Since moving Jackson over to the donkey pasture, his bite and scratch marks have pretty much disappeared. But he's still too skinny despite being fed copious amounts of hay. He's been wormed and I've started a course of GastroGuard because he has a history of ulcers. Maybe they came back while he was being harassed by Mufasa. I've also added Ulcer-Gard to his low starch supplement in the morning. It's frustrating.
His appetite is good, he's moving well (the trail boots and time in the barn during the last rain worked well) and he seems very happy. I just wish he was a bit thicker around the middle.
Speaking of thick around the middle, I think Kersey has lost some weight (yay!). I had to shorten her collar yesterday so it looks like her diet of Fat Dog food and many walks is working.
Our guests left after lunch today so I moved the flowers from the guest room onto the pie safe on the landing. I'm proud of this bouquet -- picked from the garden, including those red jalapenos.
It was chilly this morning, 41F when we did chores. Mufasa was racing around his pasture while Flash watched.
I lit a fire in the wood stove and Brett's sister sat close to the warmth while sipping her coffee. Her husband, Doug, braved the cold with us and helped with chores. It sure was nice having them here.
Annette...Did you ever try feeding Jackson soaked beet pulp pellets with his grain? If not, I would highly recommend it for not only adding weight, but giving him nutrients and a smooth running system. He sure is a sweetheart.
ReplyDeleteIt's supposed to go down in the 30s tonight and will stay in the 40s tomorrow.
Part of the challenge with Jackson is that he is a very picky eater. He won't touch beet pulp in any form. He won't eat most supplements. I may start supplementing him with a flake of alfalfa at lunch time. I also have to be careful about where he is physically -- we'll need to bring him into the barn for any high calorie feed. The donkeys share his food and they cannot have any high calorie anything.
ReplyDeleteYou could try adding some lysine to his supplements. My vet recommends 20g of pure lysine a day. It is an amino-acid that helps him utilize the protein in his diet. It will help him build and maintain muscle.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you have tried Amplify, but it worked wonders for Ashke. It is low starch, low sugar with a high fat ratio. It is good to put weight on.
It's frustrating isn't it? I started adding soaked alfalfa cubes for Irish and I hide a wee bit of beet pulp in it. But I have come to the conclusion that Irish will always be thin no matter what. I console myself that I make sure that he always has access to food so I'm doing all I can.
ReplyDeleteon the other hand with Jackson's feet problems being thin is better than being fat.
Sounds so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about Jackson. Bummer about the beet pulp - I swear that stuff works miracles! Maybe try canoloa oil and/or ground flax? I especially like the flax because it helps so much with their hooves and coat. Bioflax 20 is one I use quite a lot and have been very happy with. Definitely stay away from rice bran (too much NSCs). Skinny picky horses are tough!