by Deborah Colony, MD, in association with Martha Hagar, DVM, Sarah Casey, owner of the Waltzing Horse Farm, and Martha Aitken, Long Grey Line Saddlebreds.
(Gucci pictured after 5 wks)
I had waited in nervous anticipation six weeks for my new filly to arrive. Her cozy stall and new blanket were ready, I had stocked up on food and hay, and buffed up my favorite saddle. My two geldings munched blissfully in their field with no clue that their carefree bachelor existance was about to end. When the delivery day arrived, a shiny semi trailer pulled up in front of my farmhouse. The wiry driver jumped down and opened the rear box stall. Imagine my shock and dismay as a starved, trembling creature staggered off the transport van. This wasn’t the sleek three year old I had purchased ! There must be some mistake ! The teetering filly looked around bleakly. The driver collected his fee and drove off with the remaining occupants of the giant trailer. Gucci stood trembling on my front lawn.
For almost two years I had searched the internet for the perfect horse, and this was supposed to be it. The owners had supplied glowing pictures of a plump, alert filly. Her video showed her trotting around her round pen with an amazing floaty gait. She was a rare color, buckskin tobiano with beautiful markings in her mane and tail. Her father was a distinguished Saddlebred, her dam a quiet paint. The owners touted her temperament and gaits, the trainer said she was gentle and had been backed.
But the owners and the trainer, who shall remain nameless, forgot one little thing. They forgot to feed Gucci ! When the recession hit, the owner stopped paying board, and Gucci was turned out with seven other horses to compete for one round bale a day. The recession drove the price of hay sky high. Unexpected snow storms came late in the year and there was no grass in the normally lush Virginia fields. Gucci had lost over 300 pounds ! She was weak, picked at her food and looked around helplessly. I was afraid she would die.
Frantically I began calling all my “horse” friends. What to do ? Give vitamins,, some said. Give beet pulp, sweet feed,in small feedings, everyone said. Our blacksmith, normally a stoic fellow, looked at the prisoner of war and said “What the $@### is that ? “ He was extremely upset about her condition and said so. My neighbor, a horsewoman and trainer with several horses, was shocked at Gucci’s appearance and listlessness. Friends emailed sympathy when they saw her pictures. My trainer clucked in disapproval.
Gucci toddled about the pasture trying to fit in with the geldings. They nipped and abused her, made sure she knew she was the the bottom of the pecking order. They threatened her away from the hay piles. When I separated her from them, herd instinct made her long to be with them and she wouldn’t eat. She picked at her food , did not recognize an apple and wouldn’t eat it. She drank large amounts of water. When I came near with the brush or blanket, she flinched away, sure she would be abused. Her dry stringy hair fell out in handfulls. Instead of a thick winter coat, she had long curious tendrils as though her poor body was attempting to stay warm by growing very long hairs.
The vet was summoned. Dr. Hagar checked Gucci carefully from stem to stern. A blood sample showed that Gucci was anemic with an hematocrit of 27.9. She needed a healthy 32 to 45 to be fit. Her droppings were negative for parasites. Her heart thumped and raced with fear or exertion, but was structurally sound. The horse’s mane and her bodycoat were bone dry from lack of nutrients. Gucci had a woeful expression and wandered about. She couldn’t even figure out how to go through the paddock gate (wide open), and whinnied mournfully for the others across the fence. Her ribs were prominent and her hocks stuck out with huge hollows under them. Her naturally high narrow withers had no subcutaneous fat at all and she looked like a skeleton horse. Her formerly plump neck was scraggly and gaunt.
With the help of Dr. Hagar of the Leatherstocking Vet Center,Martha Aitken of Long Grey Line Saddlehorses, and Sarah Casey of The Waltzing Horse Farm, we used this plan for bringing back baby.
1. Frequent small feeding are best. Do not overfeed a starving horse or give large amounts at once. The rapid shift of electrolytes and the action of insulin on cells may cause “refeeding syndrome” in which the horse goes into shock from rapid fluid and electrolyte shifts. A horse who has lost more than 1/3rd of it’s body weight may die. The horse needs plenty of time, and privacy, to chew up her food without threats from other horses. She should be near them, but they should not be able to reach her own particular hay store. The vet and my trainer recommended unlimited hay. A starving animal may prefer this at first and not recognize other foodstuffs. Make sure there is plenty of water as hay is dry and a horse will need more water than if it is living on grass.
