Skinny 8 month old colt with a pot belly?

[just learnin]

We are new horse owners.
We just bought this colt and was told she was wormed four - six weeks ago with Ivermec and that she had her vaccines.
She was not in a pasture before. We have put her on pasture this weekend and she appears pot bellied. She is eating and drinking fine and we haven't noticed any worms.
Should we worm her again just incase or would that be harmful?
Should we continue to watch her or should we go ahead and have her checked out by a Vet?
Her coat seems a little dry and rough also.
She was in a corral with other colts and they were feeding them grain.
I was thinking about getting some feed and calf manna today to fed her twice a day and maybe go ahead and have her checked out by a Vet.

Thanks

 

[born2run]

Sounds like a case of bad nutrition. What type of grain were they feeding her? And with a bunch of colts I wonder how much she was getting? I'd switch her gradually to something like Strategy.

Certainly wouldn't hurt to get a vet's opinion. Maybe someone else here can answer your questions about worming. I try to worm mine every 8 weeks with alternating pastes.

 

[just learnin]

I am thinking poor nutrition.
I am not sure of the grain they were feeding. It was a pellet feed. I will call and find out.

I will put her on feed twice a day and keep an eye on her the next couple of days.

I may end up having her checked out, just to make sure thats all it is.

Thanks

 

[oscar p]

I would worm her again,my vet says a colt needs to be wormed every month until it is a year old. I would put your colt on 10% all grain twice a day and pasture, you'll be suprised in about a month. I like to take before and after pictures.

 

[just learnin]

Thanks for the information.
Good idea, I will take pictures tomorrow.

I got her some grain today and I was thinking about worming her again.

I just wanted to make sure it was safe to worm again if she had been wormed four weeks ago.

 

[ffscj]

I will put her on feed twice a day and keep an eye on her the next couple of days.

If your going to increase her feed, do so slowly over a period of time.

Chris

 

[Pooog1]

We are new horse owners.
We just bought this colt and was told she was wormed four - six weeks ago with Ivermec and that she had her vaccines.
She was not in a pasture before. We have put her on pasture this weekend and she appears pot bellied. She is eating and drinking fine and we haven't noticed any worms.
Should we worm her again just incase or would that be harmful?
Should we continue to watch her or should we go ahead and have her checked out by a Vet?
Her coat seems a little dry and rough also.
She was in a corral with other colts and they were feeding them grain.
I was thinking about getting some feed and calf manna today to fed her twice a day and maybe go ahead and have her checked out by a Vet.

Thanks

Have faith. I purchased a filly at about 9 months old that was part of around 80 horses taken away from someone due to improper care. She had a pot belly and basically nothing else. She looked awful. She now (3 months later and 1yr old) looks better as far as condition goes but she still has somewhat of a pot belly. It has gone down, but with horses it takes some time to have them pick up. She is getting sweetfeed twice a day and square alfalalfa hay. You cant see the back bones, hip bones, shoulder bones, or ribs anymore. It might make you feel better to have someone who knows the quality of horse hay/feed/amount to make sure your meeting her needs, then you can just give her some time to take over. The people you got her from may not have been feeding her properly. I had a very nice looking yearling Quarter horse filly that some people bought. I went to see her before she was shipped off to Pennsylvania (a few months after being sold) and they thought she was fat. She basically had a large hay gut and even a few ribs showing. I sure wish I would have let it go and remembered her in nice condition. Good luck and best of wishes with her.

 

[Pooog1]

A picture of the yearling filly that was shipped out to Pa in previous reply.

http://www.harveyquarterhorseranch.com/ ... teacup.jpg

 

[just learnin]

Thanks so much for all of the help.

When I bought the grain at the feed store they told me to increase her feed slowly.

Should I start her out with small amounts and work up to what her intake should be?

She is on green pasture now.

 

[just learnin]

Pooog1 nice looking horse.

 

[Pooog1]

Thanks so much for all of the help.

When I bought the grain at the feed store they told me to increase her feed slowly.

Should I start her out with small amounts and work up to what her intake should be?

She is on green pasture now.

Very safe advise...Green pasture is nice but a yearling is growing so much around here if left only on green pasture they come in with a few ribs showing on some of them. Of course theres always the easy doing ones that it doesnt seem to bother, but I think your doing the right thing. Will she be allowed to eat by herself so that you are aware of how much she is really getting?

 

[just learnin]

Yea she is eating alone.

 

[Pooog1]

Pooog1 nice looking horse.

Thank you, I hated to sell her but needed to pay the bills more than I needed another mouth to feed. But even more than all of that I really hated to see how she was later taken care of. It sounds like you are on the right track and if you took a picture now of you yearling and one next year, you wouldn't believe the change. Good luck! ;-)

 

[peg4x4]

Go very slowly...I know you feel sorry for her,but remember ,you'll hurt her if you rush....grass hay is the best,and make her walk.

 

[just learnin]

peg4X4, Thanks.
We are going very slow on the grain.
She is on green grass.
I spoke to the Vet and rewormed her.
She is looking better.

 

[Miss Daisy]

as far as i have been told, you cant overworm a horse

 

[msscamp]

as far as i have been told, you cant overworm a horse

Are you talking about the number of times a horse is wormed or the amount given for an individual worming? If the first, it's a waste of money unless the worming is done with a mind to the way that the eggs hatch, larvae develop, and when it would be most effective. This is going to vary from horse to horse depending on their age, and circumstances. There is also the factor of the wormer being comprised of chemicals that may or may not have long term effects if not used properly. I can't imagine that something strong enough to kill worms being gentle on a horses stomach and intestines. So, I would presume to say that your statement is incorrect. If the second, your statement is absolutely false! Giving a horse that has a heavy worm load a full dose of wormer can cause that horse to become sick, colic or possibly even die due to the number of worms that are killed and attempt to pass through the horses system.

 

[Miss Daisy]

as far as i have been told, you cant overworm a horse

Are you talking about the number of times a horse is wormed or the amount given for an individual worming? If the first, it's a waste of money unless the worming is done with a mind to the way that the eggs hatch, larvae develop, and when it would be most effective. This is going to vary from horse to horse depending on their age, and circumstances. There is also the factor of the wormer being comprised of chemicals that may or may not have long term effects if not used properly. I can't imagine that something strong enough to kill worms being gentle on a horses stomach and intestines. So, I would presume to say that your statement is incorrect. If the second, your statement is absolutely false! Giving a horse that has a heavy worm load a full dose of wormer can cause that horse to become sick, colic or possibly even die due to the number of worms that are killed and attempt to pass through the horses system.

Thankyou for catching that one. I did not mean how often a horse is wormed, rather, the amount. If it is suspected the horse has worms, we give a partial dose, then reworm in about a month. For routine wormings, we give the whole tube, no matter the weight of the horse. Sorry for the misunderstanding, i need to work on communication sometimes!