Winter Weight Issues ??

Hey guys !!!
Hope you all had an awesome week !
Its FRIDAY !!!:)

So today I thought I would talk about something that a lot of horse owners care deeply about. This topic that so  many people struggle with. Is my horse too skinny ? and if so how can I put weight on them ?

Speaking from personal experience because I have a thoroughbred who is extremely hard to keep weight on and now that it's winter things just got a lot harder. So how do I determine if my horse is looking a little thin?

Well first off you have to know your own horse and what is a normal weight for him or her. Typically their weight will go down in the winter and this is simply because they are trying to keep their bodies warmer. My horse will start to loose weight in one major area, his barrel or around his ribs and stomach.

My typical regamind as far as feed goes in the winter basically consists of this... My horse usually gets a full feed scoop of grain eight months out of the year. As soon as the whether decides to start getting cold i up his grain to a scoop and then another half. This is done about a month before harsh whether hits. When the months begin getting into the 30's i typically add a half a scoop of rice bran twice a day to his regular feeding regimend. Rise bran, for those of you who are unfamiliar with this, is a supplement that is high in fat and low in protein so it adds calories without adding the extra energy.

One of the main probelms a lot of horse owners have in the winter or any time they try to put weight on their horse is that it makes them very "hot", or wild. This is because so many weight gaining supplements have sugar and protein in them, which does make your horse gain weight but it also gives them a lot of energy and most of the time this is not a good thing.

This is why i recommend rice bran. In addition to rice bran hay is another major component. It is always a good idea to allow your horse as much hay as they are willing to consumeeven if youre not trying to put weight on them. Horses are graizing animals so they are meant to eat small amounts all day long. We have slowly changed their behavior and many times only allow them to eat hay or grass for a couple hours a day. If this is the case for your underweight horse you may want to consider upping their hay.

Well I hope my two ideas of rice bran and added hay helped anyone with a skinny horse issue !

Thanks for ready guys !
Enjoy your weekend :)