2. Be patient. Resist the urge to stuff your patient with goodies. A seriously starved horse will take about three months to start looking svelte again.
3. Do not give dewormer medicine to a starved animal. Check the stool for parasites; worm the horse later if necessary , after he/she has gained weight and is stronger. Dewormers can kill a starved animal or horse can colic from trying to pass too many dead parasites.
4. Food that will help her gain:
1. Beet Pulp: a granular dried substance that is left after sugar beets have been pressed. This is the equivalent of “pop tarts” for horses. They can’t resist the sweet taste, and it goes straight to the thighs! Beet pulp is cheap and you can buy a large sack for about $8.00. This material must be reconstituted, do not feed it to your horse in it’s dried condition. Remix it with warm water and let stand at least 2 hours ( I let mine stand overnight). The horses love it and will eat it up, it’s sort of like “beetmeal” for horses. My geldings evaluated this mash for a somber two seconds before diving in and snarfing it down like vacuum cleaners gone berserk. Remember, you cannot serve it in it’s dry condition or it may make your horse ill.
2. Alfalfa Hay: this is very nutritious and you can feed small leaves of it with regular hay. Too much alfalfa may give diarrhea. A seriously starved horse has not only used up it’s body fat, but started to burn muscle tissue as well, and protein is needed to rebuild muscle.
3. 10% sweet feed contains molasses, corn,oats and pellets. Most horses will eat this up and it will put weight on them . Some horses become jittery from the molasses, if so cut back. Crimped oats are also helpful. I mix scratch grain with this because the corn is also fattening. Ears of fresh corn are inviting to a horse and the horse will generally eat the whole cob, green leaves and kernels. Foods designed for senior horses may also be helpful.
5. Nutrition: Gucci was anemic from lack of iron, folic acid and vitamin B-12. There is a cell tonic for horses called “REDCELL” It is palatable if you don’t give too much at once (Gucci turned up her nose at two “glugs”, but gobbled her food if it had only one “glug”. ) You can buy REDCELL at your tack store or on internet vet supply stores. My geldings, who would probably eat hamburgers and fries if given the opportunity, thought it was great. ( While I was refeeding Gucci the healthier horses sampled vitamins, iron tonic, beet pulp and Farrier’s Secret, and pronounced them all to be “good”.) Gucci was also given a scoop of multi- vitamin per day, a mineral block to lick, and , at the vet’s suggestion, two tablespoons of canola oil per day to replace essential oils in her coat. She does not much like the canola oil and this has to be worked into the feed.
6, If it is cold, (below freezing) blanket your starving horse with a good quality, waterproof blanket. The less the horse has to manufacture heat, the less calories will be burned up and the quicker he will gain. Shivering uses up calories, so don’t let your baby get cold.
7. Make sure your horse CAN eat. Bad or broken teeth, infections under the jaw or injuries to the jaw may make it so your horse can’t eat, no matter how hungry. Older horses may need their grinders “floated” or ground down a bit so they can eat. Your vet or the equine dentist can do this. Young horses may have sharp “wolf teeth” which cause discomfort. These can be removed if necessary.
8. DON’T buy a horse sight unseen or based on what the owner/trainer has said. If you can’t go see / ride the horse yourself, send a trusted friend or the Vet to see the horse. Insist on new photographs if you can’t go see the horse. I still would have bought Gucci but certainly would have “beefed her up” for the trip. Shipping a starving animal can lead to it’s illness or death.
For three weeks, it looked like touch and go for Gucci… she was listless and apathetic. But after the third week… voila ! Baby kicked up her heels and bucked, dashed out of the paddock. Under her blanket she had a bit of fat covering her ribs. She began to chow down with gusto, searching for the last bits of sweet feed and shoving her hay out of the way to get any remaining grains. Now, after 5 weeks, gucci is running, playing, and has some fat in all the right places. She is right there for every meal time and eats with gusto. She gets sweet feed, redcell, canola oil and hay in the morning, unlimited hay all day and beet pulp plus an apple in the afternoon. Her new coat feels soft and supple though the old mane is still very dry. She has gone on the lunge line twice and displayed great energy and a powerful, driving trot. I have groomed her several times and her old dry hair has been pretty much combed out; new soft supple hair is coming in and…. a little shine on that rump is apparent. She is a happy girl with her new friends. I will continue to give her all the best plus a generous scoop of love every day, and always, always remember the golden rule……baby shall not live by round bale alone!
