How to fatten up a thin horse

When I was running a shelter for abused and unwanted farm animals, I gained lots of experience in helping underweight or malnourished horses to gain weight - not fat, but muscle too. Like with people, large does not necessarily equate healthy. With horses, a big round belly does not equate health. I have seen big round bellies on animals infested with worms, and animals fed lots of nutrient deficient hay. The biggest mistake people make when trying to help horses gain weight, is whopping the wormers and hay to them. Not always what they need.
The first thing I do with thin and out of condition horses is to measure their height, girth, and evaluate their condition using a condition scale. This looks at their overall health, hydration, physical condition among other parameters. (See www.omafra.gov.on.ca for a conditioning scale)
I always worm new horses on the farm on arrival, BUT, one must use caution when worming. Treating a worm infested horse can cause the horse to colic. Use caution when worming a horse with no known worming history. I usually administer half the dose recommended and then repeat the worming in 4 weeks, then again in 4-6 weeks, then every 8 weeks for one year. I know that is overkill, but it works. I also ask a vet to check the horse for other potential problems like EIA, or some other illness. It is also a good idea to have a fecal sample tested for parasites, and to have the horses teeth floated.
The other mistake people make is "whopping the feed" to the horse. Again, use caution. You can colic a horse doing this! I always start the animal slowly... even if the previous owner says the horse was on a quart of feed at their farm, any horse I get, goes on a one day fast (from grain) and is then started slowly onto my feed. I will often try to get a half a bag of what they had at the previous barn and mix it with my feed slowly transitioning the horse onto my feed.

In the case of ponies, and Bojangles, I fast the pony from grain for one day,
day 2-7 I feed a handful of grain, 1/2 cup of bran, 1/8 cup of vegetable oil, 1/8 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day in the evening. I like to feed in the evening because the heat from the digestive process helps keep the horse warm through the night, this is especially good in the winter. I will also warm the water in the winter to save on calorie consumption in the horse (the body temperature will drop if the belly is full of cold water, and will need to increase calorie consumption to warm the belly/horse, this takes away from fat formation to help the horse gain weight). Be sure to keep an eye out for signs of colic when changing the diet. I will increase the number of times I check on the horse during this time, including a late or middle of night check.
Day 8-15 I increase the proportions to 1 cup of grain, 3/4 cup of bran, 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
Day 16-21 the proportions increases to 1 1/2 cups of grain, 1 cup of bran, 1/2 cup of oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
Day 22-29 I give 2 cups of grain, 1 1/2 cups of brain, 1/2 cup of oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
For the next 30 days I give the same proportions twice a day. Watch the horses growth and condition daily, and measure girth for weight change at least every 30 days. This is really important with ponies as they can gain weight rapidly.
This method has worked very well for many horses in my care. It usually takes the average underweight horse 6-9 months to get to a healthy weight. I also avoid working the horse during the first few weeks of this program, and if they are gaining nicely, I start a walking program with them to help build muscle mass, starting slow at first, then increasing the amount of work slowly, all the while watching for weight loss.
Returning a horse to good health and condition is difficult, requires patience, and diligence. Hang in there, and be attentive to minor changes with the horse. Good luck and I hope this helps!

Before photos - Mr. Bojangles aka Bo

Before photo of Bojangles taken March 26, 2010
There is a method for determining a horses condition called condition scoring, and Bo scored between a 1 and 2 which is not terrific. It is hard to tell but he is thinner than his wooly coat makes him look. I suspect that he was low man on the totem pole at his other barnyard and the other horses pushed him away from the best feed, and he got their left overs, and if he was pushed out of the shelter by the other horses, he would also have a hard time keeping his winter weight where it belongs. So my plan is to get his coat healthy, his weight up, and his muscle mass increased. With that he will perk up and get a little gumption. Watch and see how he goes!

I like to take before and after shots of the horses I get, as some have come looking shabby, thin, and very sad, and the transformation is amazing. Just for the fun of it, here is one of my past horses that went from rags to riches...... well, she looked the part anyway.

