Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
Welcome to my forum.
Here you will find more than 6 years of questions and my answers. It is searchable and offers a great deal of information.
Currently, I am discontinuing new questions. This may change in the future, but in the meantime, please know that It has been a true pleasure serving you.
Take a look at my Nutrition Library and Tips of the Month for a variety of answers on selected topics. Be sure to sign up for my monthly e-newsletter, Forage for Thought.
I also have a growing number of recordings on "Teleseminars on Nutrition Topics that Concern You" as well as the new, Spotlight on Equine Nutrition Series -- printed versions of favorite teleseminars.
And finally, look for my articles in a variety of local publications and online newsletters, as well as the Horse Journal, where I am the Contributing Nutrition Editor.
All the best,
Dr. Getty
Hi aagin, After finding your forum I can finally get answers to my questions(sorry I have so many
)
My first question is the color of hay important? I know that it should smell excellent and be free of mold and dust,but should it be relly green or does it still have the same nutrients if it is brown? Also my arab is really over weight( seems strange when my tb is underweight)they have acess to unlimited range over 200 acres, they definatly dont use it all.He is very healthy, I really belive in letting them eat things that they would in the wild(differnent types of grasses leaves,bark,certain weeds etc..)He gets grass hay in the morn noon and dinner,so his inculin does not go erractic.We do not have quessience here or anything like that so I'm not sure how to slim him down he is ridden by not nearly enough, I have 3 kids the youngest is 14 months so I dont have much time to ride. Also for my tb should I feed him flaxseed or rice bran oil or both for weight gain(what is rice bran oil and can i get that at the grocery store.One more thing on my tb that might help you to understand him better is that he was a race horse and then they tried to use him as a barrell horse when that didnt work he ended up at the auction and I was bidding against the meat man for him,he has had a very hard life until I got him, now I'm trying to make his life a bit easier for him.I dont know if that helps at all but it might shed some light into the kind of life he has had.
Once again thank you for any thing you can tell me,you are just a wealth of knowledge and you are doing an excellent thing for people like me who have sooooo many ? and this forum is really irreplacable.
Jenni
Where are you from? c
How did you locate this forum? internet search
Hi Jenni,
The color of hay can be an indication of how long it has been in storage or even sitting in the sun. It should be green in color. Browning hay indicates loss of vitamins, so it is not as nutritious.
Horses differ in terms of their metabolic rates, just like people do, so some horses can stay overweight on the same amount of feed that a thin horse gets. You're doing the right thing by allowing them to graze. Your TB, however, may very well have an ulcer, which contributes to his weight being low.
Exercise for your overweight horse is really the best thing. But, perhaps there are other issues at work here. Since I really don't have enough information to give you suggestions that you can use, you may find it helpful to set up a phone visit.
Please let me know how I can best assist you.
All the best,
Dr. Getty 