Are my ponies thin or not - body condition scoring

[Stinkbomb]

I am trying to asses my minis condition at the moment and finding it alittle confusing. I cant post pics are they are so hairy at the moment they just look like fluff balls and you cant tell by pics. I wondered whether someone can advice on what they think???

Inky - 2 1/2 yr old miniature horse colt. He has quite a scrawny thin neck at the moment, withers are not very prominent though. His backbone is slightly prominent although he has a very good covering over his ribs ( bit like a barrell! ). You can feel his ribs when pressed but i dont think you would see them. His bum is nicely covered and his tail bone isnt prominent.

Ty - 6 yr old miniature shetland gelding. His neck is also extreemly scrawny and looks like its been added onto the wrong body. His backbone can be felt when pressed, but not really prominent. He has a good covering over his ribs they can be felt at a push but wouldnt be seen. His tail bone isnt prominent.

They are both wormed and worm counted and have teeth done regually ( today actually! )

I know it should be easy to tell whether they are thin or not but the fact they have a good covering over their bellys is confusing .

Can anyone advice please on whether my minis are thin?? Like i said it would be impossible to post pics as they soo hairy!!

 

[angiebaby]

People always presume my shetalnds are fat; Having a good sized girth doesn't mean they are fatties!

If you can feel their ribs, but not see them they are ok; Difficult to tell this time of year as they are so fluffy.

 

[tabithakat64]

they don't sound thin

and are probably fine for non-ridden ponies going into winter. I think you should post photos though, I never get sick of looking at pictures of your two, especially Ty

 

[xnaughtybutnicex]

the barrel belly maybe because of high fibre diet e.g hay and hifi and not much else. Mine had a 'hay belly' too but isn't fed much.

 

[Honeypots]

I'd say not

It is hard when they're fluff balls but I would say if you have to press to feel their ribs they are not underweight...its more likely lack of muscle

 

[Stinkbomb]

yes they are on a high fibre diet. Its just that their necks are so scrawny ( especially Ty ) and you can feel their backbones?

 

[xnaughtybutnicex]

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yes they are on a high fibre diet. Its just that their necks are so scrawny ( especially Ty ) and you can feel their backbones?

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As HP said, that is lack of muscle.

 

[Stinkbomb]

Yes probably they are not doing much at the moment. Dont suppose i can do much about that whilst they are not in work can i!!??

 

[itsme123]

I wouldnt worry unduly. There's ALOT of grass out there at the moment and the risk of lami is still there, so I'm erring on the side of caution with my shettie anyway.

 

[xnaughtybutnicex]

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Yes probably they are not doing much at the moment. Dont suppose i can do much about that whilst they are not in work can i!!??

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Maybe you could find a low-cal conditioning cube?

 

[Tia]

Do you have Buckeye Grow'n'Win over there? I think you do but it is sold under licence to another company? This is very good for topline. Our foals here are fed this and I have to say it is quite an impressive feedstuff.

 

[rubyred]

Don't sound too thin but some ponies definitely get quite thin before their ribs really come out probably because they are generally on a fibre diet.
They definitely don't sound as if they are starving and as charlie said you can't relax about the grass yet.

Have to say random_rach isn't a low calorie conditioning cube a contradiction in terms? Not having a go just interested to know what you meant as I'm always keen to learn more about feeding!

 

[xnaughtybutnicex]

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Don't sound too thin but some ponies definitely get quite thin before their ribs really come out probably because they are generally on a fibre diet.
They definitely don't sound as if they are starving and as charlie said you can't relax about the grass yet.

Have to say random_rach isn't a low calorie conditioning cube a contradiction in terms? Not having a go just interested to know what you meant as I'm always keen to learn more about feeding!

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Not really, generally a higher calorie cube would mean more emergy but you get calm & condition which I imagine would be quite high in fibre and protein and lower in starch and sugars but I don't use it so I don't really know. High protein is important to build muscle and if fed at the right amounts where the protein is being used it shouldn't make the ponies fat.