Arie update- good news and bad news

Several days ago I posted that the vet thought Arie had kidney failure so I took him back and had blood drawn. The results say kidney function is great but his blood platelets are very low. The vet recommended I put him on Red Cell to build his blood, which I'm going to run out and get today. I also thought I'd add a pound of alfalfa pellets to his feed for more nutrition. Is that a good idea, or is a pound enough to do anything. I have to be careful so he doesn't founder again. I was going to start with one cup a day and work up to 4 cups a day, unless you think I can go faster.

All in all, I'm very relieved and feel I have my horse back. He still has a problem but its much better than kidney failure. If anyone has more ideas for building a horse's blood I'd love to hear them.

Red Cell is good stuff, IMHO. We give it to our horses in the spring and summer because ticks are such a horrid problem. We haven't found a product yet that will keep the ticks off (though we are hoping that using the yellow sulfur salt blocks will help since they worked on the horseflies). We have a two year old colt that looked like a walking skeleton (long story) that we helped get over the hump with Red Cell.

I don't think a pound of alfalfa pellets will hurt your horse - he's not a pony. If you work up slowly, you can monitor his reaction to it. Just keep checking for signs of laminitis so you can catch it early if it happens again.

Do you have him on a vitamin/mineral supplement? It might help in addition to the Red Cell...

That is great news! Much better outcome than the kidney failure! Red Cell is a great supplement. Good luck!

Wooo delighted for you both good positive vibes going you way

Thanx everyone. Arie really seems to be doing well and loves his alfalfa pellets and the Red Cell. I think he's feeling pretty spoiled to be eating feed from a bucket. Every feeding I'm giving him 2 cups beet pulp that I soak with 2 cups alfalfa pellets (working up to) and an ounce of the Red Cell. He thinks he's in heaven. Dee, I think the Red Cell must count as a vitamin/mineral supplement. It has a lot of those things in it.

My question is the instructions on the bottle say 2 ounces a day for a horse in work and one ounce a day for a horse not in work. Since he's got this blood issue I decided to give him 2 ounces a day to build him up. You don't think I'll overdose him do you? He only weighs 950#, which is his ideal weight.

You're right, the Red Cell has a lot of vitamins and minerals. I just wondered if he was already on a supplement.

I was a little unclear in my earlier post, though. The Red Cell doesn't keep the ticks away, but it is a great blood builder when the little blood suckers are at their worst. Vet had recommended it. Between the ticks and the horse flies, we had a couple of horses in pretty rough shape. Didn't take long at all for the Red Cell to work it's magic...

I love how thick the Red Cell is. Makes it somehow satisfying to feed. Dee, I've never heard of ticks being so bad... how awful. I've read that apple cider vinegar is supposed to help with flies and mosquitoes (going to try it in the spring) I wonder if it would help with your tick situation. Arie wasn't on any supplements before this. I was researching them to find the right one. Red Cell sounds like the one for him. How many ounces do you give a day?

We were giving them 1/4 cup or so twice a day during tick season. Actually, we got one of those squirter thingys, and they get a squirt twice a day. We did measure how much the squirter thingy puts out - and it's right at 1/4 cup. Don't have to give quite as much now that the ticks are gone for the winter.

I noticed a decrease in the ticks on the horses after we put the sulfur salt blocks out - the ticks decreased a lot about the same time the horse flies dissappeared, so I'm hoping that by putting the sulfur blocks out early in the spring, we can make the horses less appetizing to the little varmints.

I was afraid that the sulfur would make the horses stink, but I haven't noticed any difference. I thought about putting out mineral blocks, but the vet said we don't need any - no deficiency issues in our area. That's a good thing.

Around here the flies are bad, like anywhere, but the mosquitoes are the major problem. Sometimes they rise out of the grass in clouds with every step you take. I'm planning on starting Arie and I on apple cider vinegar to help combat them in the spring. It has other benefits as well. I wonder if sulfur works on mosquitoes.

So your horse is anemic, not in renal failure?