Hello! After accidentally posting this on r/horse, lets try again...
I have a wonderful 13 year old gelding who has just been looking...off lately. He is in the same spirit with no change to temperament, but he definitely has a hay belly look right now. Currently he is a little lean muscle wise with some exposed ribs and a "bloated" looking belly. He has been on coastal hay for roughly 5 months as it is the only hay consistently available out near me and I have only noticed an issue in the last two months when the grass in the pasture is a little less available. As far as his schedule goes, he gets fed a flake of hay in the morning, then turned out into a huge grass pasture, then brought in around 3 pm and receives 2 additional flakes of hay. Usually there is hay left over. I also feed him roughly 1 lb Beet pulp, 1/2 scoop senior, folic acid, and 1/4 oil with a psyllium pellet mixed in monthly. Some of his pasture mates are a little less...cared for so my first thought was worms. We just finished up a PowerPak to hopefully get anything I was missing, but I am thinking it may be due to the hay I am feeding. I have a scheduled appointment with my vet next month, but I'm wondering in the meantime if some added protein may help with his unthriftiness or if I need if there is anything I could be overlooking. Any thoughts would be appreciated!!
Check out this subreddit. I bet you will like it.
How do you feel about blanketing during cold weather? My gelding is out on pasture board and free fed (he's fluffy and fat-ish), so I almost never blanket him in the winter. But, it's dropping down to -40C over the next few days, so out I went to bundle him up on Christmas Day. My horsey friends are of 2 camps, some say horses adjust to the cold and blankets are unnecessary. Others go by the 'if you're cold, they're cold' statement. What do you think? No judging, just curious 😊
