I’m a newbie and hoping for some guidance from more experienced horse owners. My 13.3 hands quarter horse is currently getting 3lbs of grain and 2 lbs of topline twice a day as well as free choice hay 24/7 at the barn where I board her. I’m going to be bringing her home, but there’s one day a week I’m not around. Would it be a problem for her to miss her grain feeding once a week and only get grass hay and water? Thanks for your help!
It shouldn’t be a problem as long as hay is available.
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Should be fine missing just the one day.
If she looks to be losing condition (doubtful) can you prebag the grain so someone can just drop it in her bucket/pan/whatever you feed grain in?
When I showed, we sometimes just dumped grain on top the flake of hay - fed on the ground.
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Thanks for the insights, much appreciated!
This is a bigger concern than feeding just 6 days a week.
Assuming the “topline” is Empower Topline Balance, 4lb of a ration balancer is a whoooole lot for pony. Is there a reason you’re feeding so much? Ration balancers are fed at a rate of about 1lb per 1000lb for the average horse. Heavily pregnant mares and young horses get more.
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I would also make sure to vary the time the grain is given. If you feed at 5 PM every day, she may get stressed if it isn’t on- time. I would go as far as to feed both in the morning and in the evening.
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Are you sure on her size? That is a lot of feed . 6 pounds of grain and 4 pounds of the topline ( whatever that is) for a 13.3 pony along with free choice hay is scary.
Can you post current pictures of her condition?
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Well gee, I thought it was a heck of a lot of feed too, but it’s what my trainer suggested and I really think she knows what she’s doing. (And yes, it is empower). My horse is currently turned in a pretty rough turn out area with lots of other horses on a big hill and she was getting very skinny. I don’t know if it was also because I didn’t blanket her through the winter, but she grew a big fuzzy coat and I really didn’t think she needed it. I’m not sure how to post a picture but I will try. She’s looking pretty good right now. But a few months ago she was so skinny we could both see and feel her ribs.
My apologies to whoever posted, but on one of the responses I tried to read I pushed dismiss instead of hitting the link… oops!
You probably have already gone over it, but when was the last time she was wormed? Have you had a vet fecal exam recently? I am aware the pictures above were awhile ago, but she has that typical round bloated belly look along with the ribs showing. Just a thought. That sounds like an awful lot for a pony. Have you consulted your vet on the best feeding program for this particular horse?
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Also, have you had a dental exam on her? Does she ever appear to drop her feed when eating? Sometimes if they have a dental issue or need a good float, they can lose condition. If you are feeding her that much, something has to be amiss.
Does she fence walk? Any nervous habits that can help a horse drop weight? Also, ulcers could be a possibility. Have you noticed any behavioral changes in her?
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Please don’t take offense to this comment, but her suggestion shows she doesn’t. 4lb of a ration balancer is close to the nutrition of 16-24lb of a regular feed. They are more supplement than feed. They are fed at a MUCH lower rate than regular feeds. Really - 1lb per 1000lb is the average feeding rate. 4lb is WAY too much for a 13.3h pony.
You are flirting with creating a selenium toxicity issue. Just from the Empower you are feeding 4.5mg selenium. Not sure what regular feed you’re using, but 6lb is likely in the 1.5mg range for selenium. That’s a lot additional Se for an average horse, it’s a LOT for a pony
My horse is currently turned in a pretty rough turn out area with lots of other horses on a big hill and she was getting very skinny. I don’t know if it was also because I didn’t blanket her through the winter, but she grew a big fuzzy coat and I really didn’t think she needed it. I’m not sure how to post a picture but I will try. She’s looking pretty good right now. But a few months ago she was so skinny we could both see and feel her ribs.
My apologies to whoever posted, but on one of the responses I tried to read I pushed dismiss instead of hitting the link… oops!
Weight loss like that doesn’t happen overnight. That’s water under the bridge now, but for future reference, hands need to be put on horses who get fuzzy coats - weekly at least. Several times a week is even better.
I hope you will drop the Empower - that really is a potentially dangerous situation. 6lb of a feed is still a lot for a pony, but she really did need the calories then. I look forward to pictures of her now, as I’m sure she’s looking a lot better :yes:
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Sounds like she was either being run off the hay by her field mates, or the barn just wasn’t putting out adequate amounts of hay for everyone. Is your trainer there at the barn on a daily basis? Or is this what she recommended feed wise?
I feed a RB to my youngster along with his feed but I am only feeding 3 pounds daily of his feed and 2 cups ( pound) of the RB.
Is it possible that the horse was not being fed the amount you think it was being fed? IME, a place that would let a horse get into that sort of shape might be a place that would feed your stuff to another animal.
