Feed and Head Tossing

Newbie Joined: 16 Feb 2016 Posts: 1 Location: Surrey, UK

Hello all

My family and I bought our Shire, Charlie, back in January. He had just turned 7 and was gelded and backed to ride towards the end of last year. When he first came to the yard he was somewhat neglected - underweight and probably hadn't seen a vet or a dentist for some time. We have since had him checked by the vet, wormed and teeth done.

He is a lovely lad but we have really struggled to get weight and muscle on him, particularly his back end. He is stabled at night but has field access for part of each day. Feed-wise he has two big feeds each day with chaff and nuts as well as unlimited access to hay. We have tried him on supplements but each time we have tried a high protein one he develops hives. Any ideas on what we could give him to help him bulk-up would be much appreciated.

As far as riding goes, Charlie has a real problem with head-tossing. His Wolf teeth have been removed so we know it's not that. He has also seen an osteopath regularly in case of any back problems. He has a very basic bit and we are reluctant to use a stronger one because we suspect he will just fight more against it. It has got to the point where it's becoming dangerous because he does it to such an extent that he isn't looking where he is going.

Any help and advice would be much appreciated. The yard he lives in has plenty of horse experience and great tuition but no experience of shires. Thank you in advance.