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  Discussion on How long is too long without feed?
Author Message
Member:
Brandi

Posted on Monday, Apr 18, 2005 - 9:45 pm:

Dr. O.,
My older gelding is on ample pasture at night and in during the day. This time of year I have trouble keeping him from getting fat (posted a month or so ago about his IR/EMS body-type). In order to keep his weight down, I want to give him the minimum amount of feed possible for the 12 hours he is stalled. How long should he go without ANY food before it would be considered bad for his health (or that I'm a bad mom?)? He doesn't get too upset when hungry (unlike my other one who will bring down the barn). If I do give him a snack (consisting of a few wisps of timothy hay), how much should I give him to tide him over? He weighs approx 950 but should weigh closer to 900.
Thanks,
Brandi
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Apr 19, 2005 - 8:18 am:

The problem with no food for a long period is that this may not result in weight loss, a horse can consume in 6 hours the same amount of forage he would consume in 24 hours, if he is very hungry. So fasting overnight may just result in cramming in a lot of rich grass the next day. What would be better from many different view points is feeding a free choice stemmy timothy hay that will help keep him from getting hungry or bored but not provide much in the way of calories.
DrO
Member:
Joann

Posted on Tuesday, Aug 30, 2005 - 10:29 pm:

I think my mare is obese (hay belly). I have been working her for an hour every other day and sometimes less in order to condition her and lose some of this weight. I've also cut her evening grain ration to half. Am I on the right track?
Member:
Hwood

Posted on Tuesday, Aug 30, 2005 - 11:24 pm:

Hay bellies don't necessarily mean obesity. If your mare has fat deposits above her tail, if her backbone is recessed, if her neck is cresty and hard, if her temples are puffy, if you can't feel her ribs through the fat covering . . . these are some signs of obesity.

Definitely, if your horse IS obese, you want to increase the workload to help burn off extra calories. You won't usually see a difference for at least 3 weeks. If the increased workload doesn't gradually get her in shape, then you can decrease grain first, and then cut back on hay. If the hay is really poor quality (a state university cooperative extension agent can usually analyze it for you) then you need to supplement with feed that will provide the nutrients your mare needs to stay healthy. If your grain is sweetened, you can switch to an unsweetened grain to cut back on calories.

Is your mare wormed regularly? How old is she? How his her bloom and energy level? Is it possible for you to post a couple of photos?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 31, 2005 - 5:36 am:

Hello joann,
Holly's reply is good but demonstrates the problem we have trying to answer such a question. To be sure we answer your question correctly we would need to evaluate your horse and your whole diet. But we do have articles that will help educate you to do this. To learn to evaluate your horses condition study, Care for Horses » Particular Situations & Procedures » Weight, Condition, and Eventual Height Estimation. To learn how to manage an obese horse's diet see the article associated with this discussion, Care for Horses » Nutrition » Fat or Obese Horse Nutrition. But before you read it go over the article on Care for Horses » Overview of Nutrition it will help ground your decisions in good nutrition.
DrO
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