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  Discussion on Feeding during shipping???
Author Message
Member:
kjthoma

Posted on Tuesday, Sep 27, 2011 - 8:07 pm:

I am shipping my 25 yo to a more hospitable climate. Trip will be 6 - 7 days w/ 8 - 10 hr. stops at nite in a stall.

Right now he eats all of his food soaked.

I'm not real comfortable asking the shippers to do long soaks 'cause I can't think how they'd do that - and I'd rather them be sleeping anyhow. (current barn management soaks 1 hr on beetpulp and alfalfa cubes - then throws in Eq. Sr. and Wendland's one and only.)

I got T&A cubes instead - which seem to get pretty soft in 10 min and am planning on leaving out the beet pulp.

The other thing I was thinking was having them put the one-n-only in a corner feeder w/ some tennis balls in it so that he can't bolt it. That way he'd have some feed in his stomach thru the day instead of at weird hours.

Does that sound reasonable??? Paranoid owner here...He's never shipped long distance before.
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Wednesday, Sep 28, 2011 - 7:40 am:

Hello Kimberly,

It sounds like you are planning a cross country trip with a horse that is advanced in age. So I would try and not stress him any more than I'd have to.

Having shipped horses many times between Florida and New York, the only thing we gave our horses was hay and they were watered several times along the way, but these ships were done with no layovers and with much younger horses about 22 hours on a truck, they all came through this fine.

Is there a reason for having to soak all his food( bolting, bad teeth etc)?

Here is what I'd do if this were my horse.
1. I would not change his diet unless you are going to do it well before he gets on the truck and can continue to do it after he gets where he is going.
2. I'd get a small mesh hay bag and I'd wet down the hay( I do this for my racehorse after she races who has a history of choke )and I would give that to him in the truck.
3. In many cases there is ample time after the horse gets off the truck where the driver( or the people in the layover barns) can soak his normal feed for the right amount of time before he gets fed.

I personally never feed a horse after a long ship until I know he/she is completely watered out and some what relaxed in new surroundings and that usually takes an hour or so( plenty of time to soak food). If you know your horses itinerary of stops, you can call ahead and make sure your horses needs can be accommodated. I also used to set up my dinner/breakfast with water. already in it, so it was ready to feed for the next meal. I do not think soaking beat pulp for longer than an hour hurts it

If your horse can eat from a small mesh hay bag, he will have something in his stomach all day.

Good luck with your trip and don't worry too much, I am sure your horse will arrive in fine fettle, but don't be surprised if he does lose some weight during the journey.

I am a somewhat paranoid horse owner too and I once sent my horses to a turnout farm with all their meals bagged and tagged with their names because I did not want to switch feeds and each horse was getting different supplements and medications. It worked very well. It was like I was sending my children to summer camp.
All the best
Rachelle M
Member:
kjthoma

Posted on Wednesday, Sep 28, 2011 - 8:01 am:

His food is soaked because his teeth are pretty shot. He cant chew our hay and get it down at all.

Plus he isnt the best drinker in the universe so making soup makes sure that we get water in him.

The shipper said that they feed soaked beet pulp all the time....I'll have them keep an eye on him and maybe bucket feed him some soaked onenonly at stops during the day.

(losing some weight is actually not a bad thing..hes kind of porky right now)
Member:
sdms

Posted on Wednesday, Sep 28, 2011 - 8:18 am:

Hi Kimberly. I have a 25 YO, as well, for which I soak food. I have limited time and honestly would go crazy trying to remember to soak feed an hour before chore time. So, once I'm done feeding I soak the feed for the next meal. As long as it doesn't get hot it's not going to go bad, IMO.

I'm with Rachelle regarding the amount of stress you put on your old guy. The less the better which means the fewer changes you make the better. I don't think it's unreasonable to ask the shipper to soak feed. Especially if you get everything set up for them. Perhaps find a container that can seal tightly so as not to spill and separate the feed into individual meals. That way they can feed then immediately put the next meal into the container with some water, seal it and put it in a cool spot in the trailer until the next meal.

Of course, it's very possible that the stress of the trip alone may put him off his feed a bit. And, Rachelle's right again, don't be surprised if he's lost weight after a week of traveling.

If you've got a good, reputable shipper they'll do everything they can to make sure your guy arrives in better condition than when he left and they'll be happy to soak feed, if necessary.

Good luck!

Sara M
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Sep 28, 2011 - 3:14 pm:

Hello Kimberly,
I agree with Rtrotter that whatever feed you send with your horse he needs to be adapted to it before he leaves. As to feeding while he travels I cannot balance the risk of choke while traveling and the need to have more than 8 hours a day of feeding. A healthy horse will be fine with that 8 hours. This may be a topic that the folks who do the shipping will have a better grasp on.
DrO
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