How do I get my horse to gain weight?

Question

I have a 12yr old Paint Gelding that is hard to maintain weight. He is 15.5 hands and has a quarter horse type build. He is current on all vaccinations and worming. Currently he is fed a 3lb coffee can full of 14% Sweetfeed(mixture of corn, oats, pellets covered in molases) and 3 flakes of high quality timothy hay twice daily. He is pastured with another horse and shares a 25ft x 25ft open stall that they are both able to go in and out of their 2 acre pasture as they please.(not much grass left because of winter) I have tried using "Weight Builder" by farnam, but it didnt seem to help. I also had his teeth floated because I was told that could be the problem. I want to increase his grain but im not sure how much is too much. He is rode lightly a few times a week. How much grain can I feed hi without risking collic or laminitis? Also anyother ways to get him to gain weight would be much appreciated. I would like to see him gain aprox 100 lbs. Thanks

oops... not supposed to be 100 ... hes not that underweight... supposed to be 10lbs

Answer 1

Do not just increase grain to add weight you risk lamanitis and colic.
If you want to add weight add fat to the horses diet.
You can get stabalzed rice bran a powder and add it over the feed or you can add liquid oil to the top of the feed. Start at 1/4 cup and work up to one cup per feeding.
It adds calories with out making the horse hot and it carries no cloic or lamanitis risk. There are many ways to add fat to the diet.
You can also add beet pulp. It is hte stuff left over after they remove the sugar from sugar beets. It comes shredded or in pellets and you put it in water and soak it and it expands. So start out with a couple of cups and add water and let sit hten feed to the horse.
You can mix the grain into the beet pulp and give them everything together. Beet pulp is also great as it is fiber and will not cause lamanitis.
The other thing I would bdo is go to free choice hay. Let him have all he wants.
I take thoroughbreds off the race track and turn them out on pasture give them free chioce hay and get their weight up and start with their re-training process. I use the above formulas to put weight on them. It works.
I do not feed sweet feed I use Tripple Crown it is a pelleted type feed and you feed way less of it and the horses seem to be able to use the feed better. Then I add fat and beet pulp and everyone gets free choice grass hay. No one is thin and they look good.
Good luck with your Paint.

Answer 2

Cook the oats before you add the other ingredients. Buy a bag of oats & cut the sweetfeed mixture in half. Check the poop. If the sweetfeed is coming out looking the same as when it went in, then you should cook it too. A trick used by grooms on the race track to fatten up a horse is bread. A loaf of any type of bread ( I preferred whole grain) in the feed tub will add pounds. Be careful & give your horse a few slices at first just to see how their system will handle the bread. After the first week, if there's no colic or other problems, then just add the bread to the cooked grain mixture. If you cook your grains, then they will be used more efficiently by the horse & digest easily with less waste & complications. Be sure to add a tablespoon of vegetable oil to the feed.

Answer 3

First off, don't worry so much about increasing your horse's garin intake. You may want to reccommend switching feeds...I would recommend "Demand" from Blue seal. I have been at show barns with a grand prix jumper who would give her thin horses a full coffee can of demand twice daily. Also, you may want to consider supplementing your horse's feed. Some wonderful supplements I would reccomend are : flax seed - it is beneficial in more ways than just putting on weight. It also gives the coat a healthy sheen, is good for the horses joints, and is a very useable source of energy. If you feed flax seed, though, remember to either boil it or grind it (coffee grinder works well) beforehand.
Also, flax seed is sensitive to light and heat, especially once ground. So store in a cool, dry place and do not gring large amounts at once.
Other supplements I would consider include "FatCat" and "Gain". "Gain" has a higher (I believe it's protein but fiber may be the word I'm looking for) content than FatCat so is better for really underweight horses. It helps to put weight on quickly.
Corn oil or vegetable oil works really nicely to help put on fat and, as with flax seed, add that nie shiny gloss to your horse's coat.
Beet pulp and hay cubes are other things to consider. Both are fillers.
Finally, LOTS of handwalking would be beneficial to the horse. We recently rescued a horse that was WAY underweight and with adding vitamins and fatcat to his feed, changing the grain from rolled oats to Blue Seal Demand, and either handwalking him (hills are really good for this sort of thing) or walking him under saddle, he is finally starting to muscle up.

Answer 4

I have done this before many times with my horses in the past. If I were you the first thing I would do is put her out in a fiels or pasture to graze for a while...dont remover her fast. Allow her to stay there for 5 hours. Feed her extra hay and oats. I hope this works for you.

Answer 5

first off, weight like that can't be gained overnight, not even in a year, if so, i'd say thats pretty dangerous, ---for this winter alone alone try to have him gain more like fifteen pound, mix crued fat with feed and let it take it's course, about 2-6oz of mixture with feed

Answer 6

feed it lots of food.