle for fun and love it (even with antibiotics shock horror) ... had good results from it

I only feed this at the moment with say some chaff to add texture as its meant to be fed as a 'complete feed' ... then turn out full time ... my 5 year old is so relaxed its pathetic (but good lol)

Also check teeth .. x

 

[Palindrome]

Calm and condition only has "linseed expeller" (oil has been removed), I would go for the full fat microniseed linseed from Charnwood instead (cheapest including shipping is here: http://www.farmandpetplace.co.uk/products/equine/horse-feed/conditioning/micronized-linseed-20kg.html). You can feed up to 500 g per day linseed, that will provide fat, protein and Omega 3s.
Alfa-a, alfa-a oil, grass nuts and unmolassed sugarbeet are all low starch and type of food you want to go for, but you'll have to see what you prefer and what the suits the horse best. Alfalfa is supposed to be good against stomach acidity/ulcers because it's rich in calcium but does not suit all horses.
Yea-sacc or another probiotic is good to add as well. It seems there is already some in the Healthy Tummy. I've never fed it but seems similar to alfa-a oil and a good choice.
Could you perhaps turn her out full time if grass is good?

 

[ktj1891]

I have had my Gelding three years now straight from racing he wind sucks terrible and has had weight problems. I can honestly say that grass is the best option and if possible leave her out 24/7 while you can the grass will help with weight and she won't windsuck as much.

In regards to hard feed my guy still gets one feed and day through the summer and out of all the many feeds I have tried I cannot recommend pure feeds highly enough along with linseed. Has really worked a treat!

 

[zigzag]

Has she been wormed? Its surprising how many racehorse yards don't worm because horses is out grazing much

 

[ilvpippa]

I had great difficulty keeping weight on mine on box rest this year, she was fed fast fibre ( I know it's not a condition feed but she wouldn't eat anything else without it!) a balancer, and ready grass twice a day then she got all the hay she could eat & two buckets of ready grass & it really helped her. She's out now & the grass has sorted out here

 

[Shysmum]

I can highly recommend Topspec Balancer and their Cool Condition cubes. I feed the lite balancer, but to increase weight, go for the full on to start with.

 

[Prince33Sp4rkle]

winergy condtition-fibe and oil based and amazing feed for condition without lunacy! add in charnwood milling linseed and you should have a happy round shiney horse in no time.

linseed is good for tummies but would try her on Egusin SLH and see if it helps, it if does shes got ulcers im afraid but the Egusin will really help, its turned my ex racer around completely

 

[Megalini_22]

Hey - id suggest speaking to a qualified nutritionist and get some professional advice. Good luck!

 

[cyberhorse]

I'd agree with the calm and condition and linseed (I use simple systems one as they stock it at the local feed store). I had a ISH who could not keep weight on and he started on 4 stubbs scoops a day of the C&C and a full cup of linseed. He is now on 1 1/2 scoops of C&C and the linseed a year later and maintains very well indeed. My other horse who was put on C&C now has to have a low cal diet all the time for the first time in his life. My feeling is the C&C has improved the gut health and absorption in both horses (it contains pre and pro biotics). One of my horses did crib very mildly and this has completely stopped, I still feel this was related to gut health even though he also was negative for ulcers on test.

 

[itssoftballboo2u]

the tb might just be a hard keeper. we have a very hard keeper and she gets up to 5 lbs. she is a 15.3 hh walker/arab (but looks alot like a tb) a day and she has seemed to gain weight off that. slowly but she is improving.

what amount of feed is she getting?

hope that you can get weight on her.