OTTB Success Stories

Posts Tagged ‘Feeding’

Me Tru aka “Marvin” is a joy, and I imagine that his brother is also as nice and kind as he is handsome.

I need to get new pictures for you. Marvin has gained weight nicely, and the vet wants him to gain another 200 pounds! With the added weight and cooler temperatures, Marvin is feeling more ambitious. Nevertheless, he is always safe and sane. I can’t say enough nice things about him.

By the way, I found the hole in his halo. Marvin doesn’t like German shepherds. He is fine with hounds, dobermans, boxers, bulldogs, rottweilers, and mutts, but he pins his ears and threatens any German shepherd that gets too close.

Have a great weekend!
Kathryn

Hi Elizabeth,

Dixon’s Chief has really come into his own this spring! This guy has soo much spunk now. He had trouble on and off all last summer with his stomach troubles. He also have to have quite a bit of chiropractic work done on him by Doctor Cleveland. He could not be ridden for a month because of pain in his neck, rib cage and pelvis. I felt so bad for him last summer he was sore, did not eat very well, and got picked on by the other horses. I have to put him in a pasture just with Avrispecial it was so bad. Avrispecial was his protector, he tried to keep the other horses away from Chief. It was pretty cute. I have never had two horses that got along so well and that just love to play together. I started riding him more in the fall. He was super easy. We just walk and trotted. He did not trust my hand at all at first but has got a lot better. Read the rest of this entry »

Decorative has settled in really well. He took three days to decide that he wanted to eat anything. Even though I bought him the same grain that he had been eating, he wasn’t sure about grain or hay. Now he’s eating great and yesterday he actually ate a carrot out of my hand.

I’ve ridden him three times. Walk, trot and canter both leads! Today he trotting and cantered over a pole. He’s a little tense when he goes back to trot after canter but certainly great for how little he knows. That will go away as he learns to bend and gets a bit better balanced and settled. But he comes out with a nice balanced, quiet and steady trot all on his own.

The last time he was turned out loose in the ring, he walked around and pulled out all the flowers from the flower boxes and tossed them everywhere. It probably did not help that a friend and I were laughing at him.

Kate

“Shaman” and I are doing great. He has gained some much needed weight, and he has actually been deemed “fat” by my vet since these pictures were taken. All I can say is that I love him and I cannot imagine ever parting with him!

Barbara

Since I sent you an update on Avrispecial I had to send you one on Dixons Chief. When Chief got here I had a lot of trouble getting him to eat but I am pretty sure it was because he had a stomach ulcer. I have had him on U-7. Becky recommended it to me since he was on the thin side. He ate his hay the first couple of days and then he had no interest in it at all. But he loved to graze so I left him out in a small pasture with Avri most of the time. It was about ten days before he started to eat his grain, I tried several different kinds before I found one that he liked, and I have him on a senior feed. It was about a week ago that I really started to notice that he was really starting to enjoy his feed. Now he loves to eat!!

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Just wanted to drop you a line to say thanks for the advice about Huey’s weight gain issues. He’s starting to put on some more weight; he’s still a little ribby but he’s looking thicker through the barrel. I added flax to his feed and have just been making sure he always has good quality hay in front of him in a net. He’s really a grazer and I think he was wasting a lot of his hay by chopping it up into his bedding at the place we were before. He’s starting to put on weight, and he’s getting along really well with his pasture mates; his socialization issues are almost non-existent now. He still loves to play though and always has his nose in everything!

I’ve started riding him again now that he doesn’t always have a new little injury from the field, and he’s doing pretty well. His big problem is that he gets above the bit and stiffens in the neck, so we’re doing a lot of circles and turns, asking for relaxation in the neck while striding forward. I upped his bit to a double jointed happy mouth elevator, and I think he needed that. I hate to go beyond a regular snaffle, but with six years of racing I think he just didn’t even really know the double jointed loose-ring I had on him was even there. I’ve also been riding him in a standing martingale, which I think helps the evasion issue. We actually had some giving through the back yesterday when I rode! It was our first time schooling in the new ring, and our first time schooling ever with other horses, so he handled it all like a pro.

His attitude is so trusting now that he is learning to live like a sport horse instead of a racehorse. The kids here just love him – we give him baths as part of our barn lessons, and I tell them about how he came off the racetrack. They are so excited to learn about what his life there was like and see the tattoo in his lip. He just lets them fawn over him like I would never have believed possible just three months ago. That’s about all from here. He enjoys playing with the welsh pony who looks like his twin – chestnut with four high socks and a blaze. They both think they are stud muffins and it’s hilarious to watch them together.

Whitney

Buddy is eating fine now he does eat the grass hay and I only give him two small flakes of alfalfa a day – none of my horses get it free choice. My old mare colics too easy for that. He does however get grain twice daily and is doing fine on it so far, but I will call you and we can discuss his feeding.