How thin is too thin?

[NewHorseMom]

A friend of mine recently acquired a horse that in my opinion is way too thin. The girl she got him from did not want him any more for whatever reason so my friend offered to take him. Apparently he was on pasture 24/7. His ribs are all visible, his hip bones are all visible, his shoulder sticks out and the withers are very prominent. The croup is not "round" but square and it looks like there is major muscle wastage going on.

[peppysan]

A photo would help. But my guess is if your gut thinks he's too thin then he probably is. Get the teeth done asap and get him wormed.

[SamanthaSky]

What kind of horse is it? How old? Generally if you can see all the ribs = too thin.

[horse99]

Yes he sounds way too thin for my liking. Poor guy. Hopefully your friend can get some weight on him soon.

[NewHorseMom]

The horse is only 9. He looks like he could be in his 20's. She took him to the vet and had blood work done to make sure that he wasn't sick and that is why he is thin. Bloodwork came back normal so that's good. He seems to be picking up, looking better already and acting a lot less stressed.

[Marchadors]

I have to agree, sounds way too thin.
Did the vet check his teeth?

[NewHorseMom]

Yes the vet checked his teeth. He was due, but nothing too bad... We think he just wasn't getting enough food. Poor guy.

[striderrider]

Sorry I am just seeing this now. I agree he sounds more skinny then rangy. If you can see all the bones then that is not good. What people don't realize is that often just pasture only is not enough nutrients for a horse. You still have to supplement with good quality hay.