A rant: fat horses

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LankyDoodle

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This rant comes from someone who lost her mare 1 year ago on July 11th, to laminitis caused by an infections, meds, stress, but complicated by the fact that she was a good-doing cob and far from a rake.

I read lots of threads on here and on other forums, where people ask if their horse is overweight, show pictures of their horses etc, and it breaks my heart. Most of the time, people are very aware that their horse is fat and they are in the process of doing something about it, though usually because the horse has got lami... door, horse, bolted springs to mind; but never mind, better late than never and I admire people who take action to reduce their horse's weight at the same time as tackling such a horrible illness as lami - our task was to get our mare as thin as possible as the farrier's and vet's opinions were that as a heavyweight cob, the less weight on her the better.

So I'm not digging necessarily at owners of overweight animals, as I know just how easy it is for your horse to become overweight when it's such a good-doer. What gets to me is people who come along and say 'I think your horse looks fine as it is' when it clearly isn't.

When I had the lami problem with my mare last year, one well-known member here who will know who she is, had regular PM contact with me for a while and said that I, like her, would become hated for standing on soapbox and ranting about this. Until now, I haven't fallen into ranting about it at all, but I've read so many posts here and elsewhere recently and I get more and more irritated the more I read.

Fat horses are NOT OK, and they are NOT desirable. Fat horses do NOT look great. This is what show judges believe and so many people are then led to believe that trim horses are disgusting. My Welsh Section D has VISIBLE ribs (when he moves) and I can feel his ribs when I run my fingers gently along his side. He looks awesome and I'd happily show him in this condition even if it meant I came last, because I'd walk out of that flaming ring with my head held high knowing that I was doing the very best for my boy by not allowing him to get too fat!

I'm really sorry about this post and it really is not aimed at anyone in particular, but I really needed to let off steam about it. I know everyone keeps their horses differently, and that's fine, I'm on my soapbox and being irrational if you like, but this is a welfare issue.

If you want your horse shut in its box for weeks, to have to dress its feet daily, to watch it go through the agony of laminitis, to watch their eyes become more and more withdrawn, to go to bed but not sleep because you don't know what the next day is bringing with regards to your horse's recovery, to watch your horse unable to stand from the agony of its pedal bones slowly dropping through its soles, to watch them slowly drift away, to watch the vet administer the lethal injection... then rock on, but personally I'd rather watch my horse getting a bit p*ssed off because he wants more to eat!
 
It is funny that you have posted this now.

I have recently been ranting about the fat horses in my field and for those who read my post last week 'fat horses!'........horse in question went down with laminitus yesterday. Was just discussing with tedster via PM.

When I spoke to the owner she said she felt 'mean' muzzling.........at least she has learnt her lesson before he was too ill so should get away with it.

Owners of fatties........take heed!
 
Thanks MrsM. Of course I am upset about my mare, but my rant really is just because of what I've seen on various forums lately (obviously because of time of year).

I KNOW how difficult it is to get weight on/off a horse, but what makes me seething is when people come along and say 'awww, she looks gorgeous like that' because I feel we've been conditioned to believe that fat horses are show winners and, therefore, look best.
 
chin up
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, i have a heavyweght cob who i do everything i can to keep his weight down , luckily with more success than normal this year as he has not put on any weight yet with the grass coming thru! I would rather he was happy and fit than fat! even at the possible expense of not doing so well in the showing arena
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chin up
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, i have a heavyweght cob who i do everything i can to keep his weight down , luckily with more success than normal this year as he has not put on any weight yet with the grass coming thru! I would rather he was happy and fit than fat! even at the possible expense of not doing so well in the showing arena
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Well done you!

It has been a real task with George, I have to say. But I use the winter to get his weight right down and then he comes up a bit in summer just nicely.

I'm not holier than thou. Last year George got too big because all our efforts were concentrated on the mare getting better.
 
I'll second TS, far better to have fit healthy horses than fat ones, even with a heavyweight cob it can be achieved eh sis
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I completely agree, having never had a horse prone to being overweight, I was mortified to look at my big lad and think - sheesh he is fat!

Now he is on a restricted diet after the threat of lami brought me to my senses and I am happy to say he will always err on the side of thin going into summer and will always be on a diet from now on.

That said I too know how hard it is to keep a good doer slim - my horse recieved no hard food from Jan through to now and he still managed to get overweight.

We need to educate everyone that fat is not fine.
 
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It is funny that you have posted this now.

I have recently been ranting about the fat horses in my field and for those who read my post last week 'fat horses!'........horse in question went down with laminitus yesterday. Was just discussing with tedster via PM.

