new horse owner

Question
QUESTION: hi, wonder if you can give some advise on mares, i have saved two pregnant mares from being slaughtered, they have spend the whole winter outside, they need to fatten up, is there anything that you recommend

ANSWER: Dear Charlene,

In order to give you the advice you seek I need some more information from you.  How much horse experience do you have? How far along in their pregnancies are these mares?  What breed are they, how old are they, how tall are they and roughly what do you think they weigh now?  When you say they are under weight what makes you think this?  Can you see their ribs, their back bones, hip bones etc etc?

If you scroll to the bottom of this site
http://www.userltriangle.org/

do your mares look anything like these horses?

Then check out this link
http://www.shady-acres.com/susan/conditionscore.shtml

and condition score your mares.

I also need to know what you are feeding them right now.

I assume that your vet has looked at them and that they have had their teeth checked and have been wormed?

Looking forward to more info so I can offer more advice.
Clair Thunes, PhD
Independent Equine Nutritionist,
Equilibrate Equine Consulting,
info@equilibrateequine.com
www.equilibrateequine.com

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

QUESTION: hi clair, at the moment i am feeding them 14% oats, full fat soya, bread, carrots,malaises and apples. they seem to be picking up since the last time we spoke, the vet has not been as i cannot find one in my area, the grey is messing alot when she eats, which indicates that her teeth are to big, this i know from what friends have told me.
i was also told when i got them that they were pregnant, how do i know for sure, without a vet coming out to check?

Answer
Charlene,

Until they obviously start "looking" pregnant I;m not sure you will know without a pregnancy test by a vet.  If they are pregnant then they will not come into heat however mares often have silent heats where they don't show any signs so that isn't very helpful.

As for the food, I'm glad they are picking up.  I assume they are getting some hay?  They MUST get hay you can not just feed them what you have listed in your response.  Hay or grass is required for good gut function and without it they are at risk of a whole heap of problems, the biggest of which is colic which is the number 1 killer of horses.  When you say 14% do you mean 14% of their diet or do you mean a 14% feed? i,e, one with 14% protein?  I'm not clear from your response whether the oats and soya are a part of some commercial grain mix you are feeding or whether you are feeding them straight?  As I said in my first response to you I need to know how much of each you are feeding preferably in lbs.

Do you know of any farriers or small animal vets?  If so ask them for a recommendation for a horse vet.  To insure a healthy pregnancy and foals who do not have problems your mares need to be assessed by a vet.

I am happy to help your further but I need you to answer the questions I asked you, otherwise I do not have the information I need to make an accurate recommendation.

Thanks
Clair