It's About The Horse

CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

Okay. So I keep trying to get out of this whole senior horse thing, but ever single winter I find myself with my own personal equine geriatric ward. I can't complain though, I love the elderly horsies.

Now that I am down to just one (thank GOD!), I am able to give her a little more care than I was giving the 3. I have her on a pelleted 14% protein feed (not sure the details on it, it's made at a local feed store and it's CHEAP! Haha, plus, she has been doing really well on it), corn oil, BOSS, msm, and beet pulp.

I have gone through these weight issues soooo many times, but last year wasn't too bad and I feel like after having gone through a year of fairly easy keepers, I have forgotten all the nutrition stuff I used to know. It's kind of embarrassing, really.

I know there is already a thread on weight gain, but my question is more specifically on beet pulp. It has worked well for me in the past, and is doing wonders for Lizzy, but I was just wondering how everyone else feeds it. Pros? Cons? Amounts fed? For what reasons do you feed it?

I guess I just need a little confirmation that I'm doing this right.

Clarissa · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 3:38 am Post subject:

There's a considerable thread on beet pulp in this section too somewhere. Early last year I think.

But if you are having weight issues I am assuming you mean your horse is too fat? If so could you cut out the corn oil which is not a natural product & very bad for humans apparently & maybe also equally bad for horses?

It can't be digested so the liver stores it as fat much as a toxin is stored in the cells under the skin. It (& other similar oils) can also find it's way into the eyes causing blurred vision. Corn oil is a manmade product made by changing the mollecular chains in a byproduct of the corn starch process. Well that's as I understand it anyway. Same goes for a certain form of corn starch used in processed foods.
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CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

Oops, I just scrolled through the first page and didn't look back any further. I'll go look for that. And no, by weight issues I mean in the other direction. She isn't "underweight" at the moment, but it takes what I am feeding her (and that is twice a day), plus about half a square bale of hay to keep her maintained. She dropped some weight in the fall and this is what it took to get it back on her.
Thanks for the corn oil info. I will look into it more. I have heard people say bad things about it, but I started her on it when I was desperate for something to put the weight on. It worked, but now that she is looking better maybe I will take her off it after she finishes this jug. Also I just added the BOSS in this week, so I'm thinking that can replace the corn oil.

gaitinalong · Member Joined: 29 Jun 2011 Posts: 81 Location: Tennessee

="CarolynAnn93:97686"]Okay. So I keep trying to get out of this whole senior horse thing, but ever single winter I find myself with my own personal equine geriatric ward. I can't complain though, I love the elderly horsies.

Now that I am down to just one (thank GOD!), I am able to give her a little more care than I was giving the 3. I have her on a pelleted 14% protein feed (not sure the details on it, it's made at a local feed store and it's CHEAP! Haha, plus, she has been doing really well on it),

corn oil, BOSS, msm, those three things are a big big contradiction and might be a cause for mild ulcer issues which, in turn, can prevent weight gain[b]

Corn Oil and BOSS are both very high in Omega-6, which is known to aggravate any sort of inflammation. The same inflammation the horse is receiving MSM for; the efficacy of the MSM is being cancelled out (all or in part) by the corn oil and BOSS.

Canola oil is safer because it is high in Omega-3.

Over the long term, an expensive 20lb bag of Omega-3 Horseshine ends up being a lot cheaper and healthier than messy corn oil and BOSS. I only feed half a household measuring cup daily to each of my horses.

Given the amount of BOSS that most people feed, it is not that cheap. Plus, if a horse has any sort of inflammatory issues, they shouldn't be on it.

I know I'll face the nutrition firing squad but it won't be a first:

I don't like beet pulp. Horses can colic on beet pulp before they colic on rice bran. I have read many instances of beet pulp colic but have never read any of colic on rice bran

I have gone through these weight issues soooo many times, but last year wasn't too bad and I feel like after having gone through a year of fairly easy keepers, I have forgotten all the nutrition stuff I used to know. It's kind of embarrassing, really.