When I spoke to the owner she said she felt 'mean' muzzling.........at least she has learnt her lesson before he was too ill so should get away with it.

Owners of fatties........take heed!

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I'm sorry to hear about this. I really think for some it is a case of them needing the shock of something major like lami to get their arses in gear.
George wears a muzzle.
 
I have to say I agree - can't stand seeing these fat horses in showing classes where it seems to be the fatter the better! I saw the heavyweight hunter class at Bramham this year and I commented that the horses just appeared to be obese NOT heavyweight just obese! I think it's terrible.

Thankfully I have not been through a situation of a horse having laminitis - our horses have a large field but we managed their grazing area and also it is not lush grazing, it is mixed grasses and just enough for horses. I think there's a misconception about horse paddocks that they have to be preened and managed and they are often over fertilised which leads the grass to be far lusher than horses need. I say, leave them some nettles, thistles and long grasses!!
 
What gets my goat is the lack of good advice given by farriers and vets who often pussy foot about being scared of losing a client.

My farrier, when one of our ponies was overweight, told me straight.

"That pony could live on the few weeds on this yard for weeks, It is not bred to continually EAT, it is bred to walk miles over the bloody highlands to find a blade of grass"

Followed by advice to feed him a HANDFUL of hay (or straw) every few hours. Nothing more. And by God it hit home. The vet had said no such thing (his was along the lines of "don't leave a muzzle on 24/7") . I followed farriers advice and it worked. My ponies are now muzzled when out at all times. Even to the point where in the spring and late summer I make the holes of the muzzles SMALLER.

A friend breeds native ponies and took a 2yo colt into the ring to be told "It will be overweight" by the judge.
yet she is marked down in other classes for her ponies being too lean in comparison to others. Most judges need a ruddy wake up call
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Daughter's pony is currently carrying too much weight having been out of work for a few weeks but has this week come back into work. Lots of lungeing at walk, little trotting. It's the walking that sheds the lbs...
 
I'm with you on this and was certainly one of those who said, "Oh, he's never had laminitis", blah blah blah. He got so fat last year for reasons beyond my control - other people had been feeding him and I moved him too late to get control of the weight. LGL followed and I restricted him to zero grass (bare pen) and did all the usual laminitis stuff - soaked hay, bute, no dressing, thankfully as it was Low Grade.

I recently met a lady with horses and she said, 'Do excuse fatty over there, she's ok, though, she's never had laminitis. I did say in the nicest possible way that neither had Henry until last year, when he was 16yrs.

I think it's important to remember that horses have changing metabolism in the same way people do. Insulin resistance (akin to type II diabetes) is much more likely in middle age and beyond and I stupidly didn't take notice. As you say, horses, stable doors, bolting...

I am still amazed at how fantastic my boy looks this year. It was exactly this time that he was diagnosed LGL last year and recently I had a villager tell me that somebody else in the village thought I'd bought a new pony.

You're quite right to rant. Although Henry got fat because of issues beyond my control, I DID have the chance to rectify things long before I did, but of course, I thought, "It's ok, he's never had laminitis in all his 16 years."

Like your Welshie, my exmoor has visible ribs when he moves and his body is pure muscle otherwise. He still gets a slightly swollen crest after rain (he's always got a fallen crest, due to late castration), but it's not solid or ripply and goes flat after a ride. We took him for walkies last night and we had to jog in the end (me and OH), as he was walking too fast! God help me this evening when I put a saddle on, lol!
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I have to say I agree - can't stand seeing these fat horses in showing classes where it seems to be the fatter the better! I saw the heavyweight hunter class at Bramham this year and I commented that the horses just appeared to be obese NOT heavyweight just obese! I think it's terrible.

Thankfully I have not been through a situation of a horse having laminitis - our horses have a large field but we managed their grazing area and also it is not lush grazing, it is mixed grasses and just enough for horses. I think there's a misconception about horse paddocks that they have to be preened and managed and they are often over fertilised which leads the grass to be far lusher than horses need. I say, leave them some nettles, thistles and long grasses!!

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Sparkle and George's field was always strip grazed and they were not fed hard feeds, a slice of soaked hay in their stable during the day though. She was the most good-doing horse I've ever known. This is why I say I know how hard it is for owners of fatties...
 
You're right, we are way too accustomed to seeing fat horses.

Please don't forget though that it isn't only fat horses who get laminitis. There are many other causes of this horrendous condition too sadly.
 
