advice please

[crackerjack]

i just wondered if anyone could tell me a programme to help my pony loose weight and get fitter. Obviously i appreciate it takes time.

At the moment he has no hard feed at all, 1 section of hay a day, and i turned out in a paddock over night that is just above a starvation paddock, i swear he lives on fresh air.
He is ridden about 4 times a week, i know he needs more but what kind of work.??

thanks x

 

[piebaldsparkle]

How long is he ridden for, and what do you do i.e. school, hack.

 

[pottamus]

Well I would not reduce his food intake because he does not seem like he is getting an excess...does he have enough to last him through? Horses need to have constant access to roughage (hay/grass) for their guts to function properly.
The only thing you can do is increase the intensity of the work you do...when you ride he should stride out well in walk from behind and not slop along. The same with trot, you need to aim for a good trot that gets him working and using himself. Hill work is good in both walk and trot and should burn those excess calories. You also need to weigh tape him on a weekly or fortnightly basis so you can monitor whether he is loosing weight or not.
It would be useful to know what type of work you are doing at the moment...also, what tells you that your horse is overweight at the moment?

 

[MagicMelon]

I would give him more shoddy (old,least nutritious) hay when he's in his starvation paddock as starving a horse does them no favours at all, even if it is to try to loose weight.

Exercise wise, Id do lots of long hacks. Walking can burn more fat than anything else if done long enough. Otherwise you could try adding an extra session into her day so say lungeing every morning then riding in the afternoon (hack etc.)?

 

[crackerjack]

oh he isnt starving there is plently of grass but i wanted to get acoss the point that he isnt in lush high grass.
During the day he has hay to nibble at which he leaves a bit so i know he isnt hungry ( its nice hay so he does like it). i wasnt going to cut down his food their isnt much i could take out

His work is mainly 45 mins in the school, general schooling about once every 4 is jumping. I also try to take him into the field another one out of four which is mostly trotting up more of a slope than a hill, i try to hack out once a week ( in addition to riding four times) but this dosnt always happen and if it does it is for 1/1 1/2 hours.