Weight Gain

Question
QUESTION: "Hi I have a 17 year old National Show Horse. in the last year he has lost so
much weight i can see his hips and ribs. I have had blood tests done and had the
vet out many times to look at him. I have tried everything around to help him
gain weight (beet pulp, omegatin, grow-n-win,etc.)and nothing has helped so far.
If you have any ideas of how to put weight on him that would be so much help(he
has been de-wormed). Also i have a 19 month old mustang and I am unsure what I
should be feeding her she has stopped growing the past 5 months. thank you so
much"


ANSWER: I have a few suggestions, but I am unsure if you stable your horse at a facility, or if your horse is kept at home.

A lot of the harder to keep horses (at my barn and surrounding barns) are on a mixture of different hays (orchard and alfalfa for the most part), senior feed, beet pulp and alfalfa/oat hay pellets.
Personally, I think that adding an extra flake during the middle of the day (for feedin 3 times a day) is a good option. I also would suggest some suppliments depending on your horses personal situation(as it differs each time).

This is the feeding schedule I have for a handful of my hard keeper:

1 Flake Alfalfa Mid-Day
2 Flakes of Orchard (Morning and Evening)
Suppliment mixture (Senior Feed, Alfalfa/Oat Pellets, Corn Oil)

Sometimes I have horses that are constant water drinkers that I can put on Grass hay (which is in constant supply in addition to regular meals).

Really, the situation varies depending on the horse. I also reccommend speaking to a certified equine nutritionalist for serious cases.

As far as the 19 month old mustang, I would go with a simple flake of hay (your choice) in the morning and evening.

A lot of things also depend on water comsumption in a horse and if the horse is kept out to pasture as well.

If you have any additional details, I would love to know so that maybe I can research and help you further. My answer now are basically a shot in the dark with the limited information!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi in answer to your question yes my horses are boarded at a stable. They have a round bale of grass hay out in there pasture but my 17 year old is not to interested in it he is used to alfalfa hay but I cannot fine that anywhere. Right now he gets A scoop of Equine Senior, 1 scoop omegatin, 1/2 scoop beet pulp, alfalfa cubs, corn oil,cocasoya, and he also gets msm and hard keeper solution at night. In the morning he gets 1/2 scoop equine senior and 1/2 scoop omegatin and thats it. In his stall at night he gets almost a half a bale of hay. I have had him on this for a while but it doesn't seem to be doing much good. Also my Mustang filly is getting a 1/2 scoop of equine junior morning and night with cocasoya. I have had people tell me to put grow-n-win in her grain also what do you suggest?

Answer
Sometimes, as horses get older, they are much harder to keep out in pasture. I would really suggest trying to find alfalfa anywhere you possibly can.
There is also a relatively new product on the market called BOSS (Black Oil Sunflower Seeds) that has been getting wonderful reviews for weight gain and coat conditioning. The reason I am always hesitent to mention it is because it is so new that we are not sure if there are any long term effects that we need to worry about.
If you can absolutely not get alfalfa (even from out of state) I would find a hay your horse does like and make sure it will agree with him - and feed 3x daily.

As for your mustang, if it is also pastured and getting only grass hay, I would agree with the suggestion of gro'n win as it gives extra suppliments not found in mixed forage.

I hope you can put some wieght on your horse soon! Good luck!