Well, here is what a few groceries and some good wormer will do in just 6 weeks. This was the middle of June....
Now, almost to the end of September .... this picture was taken this morning in the field at my house.
He still has a little way to go to be at the optimum weight. I'm going to hold off until spring to ride him. It's hard to put weight on a horse in winter, but he will be in the barn at night and have plenty of food and tlc.
So, some tips I have learned and read for feeding an emaciated horse.
1. If you don't know what you are doing, and you don't have someone who is experienced with this type of horse, please find someone who is and can help you. You can literally kill the horse with kindness and inexperience.
2. Go slow. Too much food will kill them. Literally.
3. Use the most easy wormer. Panacur is what we used. Follow the instructions of your vet. Killing too many worms off at once will colic them and kill them. You need to rotate your wormer and use a couple of different ones. Start slowly and build up to a regular routine as your 'normal' horses.
4. Be careful. A starved horse sometimes, usually has issues around food. They are aggressive because they want to get at the food and don't want to play nice. A flake of hay every 4 or 5 hours. I build up to ALWAYS have hay in front of them.
5. I grain two or three times a day - literally a cup at a time. Talk to your feed store employees and your vet to be sure you are giving them the proper feed for their age and their dietary needs.
6. This is draining. Financially, emotionally, physically. It takes not only tlc, food, wormer - but the vet, the farrier, the equine chiropractic, floating the teeth, the re-training. Depending on how degraded the body condition, the foot care, the teeth, the emotional well-being of the horse. It's a thankless job with tons of hours, money and tears. That is made all worth while with a single nuzzle and grateful nicker.
7. Age plays a big difference in the recovery and rehabilitation. Sometimes you do everything you can to ease the pain, fix the issues that can be fixed, only to have to make the hardest decision. Is it better for the horse to gently, peacefully end their suffering and pain - even thought it's going to financially and emotionally train wreck you? If you don't think you can make that decision, then, please, don't rescue a horse. Or any animal. Sometimes we can't fix them. Sometimes everything isn't enough.
Hmmm. I'm sure I've forgotten something. I usually do. I probably will read another account of a rescue and think, ah-ha... that's what I spaced.
But it's a good start. It's what I do - when I can afford to do it. Mostly with great results! This gelding is 12 years old and is recovering nicely. That makes some of the harder ones a little easier to accept. As much as we try to make every outcome a success, some of them are just not meant to be.
So, the good and the bad. However, I can't put into words the look of gratitude in the horses' eye. The feel of the whisper soft lips on your cheek. The contented sigh of a warm, fed, safe horse in his stall for the night.
I love my horses. :)
I have rescued two retired race horses. One is a sound TB gelding 6 yrs old. The other is a injured Qt gelding 6 yrs old. The injured qt horse hind leg is bowed. Vet check says he should be sound for trails in about 4 months of rest. They are both utd on shots and dewormer, and full physicals. Problem is they are both skinny. I put them both out to graze with my other horses on 90 acres, 10 being bermuda grazing. (My other horses are fat.) I bought a 1500lb bale of hay for the winter for them to eat on. I feed the same sweet feed they were on at the race track. They were the only 2 losing weight. I now have them in a corral and feeding alfalfa, & sweet feed with rice bran, & adding corn oil. This seems to work. Is there a better way? Someone reported the TB to sherriff for being so under weight. I feed them everyday twice a day and they always have hay available. how do you prove that you are fixing the horse not hurting them? Remember the new feeding routine seems to work, but up for alternitives.
ReplyDeletei did the same and i found that each one is different but i have found that feeding them a mixture of 14% sweet feed+whole oats+alfalfa pellets plus a digestive supliment called opti-zyme twice a day works good
DeleteI personally highly discourage the use of sweet feed. In my oppinion givining an underweight horse sweet feed is no different than giving an underweight child candy. Sweet feed is pretty well lacking in much needed nutritional value and is loaded down with molases. It causes the horse(s) to burn more calories, much like candy to a child. I personally recomend beet pulp and a high quality forage such as alfalfa. The beet pulp can get a little pricey but it sure does the job of putting meat on their bones. Even leaving out any grain at all whatsoever and just feeding a good quality forage is better than giving sweet feed.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless you for saving these horses. I had an Arabian mare. When she was 6 years old someone turned me in for neglect of my horse. I was devastated. I loved and cared for my horse like my child. A local vet came out to look at her and said that she was a LITTLE underweight, and asked me what I feed her. I told him what I feed her, however, the last bag of feed we bought for her we had to get from the local farm supply store, instead of our usual feed mill. I didn't have the bag, but he was aware of the brand. He told me that there was the problem. The bag lists the ingredients, but doesn't list the % of each ingredient. My horse wasn't getting enough of the proper nutrients she needed. Who would have thought? It's a reputable store. I certainly trusted the products they carry. Needless to say, I was very upset. I never bought it again.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't understand why someone turned me in, she wasn't showing any ribs. However, I was thankful whoever did. I would not have known about the feed, possibly till it was too late.
Keep on doing what you do. Horses are such an magnificent animal. Obviously my favorite is the Arabian. But thet are all beautiful!