Elderly tbx, clipped out, no hard feed..

Yep, mine has that brand too, although it isn't very clear other than when he's clipped and changing his coat!

Wings is by Kannan (sire is Voltaire) out of Ruse du Moulin (sire is Fan Despiens)

Here is his bloodlines:

http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/wings+van+sint+maarten

(see a lot of AngloArabian TB on his mother's side)

How is your's bred and what do you do with him?
 
vikkiandmonica said:
How is your's bred and what do you do with him?
Click to expand...

Interesting breeding, bit of everything in there :D

Unfortunately don't know breeding for mine as no paperwork, only going on dealer's information that sire was French tb. He is not particularly distinctive so can't think of any way to find out his breeding, although I would love to.

He's a true allrounder, showjumps lower level aff and RC Int, dressage (just prelim/novice), unbeaten unaff ode, hunter trials, TREC etc... Will turn a hoof to anything!
 
rhino said:
Thank you!

I did say about the clip earlier, he is a real hairy bear and can't even walk up the road without sweating, and he has just started coming back into work - just walk hacks and in hand work for now. He also has crappy sensitive skin and reacts to random things so under vets advice I clip him out anyway. I know it's not the done thing but it works for us. He has an extensive range of Rambo and Fal rugs (trashes anything else) but never seems to feel the cold anyway.
Click to expand...

ahhh.... missed that bit! thanks for explaining it again!

I'm all for only feeding what they need. My lad hunts all day off sugar beet, alfa a and balancer - and still has a nice covering over his ribs, so I know where you're coming from! and with the skin - I have to use talc under his numnah to stop him getting sweat rash when we're hunting!
 
Ah yes, that looks like the brand. I did try to google it but still wasn't sure. He was never clipped and a bit of a hairy beast so it wasn't very clear but now i've seen that i can tell what it was :) Thanks

Loan horse was a nut job. Completely mad. and very aggressive in the stable. Very talented jumper and could do some pretty decent dressage when he was in a rare good mood. Don't think he had the best life poor boy :(

Photo:
fidgit1.jpg


Would love to see more of yours?
 
Just feed him ad lib forage.. It will keep his gut healthier (sounds like he doesn't have anything to eat in the field) and won't put much more weight on him.
i wouldn't personally be bothered about putting him on any feed or supplements, he looks healthy enough but I think your a b it premature in your assessment of the grass coming through soon.
 
The reason he looks this good at 21 is because he has not been allowed to get podgy, and filled with unnecessary (for him) hard feed and other 'owner feelgood'.

I'm impressed. He's a credit to you and an example of horse feeding and management done properly.
 
Since you insist :D

xc (my friend is an ace photographer)

tamht.jpg

img014.jpg


(He does actually jump the jumps too, not just look pretty cantering about :D )

sj - no crit - novice 13 year old jockey up
Tam1.jpg


Does a neat dressage test but only have sig pic I think.
 
brighteyes said:
The reason he looks this good at 21 is because he has not been allowed to get podgy, and filled with unnecessary (for him) hard feed and other 'owner feelgood'.

I'm impressed. He's a credit to you and an example of horse feeding and management done properly.
Click to expand...

I agree!

I think there are far too many fat horses around at the minute! Sometimes I'm told Wings is skinny (can see his ribs faintly, but he has a big ribcage), seems people are so used to seeing obese horses, that when they now see fit or at least, the right weight horses, they presume they're skinny!
 
SusieT said:
Just feed him ad lib forage.. It will keep his gut healthier (sounds like he doesn't have anything to eat in the field) and won't put much more weight on him.
i wouldn't personally be bothered about putting him on any feed or supplements, he looks healthy enough but I think your a b it premature in your assessment of the grass coming through soon.
Click to expand...

I promise you I will keep monitoring him (by eye and he gets weightaped weekly). I don't want him losing any weight and it may well be with increased workload he will need his food upping. Thank you for your comments :)
 
brighteyes said:
The reason he looks this good at 21 is because he has not been allowed to get podgy, and filled with unnecessary (for him) hard feed and other 'owner feelgood'.

I'm impressed. He's a credit to you and an example of horse feeding and management done properly.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much, that is lovely to hear :D

I used to find it hard to judge with him as he is such a loooong horse, should be at least 16.2hh not 15.3hh on tiptoes!
 
somethingorother said:
Aw he has a beautiful expressive face rhino and looks like a true alrounder, got a great jump on him hasnt he! Bet he's got loads of years in him yet, he looks nothing like his age :)
Click to expand...

