Weight gain for veteran

[Paula18]

I have a 22 year old Welsh cob, he's had a bad bout of Lammi in June this year, not weight or feed related, likely to be stress lammi through him having a bad patch with his arthritis prior to getting the lammi. Vet came out on Friday, all is fine with the lammi he's back in light work and doing well however she commented that he's lost weight since she last saw him and recommended i give him more hay. He doesnt eat all that he has so i'm not sure that this will help him. I currently feed him Happy Hoof, Baileys Lo-Cal and about 350g Coolstance. Any ideas what else i could give him to help with the weight gain that is safe for laminitics? I had considered Outshine but if anyone can recommend a cheaper option given my dimishing bank balance due to hefty vet bills i would be very grateful!! I think much of it is because he's lost a lot of muscle due to being out of work but he's always struggled holding weight and needs a helping hand! Thanks in advance x

 

[Puppy]

I would recommend top spec senior as a balancer

and perhaps try Spiller's senior maintenance mix. If you think he's not eating enough hay, perhaps give some dengie senior as a partial replacer

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

Will he eat speedibeet? or any unmolassed sugar beet will do and of course linseed or veg oil would also help - just check everything for molasses as you don't want the laminitis coming back.

 

[Paula18]

He's already on a balancer - baileys lo-cal which i'm happy with. Just had a quick look at the senior maintenance mix but it says that its for good doers and has low starch levels to reduce the risk of weight gain so although it would probably be safe i'm not sure it would help with the weight.
He does like speedibeet though so thats definitely an option, Thanks both for taking the time to reply.

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

I feed my cob (15hh) a kilo of Happy Hoof and 2 pints of soaked speedibeet twice a day. Maybe weigh your Happy Hoof to see how much you are giving him - a kilo is a heaped stubbs scoop.

If you are still struggling give the Laminitis Clinic a call - there helpline is a £1 a minute but they will talk through a diet with you if you need it. Basically it is fibre fibre and more fibre - give more hay if necessary.

Also try adding just a small cup of oil - regular veg oil from the supermarket will work.

Good luck - its tricky getting it right for a laminitic I know but the Laminitis Clinic saved my cob for me.

 

[kellyeaton]

alfa a oil or alpha beet conditioning feeds but low in sugar and starch so sutable for a lammi prone horse!

 

[fruity]

Allen & Page Fast Fibre has put weight on our veteran already and only been on it a while,he also has D&H Veteran cubes Add lindseed flakes/oil,added condition onto my competition mare no end.