Underweight nursing mare-HELP!

[shelly]

My mare Pixie has a 2 1/2 month old filly and is now looking very thin in her topline, neck and hips/butt! Her ribs are showing, her tailhead is sunken in and her neck is starting to lay over!!!

I have doubled her hay(1 flake to 2 twice daily) and upped her grain another 1/4 lb.(gets 16%complete feed-1 1/2 lbs. twice daily) Her filly eats about 1/4 lb. of this amount so mare is getting 2 lbs. a day. Is this enough or should I be adding more grain-hay or something else on top?

Here is her most recent picture: She really looks much worse in person!!!

 

[Minimor]

How tall is she? What kind of hay are you feeding? Based on the fact that you say your mare has lost weight I would have to say that what she is getting is not enough. Does she clean all her hay up, or is there still some left from the previous feeding when you go to give her more? If she's cleaning it all up then I would increase the amount--if she has some left over then I would look at the quality--either better quality grass hay, or if it is good quality grass then I'd add some alfalfa (or alfalfa cubes/pellets). I also like calf manna for mares that drop weight while nursing a foal

My 34" mare has a foal that is almost 2 months old; she gets 3-4 flakes of hay twice a day--that makes about 16 lbs of hay per day, and this is alfalfa/grass hay, varies from 30 to 50% alfalfa. she also gets oats and 14% pellets twice a day, about 3 lbs per day total. She is staying in nice shape--not fat, but she hasn't dropped any weight either.

 

[Alisha514]

There is some mare that put so much into their milk production that it brings them down a lot no matter how much you give them. I have a mare that I have a hard time keeping weight on while shes producing milk.

Alisha

 

[Shari]

I have an Icelandic mare with that same issue. Maggie also had this issue when she had Theia all those years ago. But it can be corrected.

If she does not have founder issues I would recommend a

Senior or Mare and foal feed, something with vitamins in it, (Nutrena, purinea or who ever you trust)

slowly adding some soaked beet plup twice a day plus all the hay she will eat.

She might not like the beet plup at first.. so if you mix an 1/4 cup soaked beet pulp with soaked and soften pellets mixed well, she should start eating the Beet pulp mix and you can slowly increase from there.

Because my rescue mare has chronic founder...

She gets Nutrena Safechoice at the max recommend rate.

Beet plup soaked and mixed with a small amount of her pellets, also soaked to make a mash, mixed with her Omega Horse shine and cinnamon (cinnamon is per the Vet for her founder) the dry Pellets and the Mash of Beet pulp and soaked pellets is given Twice a day.

Plus all the hay she will eat, a combo of my grass hay and a compressed timothy tested for founder horses.

 

[kaykay]

we have 2 mares that always get thin when their foal is about 2 months. we add a little calf manna to their feed and that helps a lot

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

I have two mares whose foals pull them down a bit on their top line. Those two mares are 34" and are currently getting 5 lbs of grain 2x's a day plus two big flakes of hay and are holding their own. If your mare was mine, I'd double her grain at least.

 

[MindyLee]

My mare is the same way! She looks like dead horse walking so I started her on 12% Tiz Wiz to help bring up her weight. I uped her hay and she gets 1 scoop of the Tiz Wiz twice a day now. On my days off from work, I tie her out in the yard to get fresh green grass all day long as well. I reliezed after the birth that she is a hard keeper: But I guess I should have known this from the start since shes tiny and dainty to began with.

 

[shelly]

thanks everyone for your responses and advice...

Pixie is 34", she has no founder issues that I know of and yes she cleans up all feed given all the time!!! I will start adding a little more grain daily until she is up to 4 lbs, but that seems like ALOT to me!!! My full size gelding is getting 5 lbs. a day plus 4 flakes of timothy grass hay and he looks great! It amazes me how much nursing a foal can take out of some mares! Pixie and Trixie also now get 4 flakes of timothy grass hay-increased from 2 1/2 flakes. I will keep a close eye on her...hopefully she will not drop anymore weight and gain a little!

edited to add...I forgot that she also gets mare and foal vitamins plus the complete feed has all the vitamins too.

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

I found this from a web site and wanted to show you. I'll post the link so you will be able to read the article in full.

LactationNursing makes the greatest nutritional demands on a mare in any phase in the reproductive cycle, and many mares are underfed while nursing. Lactating mares need as much or more energy in their diets as hardworking performance horses.

http://www.horsechannel.com/horse-health/f...foals-1320.aspx

What you think may be a lot, probably isn't.

 

[shelly]

WOW-thank you Irish Hills for that very interesting and informative article!!!! I learned alot and will try and get her and the babies nutrition straightened out.