How to fatten a horse help please

My horse was deliberately bred to my stallion by a man who boarded her because he wanted to keep her and her baby. She was only 1.5 years old when she was bred and gave everything to her foal, who is a beautiful healthy colt, but she is skin and bones. I need to help her get back to normal and am not sure of the best way. I am leery of beet pulp because it is from genetically modified beets. What is a good way to get her back on track? Thank ewe

I will ask the obvious question. Has she been wormed? If she has a heavy wormload you may have to do it twice with different wormers. Make sure you give the right amount for her weight. There are others here that know more than horses than I. They can give you better worming info.

Beet pulp!! If its too scary then rice bran. High fat would be the way to go. Also all the hay she can consume. Yes worm have her teeth checked if they have not been floated recently. Young horses often have messy mouths as so many teeth are eurupting.

There are also extruded feeds and high fat feeds check with you local feed dealer. Stay away from anything "hot" as that will make her not feel so well and cause other issues.

Beet pulp is not that scary. You can also only feed up to 20% of her diet as its not a great replacement for forages.

I agree definately worm her, and make sure she is healthy otherwise.
We have a senior horse that has trouble once on hay to keep the weight on, we feed him Tiz Whiz senior pellets as well as all he can eat hay, and that seems to help.
Are you sure that all Beet Pulp is from GMO beets? I have heard it is another good option for adding weight to a horse.

Yes, we often overlook floating the teeth when a horse is unthrifty. I do not envy your task. It is NOT a great time of year to try to put weight on a horse.

Yes, we often overlook floating the teeth when a horse is unthrifty. I do not envy your task. It is NOT a great time of year to try to put weight on a horse.

Who in their right mind breeds a mare that is just 1.5 years old? The guy ought to be shot! Yes, I know it's not on topic but when you read something so irresponsible, it really ticks me off!

Good quality hay in front of her every minute of the day.
Beet pulp, sometimes our ethics have to stand down for the welfare of an animal. Take her off it when she is at her ideal weight.
I agree, no hot feed. We use Step 8 with great success.
Calf Manna is also good to put on weight, just introduce slowly and don't feed to much of it.

Teeth and worms taken care of and hay every minute of the day. They are foragers and their stomachs work best when they have access to food all day long. Have it in a feeder so she doesn't waste it.

Hay now, all the time and introduce the other things very slowly. A very skinny horse must be brought along slowly.

Good luck with her.

Has similar situation. Rescued a 1.5 year mare from starving herd (yes, dead horses in field with her, starving!) She was pregnant at the time, we did not know it. She should never have been bred, was in too bad of shape and too young. Oh well..this happens when young studs run with young mares.

She had the foal, but rapidly lost weight despite beet pulp, Mare and Foal pellets, alfalfa pellets with some oil and powdered molasses and hay. Her system was too poor to start with and the task of feeding the foal pretty much finished her off. She was a bone rack.

In a desperate attempt to ward off a worsening situation, with much regret, I weaned the foal at 4 months. It still took a loooonnng time for the mare to regain the lost weight. All the advice here is correct, slow is better. In the short term, beet pulp might help, it's not a forever addition to her life, just a temporary measure in desperate times.

Good luck, been where you are and it is an awful thing watching your mare waste away.

I wormed her with Piparazine in pellet form that was added to sweet feed.
Yes, the man should be shot. It is a long story about how he got the horses there in the first place. He is a very bad person. The only reason I did not call the police and the SPCA is that I was afraid of repercussions. Does "Deliverance" ring any bells? Seriously, the whole family is troubled and not quite right. They have a reputation around here, but I was brand new and did not know it.
Aside from that, she did go to a good place after I realized what he was up to and was taken very good care of. It is just that the foal took everything out of her. He is perfect and nicely proportioned, while she is skin and bones. He also had to be weaned early, but did fine. He is back with her now and has shown no desire to nurse, thank goodness.
Beet pulp is the residual of the now GMO sugar beets used for sugar production. Before beet pulp, what did people use to help out their horses? She is in a good pasture and I also have been giving her 50 pounds of hay a day as an extra, plus a cup of sweet feed. The hay is rich with clover and she eats it all up.
Thanks for the suggestions.

toybarons wrote:Who in their right mind breeds a mare that is just 1.5 years old? The guy ought to be shot! Yes, I know it's not on topic but when you read something so irresponsible, it really ticks me off!

toybaron that was exactly what I was thinking as well. Mind I am sure the Fat Ewe must have known. I sold an 18 mth old appaloosa, they tock her home and breed her straight away. I was so upset.( I found out the next year when they sent pictures) If I had know I would not have sold her to them. Horses take 3 years to grow to be adult, its as bad as under age kids having babies.