Nikki was a pony rescued by the SPCA. She and her foal were starving to death when found and cared for by the vet for a month, then brought to me for their further recovery. It took 9 months to get her back to good condition.


The picture on the left is Nikki in June 06 and the photo on the right is the same horse in September of 05. Nikkie came at one month after being rescued, and having vet care for one month, this photo shows her the day she arrived, imagine how bad she looked the day they got her! Yes, this is the same pony!!

Mr. Bojangles

Hi All. It has been forever since I last wrote on my blog, but I am back. The baby is growing like crazy, and is nearly two, and we decided he needed a pony. Of course, finding a good pony is very difficult. I thought we had found the one, but on second meeting she tried to kick me twice. So much for the well trained pony. Then I got a call that there was a pair of ponies in need of a new home very quickly, and I agreed to take them on. Well the morning they were to be delivered, the mare broke her leg and had to be put down before they left their home. The decision was made to still receive Bojangles. Upon his arrival, I noticed that he was thin, and in desperate need of some loving. He has come to the right place. This little gelding is going to look like a different little pony altogether come June! So, I invite you to monitor his progress, and cheer him on with me.
Berenger is very happy to have a pony, and I think that Bo is very happy to be here with us, he even seems to like the sheep. His first day here, he ate sumptuous hay - like a pig, drank lots of fresh Pleasant Valley Spring water, hung out with the sheep, and had a delicious bran mash supper fit for a king! Bear sat on his back for just a minute and both Bo and Bear seemed to enjoy it. Tomorrow Bo gets a spa day compete with manicure (hoof trimming), hair styling (grooming), and a leisurely day in the sun hanging out with his sheep friends. You deserve it Bo!

Girl Power

Today my 4-H Sheep group (two 9 year old girls at present) showed their grit. The theme of the day was Girl Power. It was pouring rain, and a bit cold to begin with. The girls toughed it out though in true farm girl fashion, complete with slickers and rainboots. The girls learned how to measure wood, hammer nails, mark wood for cutting, use of the drill, and a level, and basic safety issues. Together we built a 11ft by 6 ft sheep stall for my rams including an external hay feeder with slanted "bars" to help decrease hay wastage. Two hours later, we were done. All in all, we had fun, it came out well, they learned to use some basic tools for building, and they learned that girls can do what a guy can do if they work together. I am sure the sheep will be very happy with their new stall. High Fives all around girls!

Harvest Time

Well, the time has come, summer ends. What little of it we had. This summer was the coldest, wettest summer I have ever seen in my lifetime. Not that I am complaining about it being cold, but I am complaining about the poor output from my garden. It was a poor year for gardening. As I talk to the many local farmers and gardeners, everyone has the same complaint. It is next to impossible to grow root vegetables in saturated ground, and near impossible to get the hay and grains in this year! It is very discouraging to the farmers and gardeners alike. I am discouraged as I looked forward to the crops to get me through the long winter. I had visions of feeding the baby fresh garden vegetables. With the ever increasing prices in the grocery stores, the last thing I want to do is buy something I can grow in the grocery store. Not to mention the gas prices!!! Goodness!
How will we survive it. So half my hay is in, I picked the last squash and pumpkins today. I need to pickle my beets this week. Plant my garlic soon too. It seems that the work never ends. Then the garden needs to be tilled, and prepared for winter. I am still drying herbs though. Guess I better get that done too. I am having a hard time washing wool too. I need a few good sunny days to dry the fleece after I wash it, and can only do one at a time because of the amount of work and space required. It has been poor weather for that too. I only sheared my rams this last week because they never stayed dry long enough to get them done this year. I have been trying to get to them since spring. What a shame though, lost half their wool as I needed to leave an inch on for fall, and they matted too. I will never let that happen again. Next spring they will be put in the barn for a week if needed so they can dry out!
Well, on the positive side, soon I will have fresh meat as butchering time is coming. Also will be able to make loads of applesauce, and put apples in the freezer and root cellar. The apples are juicy this year!
Along with this time of year is the fall fair. I entered Berenger in a baby contest. He placed third, two little girls beat him, it is awfully hard to beat the girls. He was very good about it. I guess he did not want to make the little girls look bad. What a gentleman! Bear is busy learning to roll around, attempting to crawl, trying new foods, and babbling. He will be a verbacious little bugger when he gets talking. He has been helping me can, he sits in his back pack carrier on his fussier days and squaks at me to hurry up. No wasting time with him around to keep me on my toes!
The nice thing about harvest time is that the leaves are changing color and fall is my favorite time of year! The bugs are dying or disappearing into the ground, and you can enjoy a nice long hike in the woods! I miss that! Bear can sit in the back pack now, so we will start hiking, time for him to learn to appreciate the fall too! I knitted him a hunter orange hat the other day, he is so cute in it! To all of you who hate winter, my advice to you is to get outside now, hike and enjoy the smells of fall, the sounds of the crisp fall leaves underfoot, and the sights of those beautiful fall colors! The best time of year is too short, seems it's even shorter than summertime. Enjoy it while you can!

