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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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 Dr. Getty 

 



Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
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Thin TB cross- how can I increase her weight without adding a ton of grain?

I have an 8-year-old Thoroughbred/Irish Sport Horse mare that needs to put on some weight. She is ridden regularly and will begin showing in eventing this summer. She is also up to date on all vaccinations and worming. The vet rated her body condition at a low 4 when I bought her 2 weeks ago.

She is currently eating:
3 flakes grass hay 3x/day
~1lb. Safe Performance Grain 2x/day
~1lb. Senior 2x/day

I am thinking of gradually adding:
1 cup Rice Bran 2x/day
1 bucket beep pulp 2x/day

I am at a boarding facility, so I only have access to certain types of feed. In addition to what is listed above, we can feed grass hay pellets, alfalfa cubes, and supplement baggies.

I have also considered using a daily dewormer, I've heard it can help keep weight on horses and keep them healthy.

What would you recommend?

Where are you from? Boulder, CO

How did you locate this forum? Recommendation

Re: Thin TB cross- how can I increase her weight without adding a ton of grain?

Hi Julie,

It's much better to approach weight gain from three perspectives rather than add cereal grains:

1) Add fat. Based on what you're feeding, rice bran is a fine idea to some extent but make sure it is a stabilized, commercial product that has added calcium to correct the naturally inverted calcium to phosphorus level found in rice bran. But, rice bran does not contain omega 3 fatty acids and she needs this. So, in addition to rice bran, or even instead of, add Nutra Flax. This commercial supplement is stabilized against rancidity (has a six month shelf life) and has some calcium added because flax is too high in phosphorus. I recommend one scoop per 400 lbs of body weight (or 1/2 that amount if you add rice bran).

2) Give her more forage. She needs to have all the grass hay she wants. If she goes without anything to graze on for several hours, the constant acid production that her stomach secretes will cause an ulcer. Ulcers cause weight loss, as well as colic and laminitis. Be sure to add alfalfa to the mix. I recommend 1 flake of alfalfa for every two flakes of grass hay. If this is not possible, give her alfalfa pellets, mixed in with the beet pulp (moistened) you're planning on feeding.

3) And finally, give her Ration Plus. This prebiotic will allow her to derive more calories from her forage.

See how this works for a month or so, and if she is still having trouble maintaining a normal weight, please consider setting up a personal phone visit. That way I can spend an hour or more on the phone with you going over everything -- her history, exercise, diet, medical treatments (if any), environment, etc., to customize a plan for her to help her get back on track and stay healthy.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Julie
I have an 8-year-old Thoroughbred/Irish Sport Horse mare that needs to put on some weight. She is ridden regularly and will begin showing in eventing this summer. She is also up to date on all vaccinations and worming. The vet rated her body condition at a low 4 when I bought her 2 weeks ago.

She is currently eating:
3 flakes grass hay 3x/day
~1lb. Safe Performance Grain 2x/day
~1lb. Senior 2x/day

I am thinking of gradually adding:
1 cup Rice Bran 2x/day
1 bucket beep pulp 2x/day

I am at a boarding facility, so I only have access to certain types of feed. In addition to what is listed above, we can feed grass hay pellets, alfalfa cubes, and supplement baggies.

I have also considered using a daily dewormer, I've heard it can help keep weight on horses and keep them healthy.

What would you recommend?

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO