So true. Mine gets a whopping 2#/day of TC Sr, along with some hay stretcher pellets, flax, and VM. Beyond that, she gets grass as it’s available and 24/7 grass hay, alfalfa once a day and not stingy with the flake (8-10#-ish). She holds her weight well.
That said, had I tried that with any of the stock breeds I owned, I’d be in laminitis and IR hell.
1 Like
That said, this thread is supposed to be about problems related to our TB’s, with links to pedigree. My mare has NPA hinds, and one front. I have a fabulous farrier and vet team and we take regular films to monitor. At this point, she is who she is and there is only so much we can change/fix/manage. She’s now 10.
Here’s her bloodlines: https://www.pedigreequery.com/saygoodbyetodixie
If anyone knows anything about her dam line, I’d sure love to know.
I’m curious about the organ failure. I knew a sweet OTTB mare that didn’t seem quite right for a while, then went down fast and died of liver failure necropsy showed no cause. All I could think of was browsing noxious plants in pasture, but other horses were fine. I don’t know her breeding.
On the hard keeper thing…My boy was definitely not a hard keeper. From 19 to his death in his 30’s, he lived outside 24/7, with minimal Blue Seal Senior feed and either grass or hay. He never got obese on good grass, but he also never needed anything else. Even competing (eventing/dressage) I never had a problem with his weight. And the only blanket he ever needed, in either New England or Ontario!!, was a rainsheet. I really think that the ‘thin skinned, hard keeper’ is a self perpetuating expectation bias. The feet on the other hand, that may have a stronger basis in reality.
Imagine my shock when I got a draft horse that Is a Hard Keeper! Who needs blankets!
1 Like
I owned TBs for decades. I guess I’ve been blessed with non-hay faces. I always ensured they had free choice good quality any time they were not out in pasture. (And when I was stationed where there was a winter, we of course threw hay in pastures to ensure the free choice continued). Trust me, I paid extra for it at some of my barns.
I’m not saying they were skinny. On the contrary, they were normally in good weight. However, they had an inordinate amount of interest in everything going on, which would capture their attention away from eating. The slightest little thing (new herd mate, new stall neighbor, one time a new foal on the property) would totally direct their attention away from their food.
They would then drop weight rapidly until the newness had worn off, and then it would take me twice as long to get the weight back on.
My gelding was prone to ulcers, so I learned that when anything changed in his safe little comfort zone, I would increase his maintenance dose of GastroGard to a treatment dose for a couple of weeks “just in case.” Expensive, but worth it.
I’m happy that you have encountered easier keepers! I’m sure you probably have more hair (and fewer gray ones) than I. 
2 Likes
For me, easy keeper means air fern. Hard keeper doesn’t mean that they are skinny but that they need more food to keep a good weight. My 16 hand Paint stays at a nice Henneke 5 on 15 lbs of hay a day. Some TB need double that. Some TB can’t seem to physically eat enough medium quality grass hay to keep the weight on. Some TB do have ulcers or get distracted or seem a bit anorexic. But if you get the feeding right and maybe as they mature they certainly can look good. I just doubt there are too many TB staying fat on 15 lbs of grass hay 
and a minimal mash.
1 Like
Strongly agree. My current mare is fat as can be, dappled and shiny, and does not miss a meal. Ultium Pro + hay stretcher and good quality free choice hay.
1 Like
My first OTTB https://www.pedigreequery.com/brain+surgeon
He is 8 and somewhat of a hard keeper compared to my first horse a paint. He stays a solid 5 on 4lbs TC Sr. .75lbs balancer, 2lbs alf pellets, Outlast and flax oil daily with 24/7 turn out.
Health issues to date:
ulcers, so far one round of GG seemed to do the trick
SI and hip pain, currently in “PT” for that, following steroid injections
starting gate hip on one side
muscle atrophy on one side
average feet, farrier said not terrible for a TB
very sensitive skin, had low level rain rot for a long time (seems to have finally resolved following ulcer treatment)
Overall, he is such a sweet horse, the vets all love him. He is very willing and tries so hard to please. He is an in your pocket kind of guy and loves attention. He also is quick to let you know if he does not like a certain type of boot/wrap or if something is annoying him (in a nice way). He is not a spooky horse at all and has only truly spooked on me twice in 18 months. Both times he simply jumped sideways and started dragon breathing until I coaxed him forward or dismounted safely.
We are beginning to learn dressage together and he he seems to like it so far. I have no aspirations of showing but want to build him up so he is comfortable and capable of carrying me down the trail.
5 Likes
Interesting. I had to euthanize a Middlesex Drive mare this year. She was 18 and I had purchased her as a weanling; she had an easy life. Her downward spiral started with an upper tooth abscess this spring. She then had a deep wound on her pastern I was rebandaging every day. She was on antibiotics for both of these things. She got pleural pneumonia and was PTS within 36 hours.
This mare was the kindest. Anyone could ride her. High/low front feet that were not the best quality but in light work she was ok barefoot. Easy, easy keeper. A kid could hug her legs and she would not budge. Just a very special mare.
2 Likes
We have a number that live on grass alone from April to November and are close to needing to be muzzled. I wish I knew what I was doing wrong.
3 Likes
I too would not consider most OTTBs to be “hard keepers.” But my definition of a hard keeper is one who needs 7+ lbs of grain per day in addition to free choice high quality alfalfa mix hay. Needing only 15 pounds of hay per day would be an air fern, IMO. 25-30 pounds of hay per day is average.