But on the other side. I would call the vet as they can tell you what your horse should have to bring her back to full health. Everyone is right de worm.
Good luck.

I would suggest deworming her with ivermectin - it's very safe, even with her poor body condition, and effective.

Sweet feed isn't the best option - it's a lot of high energy, empty calories, and whole grain which means she won't be digesting and using it as well as she could an extruded feed.

We feed Tiz Whiz senior feed - our elderly miniature stallion gets 3 pounds a day in the winter (soaked and split into two feedings, along with soaked cubes) to maintain his weight. One cup is certainly not enough for a full sized horse who needs to improve condition. Follow the instructions on the bag (doesn't have to be Tiz Whiz, I saw someone recommended Step 8, which is an excellent product) and feed to the weight she SHOULD be, not the weight that she is now. Introduce the feed gradually, however, increasing a little at a time until she's eating the proper amount.

The foal, as well, would benefit from supplementary feed. Horses do most of their growing in their first year, and need lots of nutrition to grow healthy and strong. More info here: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Be very aware, as well, that colts become sexually mature at an early age. 8 months is average, but I've heard stories of pregnancies resulting from colts as young as 6 months. If your baby isn't gelded, then he maybe shouldn't be with his momma for too much longer.

I agree with kendra. Dump the sweet feed. You will probably be seeing a whole lot of whole grains in her poop. I also agree with the ivermectin the piprazine wont get the nasty worms.

Tizwhiz is a wonderful feed if you have a supplier. I have fed it for the past 15 years and I love it. I feed half as much as any other complete feed and the horses look fantastic on it. ANy time they have left home and come off it you can see the difference. I feed the 12% ( I think the call it train and maintain) I believe the senior is 14% protein but if you can find it I would feed the 16% ( grow and something) becuase she does need the extra protein for growth.

You can also add oil to her feed but start slowly and increase in small amounts. There is also a product called cool calories 100 which might be beneficial. But it sounds like you are the right track. It will be a slow process for sure. I might also add a probiotic to help keep her tummy happy and prevent any digestive upset. A good one is biotic 8.

Good luck!

I have never had a horse before. I actually bought her mother in 2010 and she was bred at the time to a purebred Canadian stallion from Ontario (Quebec border) . The result was my Willa. I was evicted from where I was staying because the bylaws did not allow horses as it turned out, so they were boarded. When I bought this place, they came home but I had no way to separate the stallion from the mares, so they went to that man's place to be boarded and that was a big mistake. He bred her to my stallion then told me they bred at my house but the latest she would have foaled if bred here would be December and she foaled in April. Hmmmm.

I do have some Equalvan (sp?) Gold I can give to her. The little guy will be gelded as soon as the flies are gone. Too bad. He is the last of his line of the typy old style Canadian horses. HIs father was killed by lightening a couple of months ago. I just cannot keep a stallion. I wonder if there would be any market for him? Would Willa be OK on her own ? She could hang out with the llamas.

I will go look for some of the supplements and if she is not gaining I will definitely have the vet out to see her. Thanks everyone.

If he is not grade there may be a market for him. I know lots of people are interested in Canadians. The key is good advertising in the right places. It may be easier for you to sell him as a stud colt, then purchase an already trained horse.

If you need to get weight on fast, my reccommendation would be beet pulp for sure. Add to this, a cup of ground flax seed and a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil.
We've used this on many horses we've brought in during cold times with quick results.

Hillbilly wrote: If you need to get weight on fast, my reccommendation would be beet pulp for sure. Add to this, a cup of ground flax seed and a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil.
We've used this on many horses we've brought in during cold times with quick results.

Nothing like fat to add calories! Flax is great and yes, make sure it is ground, and ground fresh. Whole flax will slip right through her!

I second the advice by KendraG.

Canadians are generally very easy keepers; it is unfortunate that this mare was allowed to get into such a condition. Definitely use an Ivermectin dewormer on her - other dewormers do not get all of the parasites. A visit from the vet to check her teeth, and identify any other issues, would be the first thing on my list.

1 cup of sweet feed wouldn't put weight on a piglet, let alone a horse. We used to only give it as a treat, not use it for any nutritional value.

