Trying to help a Friend,, with weight gain

My friend has been given an older horse for her daughter to ride, 23 TB cross. She said when she got him he was very thin. He has been wormed, teeth checked. Right now she has him on Senior feed, hay and he also has plenty of nice pasture to graze in. I have never had a problem with weight with my horses, I feel lucky about that.. But I see alot of people talk about Beet Pulp ?? What does this do and how much.. any help would be appreciated.. She says he is a real adorable guy, who is great to be around and her daughter loves him.. No vices.. She just needs to get some weight on him.

Have her make sure that she's feeding enough of the senior feed. Check the bag's recommendations and weight out what she's feeding him. She may be shorting him!

If he's getting enough, then I would add two things to his diet, flax meal and a digestive aid. Flax is great for weight gain and it puts a nice shine on their coat. Horsetech.com has a good product called NutraFlax and they can add in pro/prebiotics and yeast to aid in digestion. You want a 4 oz serving of flax for weight gain.

Many feed stores and tractor/farm supply stores carry Omega Horseshine. It's a fortified flax meal that's good. Feed 1-2 cups daily for weight gain.

For digestion, check out Source Focus SR, SmartPak's SmartGain 4, or SmartDigest. All three of these are good choices for helping weight gain and digestion.

I had that exact same problem.... get senior feed and corn oil.... mix that give once a day and buy beat pulp.... helps gain weight fast in the stomach area... you have to soak it in water over night. Id give that every two days. Found at your local country store

I'd be careful about corn oil. I read recently that it is an inflammatory and it can get rancid really fast (if left outside). My suggestion would be to stick to a weight gainer. I have an OTTB that just went through a bacterial infection and dropped some weight. I am successfully putting the weight back on him with a supplement called Amplify (by Purina). He loves it and is eating like a hog.

I also have a friend at the barn that is feeding her horse some alfalfa to help with weight gain. He's a difficult keeper. I don't know much about adding this to a horse's diet but she is having some luck with it. It may be worth researching....

Good luck!

Ya I just know you should keep corn oil in a secure area more of a cool area so it has no access to heat. But I would stick with amplify and beat pulp. Beat pulp will for sure put weight on fast but it will go straight to the stomach first. Generally with older horses you want to start putting weight in the hind quarters and the back that way you don't lose to much muscle then the rest of the body will do its work... but my mare is only 9 and our vet recommended feeding her senior feed at the age of 7. Cause she is a thoroughbred and loses weight easy in her rib area

Most horses love beet pulp after a few tries. Just make sure you soak it well for about 20 minutes and drain out the excess water. If you want the ultimate "snack" whammy, mix some rice bran into the soaked beet pulp. Your horse will most likely dive over you to get to it. Both are fantastic for weight gain and the rice bran will put a nice shine on his coat as well.

Well said "myboypuck"

Thanks for the input everyone.. I will pass it on to her.. Thanks so much.. I have been trying to get her to join the forum,, but she hasn't done it yet.. Thanks again.

The 28 year old horse I help take care is on beet pulp and senior feed plus two other types. His front teeth are worn down so when he's in pasture he's not getting as much as he thinks he is, therefore he dropped alot of weight. He's gaining it back and likes the beat pulp. He also gets feed lunch. Its not as much as his breakfast and dinner but just some more senior so he gets the extra calories

I also have a 3 year old rescue whos very low on weight at least a 100 lbs and not very much muscle any advice!!!!!