My Horse Loses Weight: what to do? | The Royal Horses

We have already talked about the problem of the obese horse, but it was high time to tackle the problem of the horse too thin.

A horse that lacks state or that loses in a brutal or chronic way is never innocuous and can lead to much more serious problems. It is therefore something that deserves special attention and very good management to not let the horse deteriorate.

A lean horse: what is it?

Small quick point to understand when to be alarmed for a horse "too thin".

Indeed, we must have in mind the ideal body condition of his horse to objectify weight loss. The first step is therefore to evaluate the body condition score of his horse: a horse in good condition must be 3/5. At 2.5, we can consider that it is slightly lacking state. This becomes more alarming if it goes to 2 or less.

Despite this, it is important to take into account individual characteristics including horse race: it is easier to accept a score of 2.5, with a horse "dry" for a thoroughbred, as this note will be more or less worrying for an Iberian for example ...

The best way to be aware of weight loss is to regularly measure the horse's thoracic perimeter and thus calculate its weight (this method is explained in the article cited above). You can also re-evaluate your status note frequently and take pictures to better understand the evolution.

For what reasons ?

Numerous reasons can lead a horse to lose weight, they are to consider each of their side without forgetting that they can co-exist and thus complicate the diagnosis. Nevertheless, let's do a quick overview of the main causes of weight loss.

An inappropriate ration

One tends to underestimate this reason, and to be quickly alarmed by a "more serious" cause when his horse is weak or thin. But in most cases, this weight loss is "only" linked to a miscalculation ration and therefore to a diet that does not cover the needs of the horse.

In a previous article, we talked about the nutritional needs of the horse, which would allow us to understand a little better the establishment of rations. This step is important to incorporate to ensure that the diet that is given to the horse is suited to the morphology, its weight, its physiological state (older horse, pregnant mare, stallion breeding), its mode of life and at work.

It is easy to understand that a diet too low, not enough hay, lack of grass in the meadow, or even inadequate distribution of cereals or insufficient quantity will cause in the horse a chronic weight loss.

therefore be observed in a horse whose ration is inadequate loss of regular and relatively low weight (unless the diet is really too deficient ...) sometimes can bring it to a state more and disturbing.

A problem of access to food

 horse lives

If your horse lives in a flock with other horses, it may also be that he can not access the food properly. Indeed, some horses higher placed than him in the hierarchy could prevent it from approaching the points of food.

If you notice this problem, increase the number of meal distribution areas and move them further away if needed. Better fueled, your horse should quickly recover from the state!

Parasites

Another common cause of weight loss in the horse is internal parasitism. Indeed, the presence of parasites in the stomach or intestines of the horse to a spoliator action: that is to say that the worms will divert the energy normally intended for the horse to develop.

The horse will eat normally or more, but it will remain ineffective since most will be used by parasites and not by the horse himself

In the same way as previously, the parasitism will lead to a slow and regular slimming of the horse related to the development of an increasing amount of parasites in the digestive tract.

Be careful, it's not because a horse is dewormed regularly, it can not be parasitized! We had already addressed the problem of resistance and how to deworm effectively. Parasitism can not be excluded under the sole pretext that the horse has been dewormed recently ...

The Teeth

Horse teeth

The dentition of the horse is subject to many conditions that we will discuss shortly in a new article. In general, it is obvious that a tooth problem can be very painful for the horse and therefore cause feeding problems.

Among the main dental problems of the horse, we can cite the overdoses: these are small parts of badly worn teeth and therefore pointed that can hurt the cheeks or the language of the horse when chews and make the feeding of it painful .

Horses with overdense or any other type of problem (various wounds in the mouth) will usually stop eating or eating poorly: they will sometimes be very slow to eat their ration or even spit out a few hay dumplings he can not chew.

In the old horse, we can observe the same kind of problem, but it should be added that sometimes they have lost their teeth, which also makes feeding more complicated.

A latent disease

The last reason a horse can lose weight significantly is the presence of an underlying disease. As mentioned above, there is often a tendency to "jump" on this eventuality, whereas it is important to think about the other problems first.

Many diseases can cause weight loss in the horse in a non-specific way. Simply because the horse eats less when it is not good, but also because all the energy it receives is intended to help the body and the immune system to fight against this disease.

Among the most common are the piroplasmosis, which gives nonspecific signs and is not easy to detect, many respiratory conditions that tire the horse, and many more, but also, and more serious and more rarely, tumors of different organs.

How to react when your horse loses weight ?

1. Sorting in the problems 

As previously stated, it is useless to rush on tons of tests in suspecting a serious disease. The first thing to do is to take stock of any problems the horse may have. Take things in order, start with the simplest, and progress gradually by giving yourself time.

It is therefore important to repeat the previous points each in turn.

The first thing will be to calculate the weight of the horse and then calculate his needs. The objective is to compare the current ration of the horse to his needs and to check that it covers them well.

If the horse has received a correct deworming protocol, this assumption can be put in second place. However, if dewormers are not up to date, we can think in the first place to do so, depending on the season, with a vermifuge suitable for worms present at this time.

The teeth are to be observed then: the horse chews it correctly? If you suspect a problem with your teeth, the intervention of your veterinarian or dentist may be a necessity. This can solve a lot of the problems of your horse.

Nevertheless, if your horse seems to be eating at a "normal" speed and without difficulty, this intervention may occur as a second intention only.

2. Rehabilitate the ration

horse's ration

The first step is to readjust your horse's ration! Most of the time, this is the main problem of a horse losing weight: it is simply lacking food. So remember to recalculate the ration of your horse according to his activity, his age, his status, etc.

Among the foods that help to make a horse fat, grass is an essential element! She is the most adapted to the horse .. If it is not available in sufficient quantity, the hay takes over, and can be distributed at will, without restriction.

Then, in addition, prefer a complete food adapted to the exercise of your horse. Dehydrated beet pulp is also an interesting part of helping a horse gain weight.

Do not increase the ration too quickly. It is recommended to increase the ration by 0.5 CFU every 3 weeks, to eventually reduce and stabilize the ration.

3. Observe changes

According to the evolution, you will be able to pass in the second stage: let you 1 to 2 weeks according to the 'gravity' of the state of the horse. If your horse starts again, keep going and possibly increase the ration after 3 weeks.

If you do not observe improvement, you will have to think about deworming the horse, and possibly do a dental check-up. Remember to watch your horse's dung after deworming it, if you see any worms, it may give you an indication of the infestation status of the horse.

Once again, allow yourself 1 to 2 weeks to observe the evolution.

If you do not observe any changes, then it is time to think about taking a blood test to assess the fitness of your horse.

4. Checking

Be that as it may, be sure to monitor your horse, and regularly evaluate your weight gain. You can also take profile, front and back photos, always in the same position to compare the condition of your horse

Finally, do not always expect a miraculous recovery in winter. In general, it will be enough to keep them at a sufficient weight and wait for the spring grass so that they finish to resume.