We see it a lot over here, especially in showing. All of the horses, regardless of class are overweight, and I personally see it as disgusting to watch (A lot of the riders and handlres over here are the same, though!)
It worst inthe two year old classes. Horses bulked up to look more like bulls than horses, are our horses, who I would say are kept at a correct weight bearing in mind the climate and disciplines. With youngstock we always get pulled in at the bottom of the line, becuase judges seem to see it as something to praise. You can see the health problems growing over the years, and I often ownder how many of these horses will make it to their 10th birthdays fully sound with out lamimitus or other problems?
 
A heavyweight's a heavy weight (ie how it's built) but I don't think that means it automatically needs to be fat - that's different. Glad some do realise this and do their best to keep control of the weight.

I think the showing world need to change their views too really.
 
well I can still see Pidge's ribs
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so does that make me a bad owner? No he's 17hh ISH and 643kg of muscle and is eventing fit
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What gets my goat is the lack of good advice given by farriers and vets who often pussy foot about being scared of losing a client.

My farrier, when one of our ponies was overweight, told me straight.

"That pony could live on the few weeds on this yard for weeks, It is not bred to continually EAT, it is bred to walk miles over the bloody highlands to find a blade of grass"

Followed by advice to feed him a HANDFUL of hay (or straw) every few hours. Nothing more. And by God it hit home. The vet had said no such thing (his was along the lines of "don't leave a muzzle on 24/7") . I followed farriers advice and it worked. My ponies are now muzzled when out at all times. Even to the point where in the spring and late summer I make the holes of the muzzles SMALLER.

A friend breeds native ponies and took a 2yo colt into the ring to be told "It will be overweight" by the judge.
yet she is marked down in other classes for her ponies being too lean in comparison to others. Most judges need a ruddy wake up call
mad.gif


Daughter's pony is currently carrying too much weight having been out of work for a few weeks but has this week come back into work. Lots of lungeing at walk, little trotting. It's the walking that sheds the lbs...

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Absolutely agree. My farrier is wonderful and tells us when something is amiss.
 
I think part of the problem is knowing what too thin, ok range and too fat is: I think a lot of people define cobby types differently.

I was suprised to read that you can see your seccy D's ribs when he moves: I know a young seccy D whose ribs have been visible the last 2 winters because he prats about in the field playing so much it is impossible to keep weight on him during winter: but I would definately say he was underweight when I could see them, and that he is healthy-lean now, when I can't see but can easily feel them. I'm not judging yours saying yours is necessarily underweight, but I am curious and would love to see pics showing what you mean.
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The 7yo D that I ride is fat at the moment: we have a real problem managing his weight in summer, but the consolation prize is that I exercise him as much as I can to try to manage the weight, so he is fit at the same time. I can just about feel his ribs, but could never see them, even the other winter when I felt he was ever so slightly underweight.

What I am trying to say is that if you and I have such different perceptions of what is a healthy weight for a welsh cob, even though we both know what too fat is and the dangers it presents, and do our best to manage that, imagine how many other different opinions there are out there!
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You're right, we are way too accustomed to seeing fat horses.

Please don't forget though that it isn't only fat horses who get laminitis. There are many other causes of this horrendous condition too sadly.

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Oh don't get me started on another rant, please! People who think that because their horse is effin thin it won't get lami on the 3ft long lush grass in it's 15 acre field!
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A heavyweight's a heavy weight (ie how it's built) but I don't think that means it automatically needs to be fat - that's different. Glad some do realise this and do their best to keep control of the weight.

I think the showing world need to change their views too really.

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Exactly!

HW related to the build of the horse, not how big its crest and arse are!
 
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I think part of the problem is knowing what too thin, ok range and too fat is: I think a lot of people define cobby types differently.

I was suprised to read that you can see your seccy D's ribs when he moves: I know a young seccy D whose ribs have been visible the last 2 winters because he prats about in the field playing so much it is impossible to keep weight on him during winter: but I would definately say he was underweight when I could see them, and that he is healthy-lean now, when I can't see but can easily feel them. I'm not judging yours saying yours is necessarily underweight, but I am curious and would love to see pics showing what you mean.
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The 7yo D that I ride is fat at the moment: we have a real problem managing his weight in summer, but the consolation prize is that I exercise him as much as I can to try to manage the weight, so he is fit at the same time. I can just about feel his ribs, but could never see them, even the other winter when I felt he was ever so slightly underweight.

What I am trying to say is that if you and I have such different perceptions of what is a healthy weight for a welsh cob, even though we both know what too fat is and the dangers it presents, and do our best to manage that, imagine how many other different opinions there are out there!
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George is definitely not underweight. I would not want an ounce more fat on him. He doesn't look ribby or gangly, his ribs just show when he runs about in the field - you know like when a trim woman stretches upwards you can see her ribs just about, well it's a bit like that.