Thank you :) He is a pretty little thing, and a real poser 'camera....where?!' Hopefully he will keep going strong, won't find one like him again, that's for sure.

:D
 
SusieT said:
Just feed him ad lib forage.. It will keep his gut healthier (sounds like he doesn't have anything to eat in the field) and won't put much more weight on him.

I found my similar beastie DID gain weight when fed ad lib forage during the worst of the winter ...

It looks Rhino has her horse's feed regime completely right for him - maybe she is trying to raise awareness of feeding or not feeding for optimum health?:)
Click to expand...
 
I think Susie T is making a great point, actually. MOST horses will do much better on ad lib forage. Indeed, if we had managed to get hay instead of haylage my boy would maybe be able to tolerate ad lib.

What I'm saying is that for my horse at this time he is doing well on limited haylage (and I think the 18 kg ish he is getting is more than a lot of horses would get through anyway). By feeding him in 3 lots he is never standing for more than a couple of hours without forage. He is getting a fully balanced diet with his supplement. He is very happy out in the field and is never standing at the gate wanting in.

I just very much believe that each horse is an individual and it is up to the owner to know them well enough to decide what suits and what doesn't. If I listened to some of the advice on this forum I may well have an obese horse.

Thank you again to everyone who posted, I have really enjoyed getting the feedback. I will post pics again when he is a bit fitter (but hopefully not fatter) to see if that makes a difference to everyone's opinions.

rhino x :D
 
One way round the restricted forage, is to feed good quality straw alongside the haylage, that way the horse gets to eat for longer, without extra calories :)
 
YorksG said:
One way round the restricted forage, is to feed good quality straw alongside the haylage, that way the horse gets to eat for longer, without extra calories :)
Click to expand...

Thank you, I have tried this in the past and he thinks I am trying to poison him and won't touch it.

I know I also have the option of using a hay replacer (good doer/hi fi lite etc) but at the moment am happy with how he is.

Good suggestions though :)
 
I think he looks fine, and certainly not his age.

As for feeding him, I get asked why I dont feed mine, its even suggested its cruel not to !!

I show them a lamanitic pony, a fat cob and a young filly and then tell them to eff off and come back when they know something about a horses needs and I may then listen to them about mine.

I like you will battle the spring and summer to keep a lamanitic pony sound and prevent the cob getting fatter, when you're the owner responsible for their welfare, you see the bigger picture. Unfortunately others dont see it and only see the stereotype of a particular breed x
 
I think older horses can be difficult to condition score sometimes as they often start to lose muscle, particularly around the hindquarters, as shown in the OP's horse, despite having good coverage on the ribs and neck. This can prompt the owner to start stuffing lots of veteran mix down them to fatten them up, which can actually be harmful. It is common for older horses to develop Cushing's, which in turn can predispose them to laminitis, so the last thing you need to do is fill them with sugar/starch rich feeds unneccesarily.

I think this horse looks a good weight, bearing in mind the lack of muscle on the hindquarters. As for the haylage, perhaps the OP did not use the best word in saying that it was 'restricted', as it makes it sound like he doesn't get a lot. I think what she was trying to say was that he doesn't get absolutely ad lib haylage, as the 18kg he gets is well over 2.5% of bodyweight if he is about 600kg (just an approximate guess). I don't think every single horse has to have hay or haylage available all the time unless they are underweight. The important thing is that they are not left standing for long periods of time without any, which it seems the OP has catered for.
 
TGM said:
he doesn't get absolutely ad lib haylage, as the 18kg he gets is well over 2.5% of bodyweight if he is about 600kg
Click to expand...

Thanks :) That is probably a good way of putting it, in fact he weightapes as 510kg (but will probably weigh more as he is very long for his height) so I feel his haylage quota is fine!

It's not an issue of cost, there is no restriction on the amount I can use at the yard for a fixed price, and if and when he needs hard feed he has it.

I don't treat him like an old horse, and he certainly doesn't act like one. The geldings at my yard are split into two small groups, the oldies and the youngsters. T is with the younger ones as he likes to play all the time. He was happily making the time xc last year so as long as I take time building his fitness again I see no reason he can't continue :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top