Disappointed, really...

[brighteyes]

...to see a very overweight Section A REHAB pony at a local horse welfare and rescue centre open day. This pony had come in as a neglect case and then rehomed with a family. It had come back to appear as part of a 'what we do end result' parade.

The poor creature had a crest like you wouldn't believe and a proper gutter over its rump. Its shoulder and belly were fat, too. The commentator even remarked how this particular (global) Horse Welfare charity is particularly concerned about rising levels of obesity in horses and ponies. He advised owners to check the website to see how to condition score a horse and how to act accordingly. Why was this loan home allowed to feed a little pony up so much? Oh yes, I forgot. It's new job is a SHOW PONY! And it has won loads, judging by the ribbons and sashes it was bedecked with. I mean, a major point of getting a pony back to full health is surely to keep its weight in check! In fact quite a few there were carrying too much condition. 0/10 for that - Sorry.

 

[Shysmum]

totally agree with you !! lami will cause so much pain, and the weight on the joints may lead to arthritis - how is that going to help a pony who's already suffered ? *sigh*

 

[touchstone]

I'd have been disappointed too, it is totally against the grain of what they promote to parade overweight horses and ponies as prime examples of good health and something I thought they were wanting to move away from.

It would have been better to have used the pony to point out how conditioned we are to seeing overweight animals in the show ring and how to do a condition score on the porky pony. Might make the loaners think twice about all the ribbons, they won't replace your pony if you lose it through laminitis

 

[Seahorse]

I was watching a programme on H&C TV the other week about obesity in horses and how dangerous it is. It's far more dangerous for them to be overweight than it is underweight. Apparently if I remember correctly it takes 3 times longer to lose weight than it does to put it on.
So a really underweight rescue horse could be rehabilitated in 3 months but it would take 9 months to get the same result on an overweight horse.

 

[Honey08]

I would have mentioned it to the rest home - ask them if thats a good fat score for that type of horse... made it a question rather than an accusation..

 

[*hic*]

People are just bloody daft, my Section A went with her little rider to do a couple of fun classes at a local show today. She's had laminitis in the past and she's been very fat although the laminitis tends to be linked to sudden overeating rather than chronic weight issues. Currently you can just see her ribs, she still has a slight crest but she is one of the slimmest Section A's I've seen. She walked the 2.5 miles to the show on my advice (and the advice of the local PC Chief Instructor). Whilst she was there someone commented adversely on her lack of weight and someone else took it upon herself to inform the very novice loaners that the pony shouldn't have been made to walk so far!

Goodness knows what they'd have made of the time we drove her in her cart 8 miles to a show, carrying two people and all the feed, tack and water for three ponies and four people. Or the times when I was young and it was an 8 mile hack to a meet or 12 miles to a show.