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Author
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Topic: gain weight?
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Evil Fishi
Junior Member
Member # 2482
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posted May 13, 2004 05:45 PM
I adopted a TB in January and she is being boarded up at the people who rescued her. She was about 700 pounds when they found her, someone had bought her off the track and left her out with their other horses (quarter horses) and did not feed her or treat her differently. Now she is about 900/1000 pounds, still needs a little weight but should do fine. Since she has a little more weight to gain I wanted to know how often is it safe to ride her and how much feed I should use until she is at her normal weight. They are feeding her some special super expensive blue seal protein thingy and it is pure fat but should i let her gain fat or work with her or? I am kind of new in the horse world (the owning side) and feel kind of silly and stupid because I should know a lot more before buying a horse but I thought i knew enough, I learn new things everyday and it makes you feel like you're not a good enough owner to my horse, like i can never learn enough ![[Bawling]](graemlins/bawling.gif)
![[Red Horse]](graemlins/redhorse.gif)
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~The love of my life~
Deena's Skew- 16.1hh chestnut 5 yr old TB mare
(My other love: Ian, who fails to realize that I have horse fever and it's not 'just a phase' lol)
Posts: 14 | From: RI | Registered: May 2004
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Blistering Winds
Member
Member # 843
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posted May 13, 2004 05:51 PM
Even those of us with TONS of experience, STILL learn something new every day. So don't feel bad. ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
As for feeding, what does your horse look like weight wise? Can you see the ribs? Can you not see them, yet feel them? This is where you need to be.
If the ribs are filled in, then you can start riding the horse with no problems. Just start slow. Since the horse hasn't been ridden in a while, you don't want to just JUMP IN and start working. Needs to work up to where you want the horse to be.
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Horses should not be treated as people. They should be respected for who they are and what they are capable of doing!
Born Free Now Expensive
Posts: 4337 | From: Texas | Registered: Oct 2003
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Evil Fishi
Junior Member
Member # 2482
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posted May 13, 2004 05:59 PM
You can see her ribs a bit but they're not very noticeable (she looks really shabby and less heathy because she is shedding and hasn't been worked) She is kind of slender for a TB I was thinking about lungnig her for a few weeks, working up on activities and getting her to know me better.
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~The love of my life~
Deena's Skew- 16.1hh chestnut 5 yr old TB mare
(My other love: Ian, who fails to realize that I have horse fever and it's not 'just a phase' lol)
Posts: 14 | From: RI | Registered: May 2004
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Blistering Winds
Member
Member # 843
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posted May 13, 2004 06:19 PM
Sounds like she's fine weight wise pretty much. Since she isn't racing, probably could use some more. You could probably get started light exercising him. I bet he'll do better coming around. Many times feeding and exercise does better than just feeding.
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Horses should not be treated as people. They should be respected for who they are and what they are capable of doing!
Born Free Now Expensive
Posts: 4337 | From: Texas | Registered: Oct 2003
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madvoice
Member
Member # 2435
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posted May 13, 2004 08:07 PM
When you want to put condition on your horse, it can be very helpful to combine feeding and exercise. I find a lot of people who just feed their horses in order to gain weight often end up with fat horses with very little to no muscle tone. Light regular exercise will help your horse improve muscle as well as the feed helping her to gain weight. Getting your horse's teeth checked out can often help when trying to put on and maintain condition. Horses with sharp teeth don't chew their food properly and henceforth do not digest it properly. It sounds like your mare is in fair condition (not good where you can't see the ribs) and it will probably do her some good to have the light exercise ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Posts: 101 | From: Australia | Registered: May 2004
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ejforrest
Member
Member # 1414
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posted May 14, 2004 03:59 AM
General guide line to follow with feeding:
*Forage(grass or hay) should make up at least 50% of a horses daily diet.
*Protien isnt an energy builder or wieght builder but builds bones and tissue(good for broodmares and young horses - an adult horse only needs 8%-10% in there daily diet.
*Fats such as corn oil, soy oil, or veg. oil are great ways to add weight to a hard keeper and are easily digested with out digestive up set. You can feed 8% to 10% fat daily.
*Sugar beet pulp(fiber) is another great way of putting fat on a horse and is 20% fiber which fiber is the most important part of a horses diet.(Fiber is found in grass and hay)
*Have the vet check the teeth for problems.
*Regualer deworming every other month(6 times a year)is recommended to keep the horse cleaned out, parasites can interfer with weight gaining.
*Deworming for tapeworm is recommended in late autumn/early winter to clean the horse out after grazing season or late winter/early spring to get the horse ready for grazing.
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ej
Posts: 278 | From: michigan | Registered: Jan 2004
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spyro1
Member
Member # 647
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posted May 14, 2004 05:15 AM
I think you are right starting off with light lunging. I also agree with horses who are worked lightly and *have a job* tend to gain weight quicker. I know when my horse isn't worked regularly, he actually loses weight! As for how much to feed her to get her to her desired weight, if she is gaining weight on what she is on, I wouldn't mess with it. Free feeding hay is a great way to gain weight, and also, dividing her current grain up into 3 feedings per day, instead of 2 will help.
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http://members17.clubphoto.com/beth819817/2122088/guest.phtml
Only those who risk going too far, will ever know how far they can go.
Posts: 2755 | From: Sunny South Florida | Registered: Aug 2003
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MissBandit
Member
Member # 1377
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posted May 14, 2004 09:15 AM
I second (and third) all the advice given thus far. As for what Spy mentioned regarding quantity of feeds, I would actually bump it up to 4 feeds per day if this horse is not kept on quality grazing pasture.
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You know you are a horse person when...
...You pull change from your pocket , and hay falls out.
...you yell at the kids, and the horse's name pops out.
...you actually get to a point where flies don't bother you so much.
Posts: 2292 | From: BC, Canada | Registered: Jan 2004
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