Rahabilitating an Emaciated Horse - HELP!

[WarmbloodLvr]

How do I rehabilitate an emaciated horse?

He is around 19 years old, 15.3hh Appaloosa gelding. This horse is everything to me. He has gotten me through so much...even helped me to learn to walk again. I would give up the world for him... I went to the farm this evening after hearing "rumors" and saw him in his stall...I burst into tears. I have never seen a horse this emaciated, you can count every rib and see every bone in his body. It was like seeing a walking skeleton...but pull out the treats and he regains that twinkle in his eye. The twinkle that has kept me going for years. According to his owner, he hasn't eaten in a week but I do believe that it has been much longer than that. He has plenty of hay and seems to be munching on it here and there.

I have taken on the responsibility of helping my beloved friend. I would personally take him in but have no where to put him and cannot afford board for another horse. Please help me help him. How do I feed him? What do I feed him? Please help me bring my little miracle back.

Other steps will be taken because of this situation and others but right now, he is my main concern. Please tell me where to start to help bring him back.

I appreciated any help you can offer.

 

[Pasofever]

What do you mean he has not eatten in a week..he wont eat? He has not been fed? Can they afford to feed him properly? Has his teeth been checked..Need more medical information..I would get him a good Sr feed and see if he will eat that..add corn oil for more fat...If he has not been given food report the SOBs and feed the horse....He cant get the food by himself..

 

[Katie]

Could you get a vet out there to look at him?

 

[WarmbloodLvr]

What do you mean he has not eatten in a week..he wont eat? He has not been fed? Can they afford to feed him properly? Has his teeth been checked..Need more medical information..I would get him a good Sr feed and see if he will eat that..add corn oil for more fat...If he has not been given food report the SOBs and feed the horse....He cant get the food by himself..

Thanks. They have MANY horses, most in fine condition but are pretty much dismissing this horse as "old" and "oh well, he'll be fine" and that "most horses loose weight in the winter anyway". This is a LOT more then a little weight...he is to the point of emaciated. He was a big, muscular, good looking fella about 4 months ago. I'm not sure they've even tried feeding him...I was just told that he "hasn't eatten in a week". They haven't called the vet/dentist. They flat out do not care.

How do I start giving him feed again? I do not want him to colic/get sick from to much, to fast. Should I moisten the food? How much, how often? They will be reported but right now, he is top priority.

 

[spellbound]

My sister's childhood horse had a tumor in his intestines. He stopped eating and withered away until it was time to put him down. His decline was relatively rapid. I hate to say it but your guy might have a similar issue. You should try to get a vet to check him out.

 

[WarmbloodLvr]

Could you get a vet out there to look at him?

I am going to try to but, they really don't care. I will pay for everything. If he dies, oh well...they can replace him...no biggie. That is their thought process. This place will be getting turned in because of numerous instances of malnutrition, and abuse.

How do I start to offer him feed again? He is extremly interested but I don't want him getting to much to fast. Please help.

 

[Tazgirl]

I am going to try to but, they really don't care. I will pay for everything. If he dies, oh well...they can replace him...no biggie. That is their thought process. This place will be getting turned in because of numerous instances of malnutrition, and abuse.

How do I start to offer him feed again? He is extremly interested but I don't want him getting to much to fast. Please help.

NUMBER 1 TOP THING TO DO IS GET THE VET TO CHECK HIM FIRST......FIND OUT WHAT IS CAUSING HIM NOT TO EAT. IF HE HAS CANCER OR SOMETHING ELSE WRONG THE HUMANE THING WOULD BE TO PUT HIM DOWN DO NOT LET HIM SUFFER........

 

[Cowgirl]

I think the main thing would be to keep hay in front of him at all times. Start on the feed slowly...feed small increments several times (try at least 3) a day. After a week of that amount, try increasing by a 1/2 lb or so...then same the week after that. You don't want to increase too quickly. Like Paso said, a good senior feed would be great...easy for him to chew, too. Or, if his teeth are fine, try Equitech because it has a high fat content. The corn oil is a great idea to add to his feed. I would definitely check his teeth ASAP, because if they are bad, he can't eat even if he wants to. Another important thing would be to deworm him. Check his mucous membranes (gums, inner eyelids) to see what color they are. They should be a nice pink. If they are pale, he is anemic from worm load. If he is very anemic, be careful not to deworm him too hard at once, as the dying worms can cause toxins to build in his body.

Like everyone else said, get the vet out to check him and the vet can help you come up with a good solid plan. Good luck!

Edited to add: a good way to determine how much your horse should be eating is by figuring his weight. A horse should be eating 1.5-2% of his body weight. At least 1-1.5% of that should be forages. The rest should be concentrates.

 

[Pasofever]

Is the horse local where you and I can go see him together??

 

[Katie]

I am going to try to but, they really don't care. I will pay for everything. If he dies, oh well...they can replace him...no biggie. That is their thought process. This place will be getting turned in because of numerous instances of malnutrition, and abuse.

How do I start to offer him feed again? He is extremly interested but I don't want him getting to much to fast. Please help.

I would really get the vet out. He might just need his teeth floated, or a good deworming. If he needs deworming no matter how much more food he eats he won't get the nutrition from it.

