Sitemaps

My horse is eating plenty but wont gain weight2007-11-24 21:18:30

he was purchased from a racetrack, hes a standerbred gelding. We got a lot of weight on him, but now hes losing it again .. hes boney, and you can see his ribs when hes running :| could be worms maybe ? we've started him on some beet pulp grain .. hopefully it will help, but i need more help please!

Answers:

My horse is the same way. She is only 14, but we have her on senior feed because it keeps the weight on. Also we upped her amount of feed she is getting. It may be worms though, and if so deffinatly get that taken care of, but for now just feed him a little more. Also seeing a little rib is not bad for a horse. You are supposed to be able to see an outline. :-) good luck and I hope your horse is okay!

---

change his diet to a weight gaining food or take him to the vet he may be ill

---

It depends what type of food your feeding him, and it is a high possibility that it is worms. If you haven't had him wormed while you've had him, its a good idea even if he doesn't have them now, prevention for later. I'd contact your vet, or if you know someone who fits horses with shoes or a blacksmith to help you with it.

---

de worm him every 3 months and mix 1/2 cup corn oil in his grain ..this will not harm him and is a safe way to gain weight fast..I have a rescued TB and had the same problem and my vet told me to do this and he has looked great for the past year..GOOD LUCK! :)

---

It could be worms. They sell dewormer at most farm centers. If that doesn't help, I'd take him to a vet, because given his history as a racehorse, he could have something else wrong with him.

---

worm him, even if he's not due just to be sure. If you think it could be cause worm him, with something good like equet gel, then worm him again in 2 weeks. Get a dentist out to check his teeth. And assess his diet, give him high energy feeds like oats, corn, barley. And a vitamin/mineral supplement like feramo-H. If he seems generally listless as well, perhaps he has a virus or something, so to be sure get the vet to check. It may be that the pasture is starting to lose nutrition and he needs extra feed to compensate. Depends on the weather, if its cold is he adquately rugged.

---

get A good fresh fecal sample to the vet ASAP to check for worms. And check again. in 2 weeks, not all show up in every sample everytime. Beet pulp is good, rice bran is good (but it has to be used up or kept in AC or it gets rancid fast becuase of the high fat content. Try a good senior feed, and have his teeth checked. Floating may be in order.

---

This could depend on several factors. How much are you exercising him? Do you know how much you SHOULD feed him according to his normal weight? Normally, for a horse, when they are running, you will see their ribs. As long as they're not protruding, your horse probably is fine with that. My suggestion is to ask a vet what's going on.

---

i have also gotten a horse from the track it is fairly hard for a thin horse to gain wieght give him about a week or two off and feed him grain daily and put him in a BIG nice GRASY FIELD!!!!then he should gain some weight