When we bought my mare, she was 950 pounds. She's 15.1 hands tall, and my riding instructor wanted us to put some weight on her. We got her up 100 more pounds and now that winter is coming we weighed her again. She's back down to 950 again. So we had a vet check her for worms. The vet called back and everything is normal. I've started giving her half a scoop extra of feed and we wormed her yesterday. Can someone help me or tell me what might be the problem? Any help would be great. Thank you!

Emily

If the Vet did a general checkup and she does not have worms she might not have anything wrong. Just like some people, some horse don't gain easily. How does she look and is she otherwise healthy?

She had a bad case of rain rot. But we've been taking care of it and it's going away. You can slightly see her ribs... I'm at school right now.. I'm only in high school. But, I'll put up pictures when I get home. She also has bot eggs. I've been riding her a lot more, but I've also been giving her extra grain. We're getting ready for a show, and I just don't want anything to be seriously wrong with her.. and I really care about her well-being. I hope that helped

You might start putting a little corn oil into her diet. Try adding about 2 tablespoons per feeding into her grain. Yoiu could work up to as much as 1/2 cup per feeding. Oil is the easiest digested food a horse can get. Don't add to much or she could get fat on you. I ride Drafts. They get as much as 4 cups of oil per day.

Get her teeth checked and floated if necessary. She may be having trouble eating. Also get her on a good, regular parasite control program. We de-worm every 3 months for example and rotate several different kinds of paste wormers.

Good luck.

If you get a Vet check and it didn't include checking the mouth, you'd need a new Vet.

Her teeth were checked by the vet. The vet said everything was fine, and she just had her teeth floated not too long ago. The vet said nothing was wrong besides the strongyles. And, I just wormed her a few weeks ago. I live in New York, so we only do it in the fall and the spring. We're going to be in a show Saturday, I just didn't want her looking too skinny that people would think I mistreat my horse, because I don't.

While it's a PITB carry a copy of the Vet bill in your purse/wallet and if you get accused of neglect wave it at'm. Some ponies are just skinny. Not to long ago a girl tried her best to 'fatten up' a Walking Horse she bought. Didn't work.

Thank you for your help. We've been leaving her in the stall and giving her extra hay, grain, electrolytes and sunflower seeds. Anything else I can give her? I was thinking of giving her a warm mash, but I'm not sure what to put in it...

Emmett Dalton, my Shire, does very well on a diet of 17% alfalfa pellets, beet pulp shreds, and veggie oil. Every horse I've owned in the past 10 years has gotten oil. The beet pulp is mostly for roughage, it's also a decent hay replacer during our droughts when hay is hard to find.
In your case I'd just add oil to her diet. Add a little at the time. Oil is very easy to regulate and is the easiest food to digest and motabilize that you can give a pony. In the Winter I soak my beet pulp in hot water. By the time I mix everything and get it top him it's lukewarm. Also in very cold weather I give a little extra oil for warmth. Oil isn't as bulky as grain and all of my horses like the bowl to get it.

You can get info here: http://www.ruralheritage.com/vet_clinic/virtualvet.htm

or do some reading here: http://www.ruralheritage.com/vet_clinic/virtualvet.htm

This second site has diet info mainly for Drafts but can be applied to Light Horses.

if i get a performance feed with beet pulp it in, will it work?

I feed Beet Pulp mostly for roughage. You'd likely do better on a high fat diet. Oil added to any feed helps. Do watch the horse's weight. If they start getting fat cut back. My experience is that a total of 2 cups a day, spread out over two or more feedings, is maximun for a light horse.

1. Drink plenty of water. Our body needs a lot of water so give in to water. Water is not just way to flush out toxin but if you have more water in your body you will generally feel healthier and fitter. This it self will discourage any tendency to gorge. The best thing about water is that is has no calories at all.

2. Start your day with a glass of water. As soon as you wake up, gulp down a glass of cool water. It’s a wonderful way to start you day and you only need a lesser quantity of your breakfast drink after that. A glass of water lets out all your digestive juices and sort of lubricates the insides of your body. You may have your morning cup of tea but have it after a glass of water. It is good for you.

3. Drink a glass of water before you start the meal. Water naturally needs some space so that you feel fuller without actually having to stuff yourself.

4. Have another glass of water while you are having the meal. Again this is another way of making yourself full so that you can actually rise from the table eating less but feeling full just the same. Instead of drinking it one gulp, take sips after each morsel. It will help the food to settle faster so that you get that feeling that you are full faster. SIDENOTE: Water is such a remarkable thing, but seldom do we give it the credit that it deserves. Did you know that over 66% of your body weight is nothing but water’ It’s amazing! Water also plays a vital role in weight control, which is why I donated so much space to it, above.

5. Stay away from sweetened bottle drinks, especially sodas. Hey all those colas and fizzy drinks are sweetened with sugar and sugar means calories. The more you can cut out on these sweetened bottle drinks, the better for you. So if you must drink sodas, then stick to diet sodas.
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If you make a mash use beet pulp, molases and ground flax - should help put weight on.
You should also get your vet to do blood work on her to make sure that she has proper amounts of nutrients etc in her system.

helma, Emily was asking for advice about putting more weight on her horse.