keeping weight on

[nutty]

Hi to all of you. I have a 30 year old pony and have a job keeping his weight on .He has sugar beet ,graz on alpha ori, hi fi ori, carrots and apples 3 times a day a good half a bucket. Hes out on good grazing when he comes in at night he has a big hay net.Even with all this he dosnt keep his weight on.I tried all the main weight gains but they all seem to heat him up he ends up chareing round like a 3 year old. Imust all so add he has a hip problem and my vet has told me to ride him.Has anyone fed their horse wheat it looks like bran but it is what they give to pigs to fatten them up.thanks for taking time to read this Nutty

[hoofhearted]

Hi Nutty I have a similar problem with the pony I have on loan (also 30), would also be interested in any advice. Are you up to date with worming? as if not that could prevent weight gain. Hope someone can help. :)

[artemis]

With my elderley horse I used "Super barley rings" & "Super barley nuggets". I think they were made by Baileys or Burgess. It was a few years ago! They helped with weight without fizz. Mine went loopy on the senior feeds.

One advantage is that you can soak them & make a mash if thet are loosing teeth.

[cawker1]

Baileys cooked Cereal meal is a great feed for putting weight on without the sugar intake. It looks like bran but its wheat and needs dampening a touch before feeding it a bit like porridge, it is used for all horse and pony types for weight gain in light work or rest,very ideal for the oap horsey,and non-heating,it can be fed with your other ingredients too. This will put weight on without a laminitis threat or sending the ponies hyper. I use it with my larger horses in work to keep weight on throughout summer as it doesnt go off like sugar beet (I use sugar beet with it in the winter). Hope this helps?

[nutty]

HI thank you for your replies,i did try the barlie rings but they did send him loopy i have rode him for the first time in 4 weeks today hes not had the b rings for 3 weeks now and hes much better ive increased his feed in his 3 buckets and at the moment seems to be holding his weight so fingers crossed we may have cracked ti for a while.

[Supercali]

Have you tried a probiotic or feed balancer? Older horses/ponies cannot absorb the nutrients out of their food as effectively. A probiotic helps with digestion and a feed balancer has all the vitamins and minerals required and usually has a probiotic in it as well.

My horses are on Baileys Lo-cal which gives them all they need without the extra energy.

[Sam and Blake]

At my riding school we feed wheat to put weight on the horses that go out at night in the winter to put a bit of weight on them or to make sure they don't drop weight.i reckon just one scoop in each feed will definitely work.Bran also helps their digestion system, we feed our oldies that.Bran also has to be fed a bit wet.

[nutty]

Hi Its me again you lot are great in more ways than one Firstly this wheat you talk about does it look like bran if it does ive just started to give him some i was a bit weire at first because they give it to pigs to fatten them and i was wondering if there would be any side affects but you have now put my mind at rest. secondly its nice to know you lot out there do care and look out for the rest of us many thanks i will let you all know how i get on with jack sprat.