Conditioning the rescued horse.

[dianneS]

Everyone keeps telling me in a few months I'll have a whole new horse! I just can't wait to see it!

Luckily we have plenty of pasture too.

I wonder if I should be concerned with the new spring grasses? Will he be okay if he's out 24/7 with unlimited hay for now, and will get used to the new grass as it begins to come in?

 

[dianneS]

The new guy wasn't very interested in his feed this morning?

He's eating his hay, pooping and drinking his water, but he only ate about 1/3 of his grain and then lost interest in it. It took him a while to show an interest in his grain too. He just stood there looking at it for a few moments before he started to eat.

This is the grain that came with him, I haven't really begun to transition him over to our feed yet at all, I wonder what's going on?

He's gaining more confidence and chased the mini horse away from his hay pile so he's feeling okay. Maybe its just the transition to a new place? He did eat some horse treats from my hand. He is a slow eater too.

 

[Karma]

It could be the transition, you could call and ask the previous owner if it is a normal thing for him which would be something good to know. One thing to consider if you have given him the round bale already or a large amount of hay he could have just eaten so much hay he was not hungry by the time you offered the grain. Are you feeding in the pasture with the other horses or in stalls? He may be hesitant to eat grain around the others, I'd try putting him in a stall while feeding and see if that helps. If you haven't had a vet check yet and he remains hesitant to eat the grain after a few weeks I'd have a vet out to check his teeth, for the time being as long as he is able to eliminate and eating hay and drinking water I would not worry too much.

As far as worrying about the spring grass, there really are too many varibles for me to say for sure. Your vet can probably tell you if it is a concern with your pasture depending on the type and growth typical in your region. If this gelding has no conditions that put him at risk it's unlikely but occasionally even perfectly healthy horses who are on pasture 24/7 will founder. You can always dry lot/stable them or put on a grazing muzzle if you are worried.

 

[dianneS]

a large amount of hay he could have just eaten so much hay he was not hungry by the time you offered the grain. Are you feeding in the pasture with the other horses or in stalls?

I've been feeding him in his stall. I'm thinking that he is filling up on hay and just doesn't want grain at this time. I don't know where he was fed at his foster home, probably grain in a stall, definitely hay in the pasture. By the looks of him I'm sure that he got little to no hay at all in the pasture with the other horses.

He gets downright excited when he sees a fresh pile of hay here! He's even getting gutsy enough to chase the other horses away from his pile! I didn't get him his round bale yet, but I'm giving him plenty of square bale hay for the time being.

He only ate about 1/4 of his grain tonight, he just had no interest in it. I think the majority of his sustenance has been his grain up until now. By the look and smell of his poops when he first got here, it looked as if he was living almost exclusively on grain. Now he's got hay, and doesn't have to fight for it. I think he prefers the hay, is getting his fill and has no room or no desire for grain.

Its just odd for me to see a horse refuse grain. My horses get minimal grain and they go nuts for it whenever its feeding time. They suck it up like vacuums, and this guy is a sloooow eater, taking his good ol' sweet time like grain is no big deal to him.

His poops are still normal, actually getting firmer and less stinky. He's still drinking water and acting perfectly normal.

 

[yankee'n'moxie]

Yea, it sounds to me like he just likes the hay that he hasn't really ever had... I wouldn't worry about it, as long as he isn't hungry, don't force him. Glad you rescued him!

 

[dianneS]

Yea, it sounds to me like he just likes the hay that he hasn't really ever had... I wouldn't worry about it, as long as he isn't hungry, don't force him. Glad you rescued him!

Good, I'm relieved. I do think he's just filling up on hay because he was deprived of it for so long by the other horses in his pasture.

Should I get him some alfalfa hay maybe. or will that be too rich? Just add a little to his regular hay?

 

[dianneS]

Well, the big guy finished all of his grain last night! He was in his stall over night, we had snow. So he did have all night to eat it, but it was gone this morning!

He also dove in to his breakfast and ate all of that but for a little tiny bit, then he went for his hay.

I turned everyone out late this morning because of the weather. The sun is out now and the snow melting. I put the bratty ponies in with the horses today and the new guy is standing up for himself. The ponies are leaving him alone.

I actually think the new guy looks like he's filling out already? Could that even be possible, its only been less than a week? I've started keeping a daily photo log of his progress.

These were taken today.

This was day one or two? Perhaps I'm just getting used to looking at his "thinness" or perhaps he just looks prettier in snow? IDK? I just thought he looked better when I pulled his blanket off of him yesterday? Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me?

 

[LauraM]

Actually, I don't think he looks to terribly bad. Here's a pic of a 16 year old OTTB mare I rescued last spring:

 

[dianneS]

She's not bad lookin' either! Do you have any recent photos of her?

I'm just not used to having thin out of condition horses, so I worry.

Well, that's not entirely true. I did rescue a totally emaciated mini horse, probably as thin as one could get and still be able to stand up. The vet didn't think he'd survive the weekend. However, he was covered in this horrible thick winter coat that was nearly six inches long! You couldn't see how thin he was, but you sure could feel how thin he was under that "fur". We had to give all of his shots subcutaneously because he had no muscle to inject into! Of course we had to shave a few spots in order to do so, it wasn't fun for anyone involved! Thankfully, he's fat and happy and healthy today!

 

[dianneS]

The big guy is eating all of his grain now at every meal! Scarfed it all down this morning in a few minutes. Still eating all the hay he can. Haven't gotten that round bale yet, but plan to this weekend. He should start filling out nicely soon.

He's got a strange patch on his back just behind his withers though that I'm not sure what it is? Its sore to the touch and the hair is falling out, I'm not sure if its a bit of rain rot or what? Its just a 4" round spot.

I also put some silicone detangler on his tail yesterday and combed it out. Its not terribly thin but a good bit of his tail hair FELL OUT! It didn't break off, it had roots on the end and just came out so easily. I've never seen anything like that?

His mane is really thin, I don't know if he rubs it or what, but it sure is thin. He's certainly a work in progress, I can't wait to see him shape up this spring!