Battling Physitis

Hi Dr. Beebe, I have a 7 mo. old Arabian colt that I have been battling physitis with for about three or four months now. He was the most muscled, straping foal of the bunch this spring and he developed it at 3 mos of age. We started feeding him separately from mom immediately and then weaned him at 4 mos. to get a better handle on his diet. Per my vet’s advice, we cut out most of the grain and fed grass hay and supplemented him with Platinum Performance. This diet only resulted in him getting a giant hay belly, ribby over his topline and depressed… with slim improvement in his joints. Last month I started increasing the grain again because he looked so bad. I want to slow him down not stunt him… He’s currently eating 1 lb/100 wt. of 14% protein, 10% fat extruded grain nuggets with the Platinum Performance and grass hay. I have succeeded in getting the weight back over his topline while still lean over his ribs. I seem to have his overall growth slowed down a bit but still there is still little visual improvement in his fetlocks.
For turnout he spends about 6 hours/day about 5 days per week outside. I’ve gotten a lot of conflicting advice on the turnout and protein requirements and feeding in general for this little guy. He has not been noticeably lame and his legs are otherwise quite straight and good with quite a bit of bone for an Arab baby. Am I expecting too much too fast? Will the OCD Pellets help where Platinum Performance falls short? What do you recommend for these types of foals?

Thanks,
Heather

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One Response to “Battling Physitis”

  1. DocBeebe says:

    Heather,
    Physitis is certainly a serious issue but I must say the OCD Pellets are remarkable with respect to resolving these conditions. You must feed 2 oz/day until the problem is resolved (should not be more than 3-4 months). Turnout is absolutely necessary as young horses will walk as much as 20+ miles per day in a large pasture. This continual movement is critical for the development of tendons, ligaments, and a strong bone matrix. Nutrition is also very important – good quality hay, 12-14 % protein and 10-14% fat. I like to feed more oats than sweet feed as the blood sugar level is not driven as high with the feeding of oats as with sweet feeds. High levels of glucose and corresponding increased levels of insulin are not good for the development of a strong bone matrix. Oats also have mucin (that gooey consistency you see when you eat oatmeal ). This mucin is very good for the GI Tract of the horse in preventing ulcers. I am confident you will be pleased with the results you will experience and with the resolution of the physitis.

    Thank you for your interest in OCD Pellets.

    Respectfully,
    Dr.D.R. Beebe

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