Do you think my horse is underweight?

redcascade

redcascade

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Hi,
I have had my horse for nearly a year now and have really struggled with his weight, he is a 17hh TBxWB and I always imagine that he should be a bit rounder

This is him in May 2009:
DSC00363.jpg


DSC00330.jpg


This is him around July time 2009:
DSC00445.jpg


This is him in November 2009:
21November2009.jpg


This was him the other week at his best yet:
IMG_2087.jpg


And this is him now:
IMG_2127.jpg


Photo004.jpg


He has always been fairly hollow around his hip bones and I was just wondering if this is normal :)
Thanks in advance, sorry about all the pictures :P
 
i dont think he looks underweight my ish is of a simular build and she is the same nomatter what feed or work she is doing. hes lovely tho
 
Thanks :) That makes me feel a little better, I always worry about him being underweight, he did put a little bit on over the winter but not much, even when he isn't in work he doesn't put it on :/ We've tried lots of different feed with him and I'm starting to think that it's just the way he's build, would just like a little more flab though :)
 
I don't think he looks underweight either. These large leggy horses are built this way and its hard to make them look anything else. We have had a very harsh winter and I think he looks very good in that last photo
 
;)he looks great to me. very fit and plenty of muscle. dont forget the grass will be here soon and we will all be worrying they are too fat..
 
Ditto, lacking a bit of muscle but just looks like a horse coming out of winter really! Looks fine considering the weather we've had for the past 6 months!
 
redcascade said:
Hi,
I have had my horse for nearly a year now and have really struggled with his weight, he is a 17hh TBxWB and I always imagine that he should be a bit rounder

This is him in May 2009:
DSC00363.jpg


DSC00330.jpg


This is him around July time 2009:
DSC00445.jpg


This is him in November 2009:
21November2009.jpg


This was him the other week at his best yet:
IMG_2087.jpg


And this is him now:
IMG_2127.jpg


Photo004.jpg


He has always been fairly hollow around his hip bones and I was just wondering if this is normal :)
Thanks in advance, sorry about all the pictures :P
Click to expand...

In fit condition. Can't understand the obsession with wanting more weight on everything. Up his fibre and allow ad lib haylage. If his teeth are in good shape, so will he be! Nice horse.

TBH I'd only be questioning a red numnah on a chestnut!!!!!
 
For his type, and the time of year he looks ok.
I wouldn't want him to lose any though, and if he were mine, I'd want a little more on him, so he has some weight in reserve.
S :D
 
He looks fit and healthy. Some horses (i.e TBs!) are just that way - my vet said that about my TB. He picks up in the summer with the grass but always looks a bit poor coming out of winter unless I feed him buckets of outshine and TopSpec comp balancer and oil (which he gets bored eating (NB he gets adlibhaylage as well) and is pretty expensive especially when he is retired. TBH I just gave him veteran conditioning mix with extra barley and sugabeet this year and he still looks exactly the same!
Agree with Shils that I wouldnt want him any leaner though as I generally would prefer to not see ribs, only feel them...
 
GreyBay said:
He looks fit and healthy. Some horses (i.e TBs!) are just that way - my vet said that about my TB. He picks up in the summer with the grass but always looks a bit poor coming out of winter unless I feed him buckets of outshine and TopSpec comp balancer and oil (which he gets bored eating (NB he gets adlibhaylage as well) and is pretty expensive especially when he is retired. TBH I just gave him veteran conditioning mix with extra barley and sugabeet this year and he still looks exactly the same!
Agree with Shils that I wouldnt want him any leaner though as I generally would prefer to not see ribs, only feel them...
Click to expand...

Yes, sorry, I got so carried away with my overfeeding rant that I forgot to say no thinner as I think horses always look fatter in pictures than RL. If he has the inclination to eat non-stop, feed high quality fibre in unrestricted quantities. He could stand more condition, but he's not looking sorry for himself as he is. If he feels well, he is well and it's probably his make up and tendency to be lean.

If worms and teeth are sorted, it's the quality and quantity of what you feed balanced with workload and his happiness at rest that will make the difference. Good management, in a nutshell. Can't do much more than that.
 
I'd be happy if he was mine. The grass is starting to come through so most horses will put a bit of weight on.

I really do think we have got so used to seeing overweight horses that our idea of what is a good weight has been skewed upwards.
 
He has a lovely shine on his coat and looks really well. I am sure he will put on a bit more weight when the grass comes through
 
he looks fit and fabulous to me. and like people hve said, always better to be a little lean with the grass coming in now. and hey, there's nothing up with red on chestnuts! i hve red boots and red binding on a green numnah for my chestnut!
 
He looks in great shape!!

I have the same problem my horse is very muscley and i feel that he looks underweight but it does take a few people to tell you he looks good, for you to convince yourself :)

I've fed mine D&H kwikbeat over the winter to keep the weight on and am slowly taking him off it for summer. But i worked really well!!

Hope that helps xx
 
What a lovely colour he is. He looks well in himself, I wouldn't want him any lighter though. Once he gets some decent grass, you will so a bit of an improvement. My mare is always quite lean, she is a rangy tb and not the type to get fat. She is fit and healthy though. I think your boy is the rangy type too.
As for red on a chestnut, my girl has a red rain sheet, and shock horror a PINK fluo ride on sheet!!
 
He is a very very good looking horse!!

I think he looks fine, its been a very harsh winter. IMO its better for a horse to be slightly under than overweight. My farrier says being even just a bit too heavey plays havoc with horses feet and a lot of crumbly/weak/collapsed feet are because a horse is overweight.

I dont think you should stress, your obviously on top of it and while on the lighter side he's not too thin in any of those photos. He looks fit and very well I think!
 
I agree with what most have already said — I don't think he's underweight, he looks fit and well, BUT I wouldn't want him to lose much.

I am currently having exactly the same thoughts about my 3yr old TB mare, but she is wormed, well and has ad lib hay, so have reached the conclusion that that's just her shape and hopefully she'll bulk out a wee bit as the grass comes through (and she grows into herself!).

So don't stress :)
 
Considering the time of year and the harsh winter we have had, I wouldn't worry about his weight overly. A little bit more covering over his ribs and hips wouldn't go amiss, but I know how difficult it can be with a TB type and he has a nice shine to his coat and looks well in himself. I'm sure you will get the little bit 'extra' on him, when Dr Green stuff starts coming through :)

He is a lovely horse though - and I don't usually like chestnuts ;)
 
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