I know there are different perceptions of OK, trim and fat, but really - a crest, a gutter and ribs covered in 6 inches of fat, is OBESE in anyone's dictionary!

I'd be happy to show you pics, but I don't think they will show his ribs - they don't show when he stands still and he is a dark bay colour. He's far from a welfare case, and in the words of my farrier I'd rather have him slightly underweight than remotely overweight.
 
Thank you LD for this post! My boy has had lami 3 times with his previous owner (once food-related and twice stress lami from jumping on hard ground). I restrict his turnout and feed, but am constantly being told by everyone on my yard that I'm 'cruel' because my horse never goes out and is thin.
Yes, you can see his ribs, but he is also extremely well-muscled and fit enough to go show jumping or hack for miles without feeling it. Oh, and I actually RIDE my horse 6 times a week, spend time with him, groom him daily, love him, chat to him. Unlike the others who just chuck their horses out in a field and forget about them for 2 weeks on the trot.
But I'm the one that is cruel, apparently.
Grrrrr.....
Sorry, but when does sacrificing your horse's well-being for your own convenience classify as good animal husbandry??
 
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Thank you LD for this post! My boy has had lami 3 times with his previous owner (once food-related and twice stress lami from jumping on hard ground). I restrict his turnout and feed, but am constantly being told by everyone on my yard that I'm 'cruel' because my horse never goes out and is thin.
Yes, you can see his ribs, but he is also extremely well-muscled and fit enough to go show jumping or hack for miles without feeling it. Oh, and I actually RIDE my horse 6 times a week, spend time with him, groom him daily, love him, chat to him. Unlike the others who just chuck their horses out in a field and forget about them for 2 weeks on the trot.
But I'm the one that is cruel, apparently.
Grrrrr.....
Sorry, but when does sacrificing your horse's well-being for your own convenience classify as good animal husbandry??

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Tell me about it. I actually ranted about this lots in vet forum last year after we lost our mare. People on the yard calling me cruel for restricting George etc. I got so pissed off with it in the end. Most of it was coming from a couple with an ex racer that looked like a bullock on stilts!

My horses actually live out 24/7 as it helps George's breathing more than anything, but it is still easy enough to manage his weight, especially as I used the winter to get him right down.

Anyone who wants to is more than welcome to come and see my horses. As I said before, I am far from holier than thou, but I have watched a horse die from lami which was not weight related. I have known people lose TBs and moor ponies to lami. I know the agony it causes for not just the horse but its owners. Wherever things can be put in place to lessen the likelihood of it happening and to help recovery when it does happen (a trim horse is more likely to make a speedy recovery), they should be!

As I said, I am not ranting at owners of fatties and I know what the difficulties are with any horse, thin or fat. I just rant about the perceptions of a section of the horseworld, that fat is ok.
 
Too right. I've been placed last in show rings, behind horses that bucked, reared, cantered on the wrong leg etc - all of whom were obese.
I've also been told by the owner of a super-fit ID cross that she was placed down in the line at a show hunter show because her horse was 'hunting-condition' not 'show-condition'.
Derr, what part of 'show HUNTER' did the judge not get??
 
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Oh, and I actually RIDE my horse 6 times a week, spend time with him, groom him daily, love him, chat to him. Unlike the others who just chuck their horses out in a field and forget about them for 2 weeks on the trot.
But I'm the one that is cruel, apparently.
Grrrrr.....
Sorry, but when does sacrificing your horse's well-being for your own convenience classify as good animal husbandry??

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Oh thats a whole other rant and one I could easily start on. years and years ago I knew a girl who had an obese pony, grazing muzzled him, "starved" him etc all to no avail, pony just grew fatter: she only rode him once or twice when there was a competition coming up
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He'd go weeks without being ridden, so was it any flamin' wonder he wasn't shedding weight?!
 
Lankydoodle - do you have a pic of your Welsh d as I would be keen to see one so trim - well done by the way! I have a Welsh d too and have managed to get a further 20kg off him (according to the weigh tape) since April...he has levelled out for a couple of weeks now at 455 kg on the weigh tape and this is the lowest he has ever been in 5 years ownership...but he could still do with loosing more! He could do with being ridden for miles each day...something I just cannot do before work but I get up at 5am to hack him each morning and he is ridden 6 days a week until the darkness creaps back in and then I am stuffed as we only have hacking on the roads here and no school etc.
But I hate to see overweight horses too and do all I can to keep my lad healthy and slim...but it is a constant worry to me I have to say despite being on bare paddocks all year and 2 year old hay...he still looks too 'well'.
 
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