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melle

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This was taken of my mare recently. She is spot on weight wise now - 16.1hh TB/ID measuring 518kg on the weigh tape. Ribs not visible but easily felt.

She is worked 5 days a week jumping, schooling and hacking. Probably light work but she works correctly in an outline and jumps well.

She is turned out 6.30am to 2.30pm on good grazing every day then has ad lib steamed hay over night (approximately 8kg). Hard feed she is fed 500g Copra, 3kg of grass nuts and some alfa-a. Her feed has to be low starch as she is barefoot and she gets really grumpy on anything too high starch anyway.

I am really struggling to build her topline . . .any ideas?

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Nothing to suggest for you but just wanted to say that your horse is really stunning - just the type I look at. And to be honest, I don't think she looks as bad as you probably think she does....:)
 
Unfortunately I think she will be difficult to fill up over the top as she has pretty typical TB conformation with a low-set neck and the dreaded dip in front of the withers, and a short croup/straight hind leg combination. Her body condition is good and she has a lovely coat.
 
She is in great condition but she appears to have a slight build up of muscle just behind where the saddle sits then a slight dip in front of her croup. This suggests to me that the saddle may be lifting at the back causing her to tighten up which then builds the muscle in the wrong way, a saddle check and physio would be what I would do now.
 
How long have you had her/ been working her correctly?
Do you work her in a outline when you are jumping/ hacking as well as schooling?
Does she work correctly through from behind when she is in a outline?

My mare took 3 years to build a proper outline. I would post pics but don't want to take over the thread :)
 
Thank you - that makes me feel better everyone. Just wish I had one of those lovely round horses. She always looks a bit angular!

Yes she works correctly jumping and schooling.

Cortez - yes she does have confirmational faults that make getting her working properly hard and also I suppose stop her from being easy to 'round up'. That actually makes me feel better that you think this could be the reason for her topline as I worrying I am missing some piece of the jigsaw with her.

I have had the vet check her over who advised me to feed a conditioning mix or cube. Given the horse used to be aggressive in the stable and very backward thinking to ride on this sort of feed I don't want to try this. He sort of said that TB types often need cereal to put the weight on and fibre/forage based feed regimes often aren't enough.

I recently had her back checked and she was tight in the poll and her neck which then led into her back just behind the wither. The saddler is coming on Monday 14th. Her teeth were done two days ago. Last thing to do is worm her but this struggling to build topline has been going on awhile.
 
Rowy - I have had her 6 years!! But she had a quiet couple of years as I had a baby and then she went lame with navicular syndrome. Now sound and working correctly for the last year or so.
 
Horses with low set on neck and strange confo can still get correct topline!
This is my mare when she was 17years old. Was xxnarrow saddle and 5ft9 rug
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This is my mare now at 20 years now medium- narrow saddle and 6ft rug:
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Sorry op about putting the photos on your thread but thought it would be useful to see it can be done and don't give up!

The first year I spent mainly doing stretchy work and worked her in a long and low outline all the time, on hacks and schooling. The next 2 years I exercised her 6 times a week. 3 times schooling for 45mins- 1hour then hack for 40mins twice and lunge once making her stretch.
 
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My horse is similar breeding and size to yours and I have been struggling over the last few weeks to build him up a bit. I've become resigned to the fact he is just a little leaner over winter. I know what you mean about the nice round horses though, my last horse was a warmblood x and she was a lovely condition all year round! Guess I just have a sportier racing snake :-)
 
Mine has the same sort of conformation as yours

The picture doesn't really show it as much in real life, but hes also quite angular and although there was lots of top line work still to be done he will never look as rounded as I would like.

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I think yours is much like mine, can only suggest long/low and hill work :)
 
Thanks for sharing those pictures Rowy - gives me hope!

She is fed from the floor (means that she cribs less as well as being better for her muscles)- we do as much hill work as we can living in East Anglia. Lots of long and low out hacking. Pole work at least once a week and jumping. I think is why I am getting disheartened as I can't see an improvement. Maybe a saddle check will be the missing link (am having a different saddler to my usual one to get some body elses opinion on it)
 
Did you find doing long and low stretchy work helped then? My mare feels like she just goes onto her forehand at the moment if I do nothing but long and low. But I am willing to try it. :)
 
Melle, my horse has the same type of conformation as yours. This was her in May 2010 a few weeks after I got her from the racing yard where she had been turned out for a few months on the top of a fell

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This was her in June 2011 (and she had spent six months of the previous year ill, with 3 months of it in hospital really ill). I didn't do any special work with her, but we have quite a few hills here so whichever hack we do, we have some form of hillwork to do. Feedwise, I gave her Readymash Extra, but I agree with the other comments that topline can't be built by feed alone!
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This was her when she had come out of hospital around Sept/Oct 2010 - apparently they fed her build up cubes in hospital - they clearly didn't work from this evidence!!!
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Wow thats impressive! But the Readymash stuff wouldn't be great for her feet - have you tried the Solution Mash at all?

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Second picture in this post taken today (the first one taken in October - I thought it was more recent but realised that it was before she was clipped so quite awhile ago now)

Is there any change do you think? Theres still that annoying dip in front of her croup but that could just be conformational?
 
Can definitely see more muscle developing over the neck and dip does look slightly smaller. You should be able to build muscle up in the dip as my girl had a really low set on neck with a dip and the dip is now completely done since I have started working her properly.
 
Yes, she definately looks better in second pic. The dip in front of her pelvis will be covered once the loin muscles start to develop, and her hip bones should start to cover then too. These will probably be the last muscles to grow, her neck will be quicker (if you do the right work, of course..........)
 
melle said:
Wow thats impressive! But the Readymash stuff wouldn't be great for her feet - have you tried the Solution Mash at all?
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Yes I bought some Solutions Mash, but she wouldnt' touch it - it's totally different from the Readymash and stinks of garlic! But if yours isn't fussy it would be an ideal feed.
 
Totally fussy and addicted to Copra! So I may avoid that then! Glad she is looking better - i think when you see them everyday you can't see the smal changes. Hopefully saddler will be the final jigsaw piece and help me build up that bit behind the wither.
 
The loin muscles have always been a bit weak looking apart from when I was doing my dressage stint a coulel of years ago now. Guess it just takes time to get back to that.
 
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