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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. 

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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 

 



Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
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retired horse

Prince is a 30 year old retired Tennessee Walker. He is in good health. I had not seen him for too long as I had moved out of state. The barn owners decided to add to his Triple Crown Senior and gave him strider(sweetfeed)and lowered his TCS. So he was on 2 of the very large industrial cans 2xs per day. Mostly sweetfeed. He does not or can not eat hay,and has some loss of tooth surface.He has grass until cold weather. He is in a stall every night.I brought him Platinum Plus and wanted him only on the Triple Crown Senior-complete feed.Can you tell me in pounds how much feed he should have per feeding. His weight has been good and had not changed but owners will not blanket him and say he will lose weight, especially in winter.Please advise me on this matter. Thankyou gail

Where are you from? Mamaroneck, New York

How did you locate this forum? a friend

Re: retired horse

Hi Gail,

The size of his meal concerns me since he should not have more than 3 to 4 pounds, max, of concentrated feed (such as TC Senior) per meal. A large coffee can holds approximately 5 lbs of feed, so two cans is 10 pounds of feed -- that is colic, waiting to happen. Also, with the sweet feed (which he should not be having -- he needs a senior feed for the higher fiber content), most of the feed will not get digested in the small intestine when fed at that rate. Instead, it will reach the hind gut, where the bacterial flora will ferment it, possibly leading to laminitis.

So, in terms of pounds of feed, he should have 2.5% of his weight in feed. So, at 1000 pounds, he needs to have at least 25 lbs of feed each day. I would suggest that you feed him two meals of the TC Senior, say of 4 lbs each. And, then give him a hay replacer, such as beet pulp or hay pellets.

I would also recommend adding more fat in the diet in the form of flaxseed meal, such as Nutra Flax. The type of fat in flaxseed meal is mainly in the form of Omega 3 fatty acids. This will help maintain healthy hooves, hair coat, and joints, as well as protect his vital organs.

And finally, you can improve his ability to digest forages by adding a prebiotic to his diet. Not a probiotic (that has live microbes), but a prebiotic (like Ration Plus) to allow him to get calories from his grass and hay replacers. This will help him keep weight on for the upcoming months.

I hope this is helpful.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO

Re: retired horse

Thankyou so much Dr. Getty for your advice. I am moving Prince nearer to me tomorrow. Is it okay to give Prince Stop the Pain along with his Triple Crown Senior and the two you recommended--Nutra Flax, and Ration Plus? He has gotten bute when he needed it and it did seem to help.(he is the 30yr. old Tennessee Walker)Please let me know and thankyou again. Gail Gilcher

Where are you from? Mamaroneck, New York

How did you locate this forum? a friend

Re: retired horse

Hi Gail,

Oh, that is wonderful news! It will be so much better for both of you having him nearby.

Yes, certainly -- Stop the Pain will be fine with Nutra Flax and Ration Plus. At his age, I would definitely add vitamin C to his diet. Horses produce vitamin C when they are young, but as they age, they are less able to produce it. Vitamin C is necessary for the production of collagen which will keep his joints healthy, as well as his blood vessels. It has other functions in the body as well, and there generally is no vitamin C added to commercial feeds. Pure C provides approximately 7,000 mg per scoop and I would add two scoops to his diet each day, if he were my horse.

Keep me posted on how he's doing!

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO

Re: retired horse

Dr. Getty, So far Prince is doing pretty well. I am trying to get an equine dentist as he clearly needs one. Someone has suggested using a Blue Seal product called hay replacer. It melts in mouth when mixed with the horses saliva. It comes in a pellet form. I am following your other suggestions. What do you think about this also? Thankyou Gail Gilcher

Where are you from? Mamaroneck, New York

How did you locate this forum? a friend

Re: retired horse

Sorry, Dr. Getty. The product is called Hay Stretcher. Gail Gilcher

Where are you from? Mamaroneck, New York

How did you locate this forum? a friend

Re: retired horse

Hi Gail,

The Blue Seal Hay Stretcher is fine. Keep in mind that he'll still need the TC Senior to provide the nutritional supplementation that's necessary.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO