Oh No! Horse got into grain...

[daisyhill]

I'm afraid she might have eaten as much as ten pounds of her 12% horse feed. What is this going to do to her? What do I need to watch for?

Normally, she is getting about 2 quarts per day of this stuff--it has been a while since I weighed feed, but I think my scoop holds a little over one pound the way I dip it.

It is all my fault, and I feel so stupid. I left her in her stall this morning, because she was still finishing her hay when I was done with the rest of the chores. I also left the two steers in the stall next door to her, also finishing their hay. I frequently do this, and let them out in a little while. (It keeps them contained while I'm cleaning out and milking and so on). Today I FORGOT, like an idiot. When I realized she was still in the barn, I ran out and found that the little stinker had opened the connecting door between the two stalls (I had NO IDEA she would be able to reach the latch which is on the other side of the door from her stall!) chased the calves into her stall, and somehow shut the door again (it was not latched--if it had been, I would have been really scared...) SO, there she was in the calf stall, looking very pleased with herself. She had managed to reach her long neck over into the barn corridor, grab the garbage can with her feed in it, drag it over, and remove the very tight fitting lid. I am so thankful she could not reach the sheep feed which is also in the barn corridor.

I am so worried now. Will this cause laminitis? Colic? How will I know if I need to call a vet? What will he do if I do call him? Please give me some advice!

Thank you so much!

[milkmaid]

It *might* not cause a problem; 10lbs isn't a significant % of a horse's body weight. That said, if the consequences might affect the horse's potential (eg pasture ornament vs barrel racer), I'd take her to the vet. They'll generally sedate, pass a nasogastric tube into her stomach, and pump a gallon or so of mineral oil in to prevent the grain from being digested and absorbed.

Signs of colic or laminitis (google them if you're uncertain) would definitely indicate needing to call the vet - that said, at that point it's a little late and much more expensive than giving mineral oil.

[dunderi]

colic is something you could encounter. keep an eye on her and if she shows stomach pain symptoms yes call the vet.

i'd be walking her, keep her moving to keep the grain moving through her system. i wouldn't ride, (because my horse is called Reuben, as in "Reuben Hurricane Carter" as in a little bit of energy feed makes a big bang, he gets hot and overly fresh off even a handful of grain) but either walk beside her or ride beside her, and keep her walking.

use the feed up, and get it out of her system

edited because i read (10kg not 10lbs) and thought half a bag of feed... have not had coffee yet.

[simplynaturalfarm]

A 2 quart scoop is usually 3lbs of horse mix. SO if she even only got half of that normally (however you scoop), what she got into is not that huge unless she is an ultra sensitive horse. I would watch her, you can keep an eye on the pulse in her hooves, and heat in her hooves, but it is unlikely to cuase founder or colic. Yes you can walk her if you want. Riding is not an issue if you would rather ride.

I had a pony that I never fed grain get into 50lbs of it. I hated him so much that I told him to die please and I went to bed. He didn't even hiccup. . .(thankfully because I checked out the window twice *G*).

My other ones have gotten into 20+ lbs at a time and never been bothered.

[acts3v6]

And gosh, do not beat yourself up. Sounds like you had a lot of checks in place to assure she did not get in to the grain. Spouses like she was just a bit determined.

[daisyhill]

Thank you everyone for responding!

I realize that I was unclear about my scoop measurements...I use a one quart scoop, which when I weighed something similar was about 1 1/4 pounds of pellets (I think I was weighing all stock feed). I give her one of these in the morning and one in the evening, so I had figured she was getting about 2 1/2 pounds per day--it might easily be as much as three, as you said a two quart scoop should weigh.

At the moment, she is looking self-satisified, not sick. She is standing in a snowdrift, which I suppose would help if her feet get hot. Oh dear. It is after hours, of course, which means a vet call would be expensive. I don't want to do the wrong thing by her, but I hope I don't have to call for help. I'm going out to do the rest of my chores, and will examine her closely again.

The garbage can was far enough away from her that she was having difficulty getting her head in far enough to get the grain--otherwise I'm sure she would have eaten it all.

Should I let her have any hay? Right now she has nothing but water.

[daisyhill]

I went out and lifted her feet and looked at them. I'm not sure I would know, but I didn't feel any unusual heat, and she was fine with me looking at them.

[dunderi]

Feb 18, 2014 18:57:47 GMT -5 daisyhill said:

I went out and lifted her feet and looked at them. I'm not sure I would know, but I didn't feel any unusual heat, and she was fine with me looking at them.

yeah i think you need to be more concerned about colic than her feet. is she showing any symptoms?

[daisyhill]

She seems fine, except that I'm worried that her hoof seemed a little warm when I felt it just now. She is not limping or standing strangely.

[dunderi]

is she looking at her stomach or kicking at her stomach at all? like i said, you should be more worried about her gut i'd think.

does she has a history of foundering, from the people you got her from? is she an obese animal? or a pony type? if not, just keep an eye on the hooves(the frog, sole and wall) for temperature increase.

you can walk her through the snow - walking will help burn off the excess energy from the grain, keep it moving through her gut, and the snow will cool her feet.

[daisyhill]

No, no looking at or kicking at her stomach that I've observed.

Yes, she has foundered before, according to her previous owners. She is a quarter horse, when we bought her she was very thin, but put on weight nicely last fall on pasture and our good hay. At first we were giving her some senior horse feed to help her put on a little weight, but have dropped that. (She is 24 years old). Now she is looking good I think--not ribby, but not fat. She has a good winter coat on, so it is a little harder to tell, but I think she is okay weight wise.

I think taking her for a walk sounds like a good idea.

[Debbie Lincoln]

6 hours ago - she should be fine, colic wise. Still a chance to founder overnight, though, but I'm betting she's good to go.
Don't beat yourself up - you know you won't do it again!

[daisyhill]

I went out to look at Candy again, and carefully felt both front and back hooves. I think I have an overactive anxiety imagination. They all felt about like you would expect if you'd been standing in snow.

Can I just say a big THANK YOU to all you KFC folks for being so kind? I really, truly appreciate feeling safe to ask questions here, and not be jumped on for my mistakes. (I looked up my questions on a horse forum today too, and ran away with my tail between my legs),

[acts3v6]

Well, it does not sound to me like you did anything wrong. Who knew she cold open that door. And even if you had done something "stupid", we all have and will again. That is just life. We try our best, but things are going to happen.

[daisyhill]

She seems to be fine this morning, so I hope we got through this without any damage (except to my nerves!).

[jenna403]

So glad to hear she seems okay! Horses just seem determined to off themselves one way or another.

[dunderi]

glad to hear she's all good. QH & QH crosses can be very very clever (they're bred that way) and I know there's not much my boy won't do to get to food... including trying to open gates and doors.

[Debbie Lincoln]

Checked this thread and smiled...please don't EVER be afraid to ask a question...we are ALL animal lovin' idiots...trust me!

[animallover]

She will probably be ok. My qh mare escaped the pasture when we first got her and somehow got into a 50 pound bag of laying pellets for chickens. She probably ate half and was fine. Worst thing it did was scare me!

[jerseyrose]

Glad she seems fine. As I mentioned in your other thread, I would continue to check her for several more days. Standing in the snow really helps.I would rather be safe than sorry.

I had 3 horses get out ( i had a houdini ) and have a free for all with a barrel I stored grain in. I had no idea who ate and how much. I know my barrel was very depleted and held 7- 50 pound bags when full.. My vet came out and treated everyone with oil and I did a lot of walking the next few days. Everyone was fine.