Turning the world upside down – Includes discussion of horses keeping/losing weight.

[OldKat]

@CharlyBonifaz 7692 wrote:

if you call one out, maybe have him turn some bloodsamples in, check for liver problems, thyroid…..etc.

would they have sunflower seeds?
elke

Good idea, and not too expensive either.

Yes, almost all feed dealers locally stock the black oil-seed sunflower seeds. We use to feed them to rabbits, I never thought about feeding to horses. How are they fed? e.g. quantity?

[Jean]

My horses love BOSS. I feed them as treats on occassion. I have fat horses, that do not need the extra, but they do love them.

Here is a link that gives a lot of information about feeding them.

http://www.wellbalancedhorse.com/?p=5

[Jean]

here is another link

http://www.understanding-horse-nutrition.com/black-oil-sunflower-seeds.html

[near horse]

Hi OldKat,

I’ve often wondered about the toxicity of treated wood or RR ties to horses that chew on them. Ties have tar and creosote and seem less “palatable” while pressure treated lumber has copper, chromium and arsenic (CCA) in them. These can all be toxic but it’s hard to know just how much a horse is actually ingesting. You might take a look at copper toxicity symptoms and how those match up w/ what you’re seeing. Your vet can probably help ID that as well.

Did he start the chewing and the subsequent poor performance after being whalloped by your mare?

All the best.

[OldKat]

@near horse 7699 wrote:

Hi OldKat,

I’ve often wondered about the toxicity of treated wood or RR ties to horses that chew on them. Ties have tar and creosote and seem less “palatable” while pressure treated lumber has copper, chromium and arsenic (CCA) in them. These can all be toxic but it’s hard to know just how much a horse is actually ingesting. You might take a look at copper toxicity symptoms and how those match up w/ what you’re seeing. Your vet can probably help ID that as well.

Did he start the chewing and the subsequent poor performance after being whalloped by your mare?

All the best.

Actually about the same time. At first I didn’t know who was chewing the wood. I kept blaming Rachel, one of the mares, because she is always the one that is “into” everything. Finally I caught him while he was chewing on a fence brace. The wood chewing started sometime in the fall and seems to have stopped, or at least slowed down within the last 3 to 4 weeks. I’m pretty sure Maggie rang his bell in November, so it is hard to say which came first.

I’m going to check out this toxicity issue. My wife fed for me today and she told me that she found a piece of his hoof that had flaked off and it was “like a piece of wood”. I’ve heard that some poisons can acculmulate in and under the nails in people, if this is so it makes sense that it would show up in his hooves … if that is what is causing this. Sure would like to solve this riddle.:confused:

[Plowboy]

I was thinking our horse may be getting a mild case of EPSM. I don’t know much about this disorder but I know they feed a high fat diet like vegetable oil. We started him on a little oil but it’s only been a few days and he hasn’t worked since we started it. Nobody else plowing in the Northeast or New England yet?

[jen judkins]

@Plowboy 7749 wrote:

I was thinking our horse may be getting a mild case of EPSM. I don’t know much about this disorder but I know they feed a high fat diet like vegetable oil. We started him on a little oil but it’s only been a few days and he hasn’t worked since we started it. Nobody else plowing in the Northeast or New England yet?

Dennis, EPSM is carbohydrate storage disorder that basically makes the horse intolerant to carbs (like some people;)). If you suspect it (muscle soreness or back problems post work), take your horse off grain completely. You don’t need to add fat unless weight is an issue. Its a pretty easy fix and results can be seen within a couple weeks. Its actually quite common in draft breeds. One of my saddle horses will get back sore if he touches any grain at all.

[near horse]

How does a draft horse with a sore back behave? In other words, what does it look like?

Plowboy, what did you see that made you think your horse had a mild case of EPSM?

BTW – our old saddle horse likes to sneak over near the bird feeder and snarf down all the sunflower seeds. Hence his new name “Big Bird”

[Happy When Hitched]

I had a horse years ago that was diagnosed with early renal failure. At wits end, and hand grazing daily on what little grass we had, I got a catalog from Springtime Inc, and decided to give the bee pollen a shot. Within a week, coat quality improved, and a month later, he had gained weight and his urine showed normal kidney numbers. It’s expensive, but it saved his life.

Can help solve ulcers caused by lack of grazing*

I also have a horse that dropped weight dramatically winter before last, as soon as they went off grass. Did the same thing this year. I have not used the bee pollen on him, as he is very old, and it’s a choice between that and the backhoe. He’s picking up now that grass is coming on, so I guess he’s got another summer. I’ll no doubt put him down come fall. I did treat him with a panacur power pack, and that helped some. (link for info only, I don’t recommend or not recommend this particular store)

[OldKat]

@Happy When Hitched 8151 wrote:

I had a horse years ago that was diagnosed with early renal failure. At wits end, and hand grazing daily on what little grass we had, I got a catalog from Springtime Inc, and decided to give the bee pollen a shot. Within a week, coat quality improved, and a month later, he had gained weight and his urine showed normal kidney numbers. It’s expensive, but it saved his life.
I also have a horse that dropped weight dramatically winter before last, as soon as they went off grass. Did the same thing this year. I have not used the bee pollen on him, as he is very old, and it’s a choice between that and the backhoe. He’s picking up now that grass is coming on, so I guess he’s got another summer. I’ll no doubt put him down come fall. I did treat him with a panacur power pack, and that helped some. (link for info only, I don’t recommend or not recommend this particular store)

… bee pollen did you feed? Amount per feeding etc? I happen to have some that I bought as a supplement for our diet, but the taste was so bad that we quickly gave up on that idea. Maybe my daughters horse could benefit from the bee pollen, although his blood work came back in the “normal ranges”. Just a thought.

[Happy When Hitched]

from the springtime link in my post:

Horses: Give one scoop (approx. 2 1/2 oz – density varies from batch to batch) daily per 1,000 lb horse. For best results, start out with just a sprinkle for the first few days and increase gradually to at least one full scoop per day. Dosage may be doubled for performance, breeding or high stress situations.
Important: If stored at room temperature, best used within 6 months after opening. (For longer storage, please refrigerate.)

I’m surprised you didn’t like it. I found it to be quite palatable. Quality of product varies. The stuff Springtime sells is little balls ranging in color from dark red to light golden….. and smells like………well, springtime!

Near Horse, sore backs can look anywhere from irritability to balking to bucking, depending on what is going on, and how activity/tack is effecting whatever is sore. If you press down the spine about an inch and a half out on either side, you can usually pinpoint pain spots. Back will drop out from under your hand. Another test is to take some hay or grain and get horse to follow it around to each shoulder. He should be able to bring his muzzle all the way around to touch the shoulder. If he can’t, it might be chiropractor time.

[Author]

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