Plastic or Cloth?

One day, while I was pregnant, my environmentalist daughter and I were discussing the merits of using cloth versus plastic diapers (meaning pampers etc). We figured out that if the average baby wore diapers and then pull ups for two years - it would cost $20,000+ dollars. Yikes! When you think that this equals one year of university including books and meals, and housing... that's alot of dough! So if you use commercial diapers for two years you are basically flushing your child's first year of university tuition down the drain so to speak. That is staggering! I don't even want to think about the cost to the environment. Ever been to a landfill and actually seen the piles of diapers and the plastic bags they travel there in? If we had to personally bring our own garbage into the dump, I think we would be more aware of what we are doing to our poor earth. If you don't believe me, go to your local dump, take a good look around! It is pretty sad when you really think that that stuff will mostly still be there hidden under the soil for thousands of years. Don't believe me - what are all the items the archeologists are digging up. Someone's trash from 1200 bc. So what am I doing about this? Well, as much as I hate doing all the wash and playing with poopie diapers, I am using cloth diapers. I had a problem with all the ones you can buy in the stores (if you can find any), and the hand me down ones from god knows when just were not cutting it (leaking something awful), I decided to design my own. What's more is that the linings are made from recycled materials! Yup, cool eh? The best thing is that if you find plastic diaper covers (from gerber or other company) - they don't leak (unless you put them on wrong or the plastic pants are too loose. I love them. So I thought I would share them. Feel free to call me if you want me to make some for you!

Lonely for Lucy

It is with great saddness that my family announces the passing of Lucy. Lucy was our granny goat, of Angora breeding. She has lived with us for 7 years. Not only did she provide us with mohair fiber to keep us warm, but she also provided us with joy and laughter. Lucy had a great personality. Loads of it! Lucy came to us when we called her name, she had a unique bleeting noise that she greeted me with in the morning. Lucy smiled, really she smiled - we have the picture to prove it, especially after giving birth to Murphy. Lucy was quite the trooper then. She had lived on a farm where she was very neglected, and came to us so thin, that you could not tell she was pregnant. Actually she was 4 months pregnant at the time. I was very surprised when she popped out a baby one cold March morning. Lucy struggled to regain her weight, while nursing Murphy, but she slowly came around. Last winter was very hard on Lucy, and again she had trouble keeping weight on. Upon examination we discovered that she had no teeth, and nearly died during the snow storms of 2008. My daughter, Andrea, made it her mission to keep Lucy alive at least until spring so that we would be able to bury her. She "designed" a mash that succeeded in bringing Lucy around, and in fact she did very well with this mash. But as this summer has progressed, Lucy digressed. And so it is with great saddness that we decided that Lucy should be put down before it gets much colder. She was surrounded by her loving human family as she took her last nibbles of tender green grass, and an always appreciated scratch under the chin. Lucy will be missed. We loved you Lucy! Thank you for giving us Malachy and all your grandkids who will remind us of your smiles and sweet antics. Rest in peace old girl.