Am i being cruel?

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jessikaGinger

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I have a 13.3 mare with a 8week old foal

She is Fat and i mean FAT

she is turned out 8-6 and comes in to a doubled up net of dried/soaked haylage (not really and goodness in it)

i ride her once a week just a 30min plod around (and she's sweaty)

i have no idea how to get the weight off her so i have bought her a muzzle, am i being cruel? i tried 24/7 turnout and if anything she got fatter as she literally will not stop eating?
 
cruel to be kind, IMHO.

Much prefer muzzle over laminitis as mentioned. Pony can still eat, but is restricted.

I'd be concerned about the fact she can't plod for 30 mins without sweating though? Can you put a pic up of her weight?
 
can you restrict her grazing with electric fence and use the muzzle as well? i know that you feel like you are cruel, but infact you will be doing her a huge favour. just think how happy she will be when she has shed those pounds! xx
 
I must admit the last 2 times i've ridden her it has been Muggy weather (maybe a yorkshire word)
i will get a pic tonight and put it up, its mainly her tummy although i understand she wasn't going to spring back into shape i can't even feel her ribs..
 
I have to say that the pics of you riding her with the foal at foot, she doesn't look that bad, looks exactily like a mare who has just had a foal, unless she has ballooned since? :)
You are probibily best to put this thread in Breeding, as you don't want to cut her feed right down to nothing if she is still feeding a foal too.
 
Don't worry about starving her. A mare will always produce milk for the foal, and will deprive her own body in favour of it. In the past I have starved one because the foal needed to have it's nutrition reduced, and the mare lost weight and continued to supply foaly. Be as mean as you need to care for your mare.
 
Personally, I would not be restricting a mare that is feeding a foal, especially with a muzzle. Mares always have a large belly for a while after giving birth.
 
SORRY- I have just re read your thread. 8 weeks old foal was read as 8 months!
I would not muzzle her, perhaps restrict her grazing but you need to be careful. I would post under breeding to get qualified opinions. Good Luck xxxxx
 
For our Riding Establishment License we have to state that we do not work mares with foals under 3 months. I think that's fair, given the state of the mare's ligaments after foaling. It would be fine to reduce the quantity of forage, but I'd incluce low calorie supplement such as Stamm 40. If using a muzzle, make sure foalie cant damage himself on it.
 
I think it cruel to muzzle a mare with such a young foal at foot. It would restrict natural behaviours such as mutual grooming and could affect the emotional well being and future 'horse sense' of the foal, they learn many essential life lessons in those first few months.

I wouldn't recommend riding her either so soon after foaling.
 
Pics as promised..

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I couldn't get a picture from behind but she is as wide as she is tall, im only worrying as a lady at my yard said she knows of a mare with lami with a foal and it was fatal..

PS she has no products on she's always that shiny:o
 
She doesn't look too fat to me, yes she has a big foal belly but her quarters aren't overly round, her spine isn't sunken and she doesn't appear to have any fat pockets
 
No, that is just a foal belly! She is not fat. She looks lovely to me. I would also not be riding her just now. At least for another month. Let her enjoy being a mum. :)
 
Feeding her foal will also burn off loads of calories. I went super-slim when breast-feeding my son. Ate like a pig, too. Sadly carried on eating like that after I weaned him. Not such a good plan.
 
Looks like a mare thats just had a foal to me...
She's full of milk and probably still quite sore from foaling, so not sure I'd be riding this early on. She'll have lost a lot of muscle during pregnancey and would probably benefit from being brought back into work slowly.

If she's a maiden you may find she'll give absolutely everything she has to the foal, and will probably benefit from a bit of food..

Definately post in breeding, they are great with advice - got me through my mares foaling to tell the tale :)
 
Forgot to add, my foal learnt a lot from being bitten on the arse by her mum when she stepped out if line...
A muzzle would prevent such natural behaviour
 
Agree with the rest, she has a foal belly, ask several ladies that have just had babies their tums stay a little large where they still look pregnant and no don't put a muzzle on her and don't ride her for another few months or so.
 
Your mare has a foal belly - she doens't look fat from the photo's you've posted.

Don't restrict her or muzzle her - but monitor her. She needs to feed herself to feed her foal. And I certainly wouldn't be riding her.
 
She looks fine to me - I wouldn't muzzle a mare with foal

We have had one with bad lami problems, and the answer was to bring her and foal into a starvation paddock when she was gross. I wouldn't want to stop the mare nuzzling, licking and biting the foal, plus would be paranoid about foal getting tangled up in the muzzle (I know they have velcro)
 
Agree to let her enjoy being a mum for a while - would not want to be girthing up tight on a recently foaled belly either.

Also can I ask how the mare and foal react when you ride her round the village? Doesn't the foal go spare when left behind at such a young age? :confused:
 
Just as I thought, its just a foal belly not fat :)
You should have seen the size of the bellies on some of the brood mares I worked with.. Huge :eek:
Only one ever got Laminitus and yes it was fatal. But it was stress induced not weight related at all.

Also stop riding her for now, its just a few months. Let her (and you!! :D) enjoy the foal. I could spend hours just watching a foal and mummy :)
 
Sorry no i do not ride around the village just a walk and trot around the school

The foal tends to role around in the sand getting giddy, she doesn't follow us although i will wait to ride again :o
 
jessikaGinger said:
I have a 13.3 mare with a 8week old foal

She is Fat and i mean FAT

she is turned out 8-6 and comes in to a doubled up net of dried/soaked haylage (not really and goodness in it)

i ride her once a week just a 30min plod around (and she's sweaty)

i have no idea how to get the weight off her so i have bought her a muzzle, am i being cruel? i tried 24/7 turnout and if anything she got fatter as she literally will not stop eating
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