Cribber

Question
Friends horses very sick from cribbing. Says it will be in the thousands to take to vet. Can't afford that. Won't eat within a week looks very sunk in around back and rear back legs badly swollen how can I help her with her horse??

Answer
hi micheal, well a cribbing collar is the best. make it snug to wear she cant crib but if she puts her head down its loose. other then that fir cribbing try to make her pen crib free. put wood on the sides and make a wood top for it. you can also put a nochew substance on the wood to keep her mouth off of it. you can find no chew at a feed store. try giving her grain such as rice bran, weat bran, and mare and foal. these will help her gain weight and get her to eat. with each grain start out at one handful of each once a day for 3-4 days. then just keeo gradually increasing it every 3-4 days after. dont give her more then 4 handfuls of each grain though. it would be to much on the stomach. as for the swollen legs she is probobly stocking up. walk her daily for at least 10-20 minutes. as fare as hay goes try to free feed her an alfalfa grass mix. this way there isnt to much calcium on the stomach but it will allow her body the nutrients it needs to gain weight. good luck
amanda groff