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I agree with JB. She needs groceries and a well balanced diet, but that feeding program isn’t it!
I have a pony who is on a grazing muzzle and 1lb of ration balancer right now (and daytime dry lot). In winter during our show season his caloric requirements go up sharply. He may go to 1.5lbs of balancer, but the calories are added through oil, alfalfa and even addl grain, although that is always the last resort.
But if your pony is coming home (that’s a good thing by all appearances), you can use this as an opportunity to correct that feeding plan. You might want to switch to a high fat high quality feed plus ration balancer, along with a good hay and possibly even an additional fat supp. You may find yourself reducing feed fast once the pony gets all the groceries, because assuming that pony had had normal vet care and maintenance, it’s highly unlikely he’s getting “as advertised” feed amounts!
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I would cut back the ration balancer and keep the grain for now and see how she does at home. If she’s got grass and you feed her hay in a stall at night she’ll probably gain pretty fast. My 13.2 hand pony gets 2 pounds of grain a day in the winter and 1lb a day in the summer and that’s really just so she doesn’t complain.
I wouldn’t blame yourself. My 17 hand TB went from my vet complimenting how good he looked coming out of winter to having his ribs showing in 3 weeks when we changed his turnout but nothing else and he already eats a ton of hay. I added rice bran and upped his grain but it took some time for us to notice and then we were like ack!!!
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Thanks so much, everyone. I am going to call the vet first thing and ask about selenium toxicity and a sensible feeding plan. We did worm her and that was definitely part of the problem and I had her teeth floated as well.
I get confused about the measurements of grain. My stable calls their amounts quarts (ie. 3 quarts of grain per feeding and the 2 balanceris what she’s on now) . I actually weighed it on a scale because I read that a quart weighs 2 pounds, which freaked me out, but their ‘quarts’ weigh one pound on my scale.
Just know that a great many vets know nothing about feeding horses, any more than trainers do
I get confused about the measurements of grain. My stable calls their amounts quarts (ie. 3 quarts of grain per feeding and the 2 balanceris what she’s on now) . I actually weighed it on a scale because I read that a quart weighs 2 pounds, which freaked me out, but their ‘quarts’ weigh one pound on my scale.
Weight and volume are not the same from product to product.
Most ration balancers are right around 3 cups per pound (so 3/4 of a quart). Purina’s is a more dense one, much closer to 2c/lb.
I don’t know any grain/feed that is as heavy as 2lb per quart - that’s REALLY heavy. Most are in the 1-1.25lb/qt range, some as light as .85lb (these are usually extruded feeds, so a lot of air in each piece), and some as heavy as 1.5-1.6lb/qt.
So if you are measuring 1qt (4 cups), and finding 1lb, that is much more in line with reality.
So, given all that, how much of the grain, and how much of the ration balancer, is she really getting?
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She’s really getting 6 pounds of grain per day but maybe I’m wrong on the topline- I think when they say 2 cups they mean two 8 ounce cups per feeding so that I guess would be a total of 2 pounds per day. (I believe there are 16 oz in a pound. )
The pictures are dark, but she looks better.
Once you get her home I would read the label on the bag of grain that you decide to feed. If you’re feeding the recommended amount of grain than you can drop the ration balancer. If she starts to get fat than you could cut back on the grain and add some RB back in. On the label they will tell you how much RB to add based on how much concentrate you are feeding below the recommended amount.
Weigh all of your feed and write it down.
When you move her home ask the barn to give you one of her meals in a bag so you can weigh it yourself.
Once you’ve had her home for a little while you’ll have a better idea of how she’s holding her weight. Wouldn’t hurt to do a fecal and deworm appropriately. Make sure her teeth are up to date.
If you’re concerned you could have blood pulled as well. We leased one of our horses out a few years ago, he looked awful coming out of winter and we took him back. Turned out he was very low in vitamin E. It didn’t take long with some supplementation and spring grass for him to look good again.
I don’t blame you for not noticing weight loss right away, It can absolutely happen quickly. Last spring my easy keeper gelding deciding that he’d rather go on a hunger strike and wait for the grass to come up than eating the hay provided. Within a month, he went from being fat with 1lb of a RB to getting ribby and needing to be switched to several lbs/day of a complete feed, plus oil. Once the grass sprouted he ballooned and we switched him back to the RB.
In the meantime I was panicking that something was wrong. Nope :lol: apparently just a long winter and he was sick of hay.
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Wow horses are funny aren’t they?? Thanks for the advice Goodtimes, I will def do as you suggest!