I know there is already a thread on weight gain, but my question is more specifically on beet pulp. It has worked well for me in the past, and is doing wonders for Lizzy, but I was just wondering how everyone else feeds it. Pros? Cons? Amounts fed? For what reasons do you feed it?

I guess I just need a little confirmation that I'm doing this right.

:roll

CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

Oh my. Thank you for the information on BOSS/MSM!!! I had no idea. Looks like Belle and Sebastian will be finishing off the BOSS for me...

I'll look into the Omega-3 Horseshine and see if that would be an option for me.

So does the Omega-3 do anything to the inflammation, or just not affect it like the Omega-6?

gaitinalong · Member Joined: 29 Jun 2011 Posts: 81 Location: Tennessee

Wow, I just got booted completely out and even had to log back in again. Why I always copy what I type before I hit "submit"

Mandy'sMarty · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 2:42 am Post subject:

I feed and manage my mare as a performance horse. Specifically, a distance endurance athlete. The sport demands a lot from the horse and I am very particular about what goes into her body. I avoid as many potentially toxic substances as possible in her diet.

I believe beet pulp from organically grown sugar beets would be an excellent feed for Mandy. My concern is the unnatural stuff in commercially grown sugar beets. The beets are intensively grown with herbicide and pesticide treatment. Those toxins are not easily leached out of the pulp.
I believe the beet pulp fed to horses is laced with those toxins...and only contributes to the toxic burden of every animal that eats it. I'd rather not risk it.
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We must be willing to let go of
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whisperingwindfarms · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 3:55 pm Post subject:

Marty - Very tactfully and well put.
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Mandy'sMarty · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 7:21 pm Post subject:

Thanks, Erin.

I forgot to mention Mandy's age. In fact, I had to look up her birth date...we quit counting a while ago. She will be 18 in June.
At 970 lbs., she now weighs 150 lbs. less than she did when competing in 2009. We intend to be competing 10 years from now.

Competing last November at Skymont.

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We must be willing to let go of
The life that we planned
So as to have the life
That is waiting for us.

~Author Unknown

CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

She looks great! As do your horses, gaitinalong. You are right, very shiny. That's one thing I have noticed is Lizzy's coat has been so dull. Granted she's all shaggy, but even so she looks worse than the other 2. When I have fed BOSS in the past it has made them really sleek, but now I'm thinking maybe the omega-3 horseshine might be a better option.

I am going to get a picture of her this afternoon and post it, just so y'all can see what I am working with.

Thank you for all the info, I am in the digestion process. haha.
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Just playin' around with...
Belle, my super pony! (6yo QHx, in my avatar)
Lizzy, the old lady. (21yo QH, Seb's momma)
Sebastian, my work in progress. (3yo QH)
www.assuredhorsemanship.com

CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

_________________
Just playin' around with...
Belle, my super pony! (6yo QHx, in my avatar)
Lizzy, the old lady. (21yo QH, Seb's momma)
Sebastian, my work in progress. (3yo QH)
www.assuredhorsemanship.com

Mandy'sMarty · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 9:58 pm Post subject:

CarolynAnn--What kind of internal parasite/dewormer program is Lizzy on?

I am assuming the third photo is a current one of Lizzy.
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Marty

We must be willing to let go of
The life that we planned
So as to have the life
That is waiting for us.

~Author Unknown

karmikacres · Member Joined: 14 Feb 2009 Posts: 1180

CarolynAnn93 · Member Joined: 15 Feb 2009 Posts: 65

Mandy'sMarty · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 11:12 pm Post subject:

I believe she may have internal parasites that are resistant to the dewormers she has been getting. I'm sure you are feeding her what would ordinarily be sufficient...but I believe she is not getting the benefit of her diet. I suspect she is competing with those parasites for her food, and may have a significant parasite load.

It may be time for a fecal test.
_________________
Marty

We must be willing to let go of
The life that we planned
So as to have the life
That is waiting for us.

~Author Unknown