My mare gets free choice mid-quality orchard grass hay, I guesstimate she eats about 27 pounds per day, and 24/7 turnout on poor-quality grass, and is a solid 6 BCS with one pound of ration balancer per day.
2009 mare. Goes back to Deputy Minister on top and Danzig on bottom.
She has poor feet, not horrendous, but not great. She’s happiest shod all around and has front pads, the sand here in Florida really abraded her front feet.
She is a spooky type and easily gets ulcer flares. She is also extremely smart and willing, but gets frustrated easily.
Conformation is pretty good. Slightly weak hocks but when properly conditioned has no issues and is a queen at sitting and collecting.
Had a sarcoid on her chest when she was six. Her winter blanket rubbed it off and it never came back (knock wood).
Wonderful canter and incredible walk. After lots of dressage her trot is pretty nice too. She loves stretchies.
3 Likes
https://www.pedigreequery.com/rumpus7
Bought unraced at age 5 (too slow) as a hunter. He started to have colic episodes starting at age 6, resulting in numerous hospitalizations and finally, surgery at age 7 for a 360* torsion (no resection miraculously). He was never the same post op and continued to colic nearly nightly. He was euthanized after a belly tap showed some really awful looking fluid and the necropsy summary noted colonic adhesions to abdominal wall with segmental ischemia and peritonitis — so his organs were becoming necrotic and he was completely infected 
1 Like
Wye To Quay Horse Pedigree (pedigreequery.com)
Got him off the track at 4
Went through a terrible transition off the track, was underweight when I got him but within 3 months he was looking great. Once he bounced back from track life, he was not a hard keeper. When we moved to the farm, he got 24 hour turnout and free choice hay if needed. No grain
Had high low feet that needed maintenance, but spent most of his life barefoot
No health issues until he was 21
Was staying with another person then and had developed uveitis and injured his knee. He started to go downhill fast then and he was euthanized.
2 Likes
Chanson De Moi Horse Pedigree (pedigreequery.com)
Got her off the track at 3. Never actually raced as they decided she was too dangerous.
She was extremely unpredictable on the ground, but easy to ride. Needed to be handled by experienced person.
no health or physical soundness issues
Had two Paint foals, one with her temperament and one was the quietest most easy going horse I had.
She’s 28 now and this year is the first she’s been having trouble keeping weight on, so I think that’s pretty good.
2 Likes
Hampton Woods (for some reason he’s not showing up in database, but he’s a full brother of horse in pedigree below and half brother to mare in previous post
Philharmonica Horse Pedigree (pedigreequery.com)
Off the track at 4 after his first win
Was huge beautiful horse 17-2
Chronic high low syndrome
Ended up with chronic LF lameness which we worked up extensively and ended up finding some arthritis at c5-c6 and no other issues. I decided I didn’t want to jump him with neck issues (even though the leading neurologist in the country saw him and said he’d have no problem jumping him). So he was retired to trail/hubby horse with a colleague.
1 Like
Curious - what would she do on the ground?
1 Like
She had a history of flipping out and not really paying attention to anything including her own safety. She tore down part of the trainers barn in one flip out. She would would randomly rear and spin and take out anything in her path. I had blamed a lot of in on her upbringing as her owner was a little fearful with horses, but her owner also swore she was that way from day one. Just super reactive. The trainer she went to is a good quiet hand and he is the one that said she was too dangerous to be at the track. She left the track and came to me and I didn’t have too many issues with her, but I was super careful about how I handled her on the ground. Once I let my guard down for just a second and she spun around and double barreled me (but didn’t connect). The barn owner would not let het hired help lead her, she did it herself. She had a huge problem with anything out of order. A door that was normally open but now closed would freak her out. Or something in the barn aisle that wasn’t there before.
She loved to work though. If you turned her out in the arena, she’d do the jumps by herself.
She eventually calmed down and now at the ripe old age of 28 she’s pretty quiet.
She had two foals, one was super reactive like her and the other is one of the calmest horses I ever met. Nothing bothers him (nothing except minis and they scare the crap out of him). I had my DH show him for me in an obstacle course when I was not able to ride after surgery. DH is a beginner. The rest of the horses were spooking at all the Halloween decorations and scary obstacles. He just went through like he’d done it all his life (never had) an one guy on the sidelines commented to me that he was the calmest horse he’d ever seen.
2 Likes
6 Likes
Beautiful mare!! Love the dapples. 
2 Likes
My little mare is by Minstrel Dancer (< The Minstrel < Northern Dancer) out of I’d Be Charmed (< My Gallant < Gallant Man).
She doesn’t have the best conformation, one front leg is over at the knee, she’s built a bit downhill, and has long pasterns (= comfy ride!). I bought her at the track when she was 3. She raced 35 times. She is now 23 and we’re not eventing anymore, but I still jump her, she’s a solid 1st level dressage ride, and I take her to hunter paces whenever I can.
Over the years, she really didn’t have many soundness problems. Her feet aren’t the best, she had bouts of lameness due to abscesses, gravel, and “navicular changes”, but nothing we couldn’t help with shoeing and joint supplements.
All in all, she’s a tough little horse.
I just rode her today and thought how fun she still is to ride, compared to some of my friends’ horses!
4 Likes