 

[appendixqh]

I would really get the vet out. He might just need his teeth floated, or a good deworming. If he needs deworming no matter how much more food he eats he won't get the nutrition from it.

And I totally agree...GET A VET OUT. They need to run bloodwork and see if it teeth, or worse. Now, once a vet has seen this horse, I would tell you that I have used "Omegatin" in the past to put weight on older horses. Omegatin is VERY high in fat and adds weight quickly, plus you only feed a couple of lbs at a time. Mike at Stauffers Feed Mills sells this product, and it has really worked to help some of my old timers.

 

[SouthernMdRocks]

Thanks. They have MANY horses, most in fine condition but are pretty much dismissing this horse as "old" and "oh well, he'll be fine" and that "most horses loose weight in the winter anyway". This is a LOT more then a little weight...he is to the point of emaciated. He was a big, muscular, good looking fella about 4 months ago. I'm not sure they've even tried feeding him...I was just told that he "hasn't eatten in a week". They haven't called the vet/dentist. They flat out do not care.

How do I start giving him feed again? I do not want him to colic/get sick from to much, to fast. Should I moisten the food? How much, how often? They will be reported but right now, he is top priority.

If only 4 mos. has elapsed since he was "big and muscular".... sounds like lack of food to me. It doesn't take long for a horse to drop weight like that when not being fed. If his teeth needed floating, which they very well might, it would have been a more gradual loss. His teeth just didn't get that outta whack in 4 mos time.

 

[quartermom]

How do I rehabilitate an emaciated horse?

He is around 19 years old, 15.3hh Appaloosa gelding. This horse is everything to me. He has gotten me through so much...even helped me to learn to walk again. I would give up the world for him... I went to the farm this evening after hearing "rumors" and saw him in his stall...I burst into tears. I have never seen a horse this emaciated, you can count every rib and see every bone in his body. It was like seeing a walking skeleton...but pull out the treats and he regains that twinkle in his eye. The twinkle that has kept me going for years. According to his owner, he hasn't eaten in a week but I do believe that it has been much longer than that. He has plenty of hay and seems to be munching on it here and there.

I have taken on the responsibility of helping my beloved friend. I would personally take him in but have no where to put him and cannot afford board for another horse. Please help me help him. How do I feed him? What do I feed him? Please help me bring my little miracle back.

Other steps will be taken because of this situation and others but right now, he is my main concern. Please tell me where to start to help bring him back.

I appreciated any help you can offer.

Get a Vet out! the most important thing is to feed very small amounts Sr feed is great but start out with the cheapest pellet feed you can find with very low protien then move up to a senior feed start feeding just a handful at a time, soak it in water if need be to make it soft. Feed the cheapest grass hay you can find that is good for horses, make sure it is not a high quality his system wont be able to handle it. Get a blanket on him to keep him warm if his body score is that low he has no extra calories or fat to help keep him warm. I have worked with alot of starving horses let me know if I can be of anymore help..

 

[fredsaid2]

Someone's advice was to call the Humane Society if you suspect neglect. Have you done that yet? Even with the best of intentions I see this situation spiraling out of control for you.

 

[SouthernMdRocks]

If only 4 mos. has elapsed since he was "big and muscular".... sounds like lack of food to me. It doesn't take long for a horse to drop weight like that when not being fed. If his teeth needed floating, which they very well might, it would have been a more gradual loss. His teeth just didn't get that outta whack in 4 mos time.

WBLvr, Check your PM's.

 

[Pasofever]

WBLvr, Check your PM's.

Care to share :shrug:

 

[SouthernMdRocks]

Care to share :shrug:

Not a problem, I will send a copy to you...

 

[Pasofever]

Not a problem, I will send a copy to you...

 

[WarmbloodLvr]

The "offical" story from the owner is that he was badly kicked by another horse, ending up with a pretty bad hock injury. He was placed on stall rest for a couple weeks and ended up "depressed and bored". He is now "able to be ridden and be turned out so he should fatten and muscle up quickly".

He was even put on the training schedule for today! A friend of mine, who's schedule he was on...refused and marked him as being ridden anyway. There's no way to even get a saddle on the poor boy.

I walked in with a can full of food and he ran up to the stall door nickering and pushing my hand with his head. He scarfed it right up and started begging for more...

I'm going on the other computer to post some pictures of him from before...

 

[Pasofever]

The "offical" story from the owner is that he was badly kicked by another horse, ending up with a pretty bad hock injury. He was placed on stall rest for a couple weeks and ended up "depressed and bored". He is now "able to be ridden and be turned out so he should fatten and muscle up quickly".

He was even put on the training schedule for today! A friend of mine, who's schedule he was on...refused and marked him as being ridden anyway. There's no way to even get a saddle on the poor boy.

I walked in with a can full of food and he ran up to the stall door nickering and pushing my hand with his head. He scarfed it right up and started begging for more...

I'm going on the other computer to post some pictures of him from before...

He is bad but not beyond helping..I would blanket him he has not coat. I would feed hell out of him. I dont know if I would be ridding him now as he needs all his calories for weight..