I would also give her constant access to high-quality hay - don't limit the amount that she gets daily, just keep the feeder full and let her self-feed as much as she wants. She'll need that fibre to stay warm soon! Pasture forage has declining nutritional value at this time of year, as the plants are drawing their nutrients into their roots for next spring, so don't rely on that.

A complete feed is probably the best, and easiest, option for you. As the others have said, start small and slow and build up from there. It's going to be a long, drawn-out, EXPENSIVE process.

Frankly, when it comes to an animal you're not going to eat - like a horse - does it matter if the beet pulp is GMO or not? As long as it does the trick and helps her put some weight on.

Another high-fat feed you may want to consider is rice bran. I used to feed it to my senior citizen and it was excellent for keeping weight on. It's easier to feed on those cold days, too, as it's not a liquid.

You'll also want to give her access to salt and a good-quality mineral block. Check with UFA to see what they have that is horse-specific.

Good shelter - three sides and a roof - is going to be VITAL for this horse this winter. She will not be able to afford to burn any extra calories to stay warm, so good shelter is very, very important. Also ensure she has a constant supply of fresh, non-frozen water.

The market for Canadian horses is declining - it peaked probably 10 years ago, during and shortly after the push to get the Canadian declared as Canada's National Horse. Numbers are up, therefore, the demand is not as great. You can still sell them, but not for much more than the average quarter horse.

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So, I will try to sell the little guy at this time and if he does not sell, I will have him gelded as soon as the flies are gone.
He is purebred Canadian, not yet registered, but certainly could be. His mother and father are. $1500

Wow, I had a weight problem with my horses this past winter, they had worms that the vet said they didn't (the vet didn't know anything).

But I would suggest Hay 24/7, Make sure you have great quality hay. um, hay cube, beet pulp mix, It surealy helpd my horses put on a few pounds. Also, walk her, give her attention, that also made my horses happy, and a happy horses helps put the pounds on.

I wish I was closer to give you a hand.

I have a friend at Maidstone Sk who may be interested in your little guy. If you could let me know more about him I could pass on the info. Bloodlines, if you are willing to register, how tall he should get ect. We would also possibly be interested. Also is he pure black? Thanks

Also if you have injectable I once got cattle/sheep squirt 7cc for an adult (1100 pound horse) down her throat. Works awesome. If you would like a way to worm without chemicals use 1Tbsp cinnamon in a cup to 1.5 cups dampened oats. This is a trick they use at the race tracks quite often.

I agree a good quality hay will work wonders. I have never dealt with beet pulp, but when needed to add weight I would give a couple of cups if wheat in with the oats I would give them. It does not sound like much but seemed to help. We dealt with a mare who had been pulled way down by the foal we bought her at auction and you could count her ribs from a long ways back. It took a few months to get the weight back on her but we were also dealing with her starting in November. Good luck!

I had a filly that was rescued early this spring. She was in really bad shape. Went down within a week of getting here with worms. We got her back up and going and she is growing strong and healthy now. A trick that my husbands family always used was oats with a bit of corn oil on them. I will tell you, she even had really flaky skin too, it all cleared up. I do roll my oats fresh here, but whole oats will work, just let the oil soak in a bit. It will make the hooves grow faster, so you have to watch how much of the oats you give.

The little colt is now gelded and so far he is good. I have haltered both horses and taken them for walks. I hug them and tell them they are wonderful. Little Zeb is shy of me but is getting better. His mom, Willa, is good. I had a horsey guy over to deliver straw and he said to let them go so I did. They are running the quarter with the llamas now and his suggestion was that there is excellent grass and forage in the bush that will do better than the hay. I left her gate open as well, so she has access to the hay if she prefers, but she has not been back to eat it. I am assuming she is getting enough to eat then from the pasture and bush. She seems happier. I would like to hire a trainer to train ME to train the horses. They all want to train the horses though, sigh. I am going by instinct and it seems to be working. I am teaching Willa to back up and Zeb the little guy to follow me and stop. So far so good.

Allow me to quote my original reply ... "Pasture forage has declining nutritional value at this time of year, as the plants are drawing their nutrients into their roots for next spring, so don't rely on that."

We're now feeding our cows hay IN ADDITION to what pasture is left - and they didn't start off underweight.

If you want your mare to lose what weight she has managed to gain, by all means, listen to the off-hand, poorly educated remark from the "horsey guy" and ignore all the good advice you've received from the kind-hearted people who have taken time to type it out for you.

Your mare needs nutrition beyond hay & pasture, if you want her to make it through the winter in good shape.