Thought I'd start a thread for anyone who is preparing themselves for that time of year when your good doer doubles in size! Share their start weight, their goal weight and your tips and tricks
I'm in this year. Usually he at least drops a bit over winter so I start spring with breathing room, but our grass never stopped growing this winter! He isn't huge but he isn't lean.
First step, I ditched the rug unless freezing, cut the hay and strip grass. Best of all, figured out how to get him really working in the school...what I thought was schooling, wasn't! Next step is to take him out jogging with me like I did last summer so he works twice a day and I fit my running in!
I only want about 10-15kgs off him but then I want him to stay that way!
My cob is perfect weight at the moment, has been all winter, and I aim for him to stay that weight all summer!
He will more than likely put weight on when they move to the summer fields, but I will be monitoring him closely and using a muzzle, sectioning him off, or bringing him in during the day if he puts on more than 20kg.
We have a school now too so it'll be work, work, work, as well as lots of hacking!
Ben is currently at 490kg and for his hieght he should be 450kg. However he is a cob and I think he'd look a bit scrawny at 450kg, so i'm aiming for 470kg
I'm muzzling already, but as the YO pointed out it doesn't seem to be slowing my girl down! After bringing her weight down so much last summer I'm REALLY annoyed that she's gone up slightly again, even if it does seem to be mostly hay belly. Dreading the time when the grass decides to really boom, but we're prepared.
Rose is currently around 450 on the weigh tape. My aim is for her to be around 420 on the weight tape.
She has been naked now for about 2weeks over night and just over week for the day time aswell no matter the temperature. She has no more than 8 kilos of hay over the day.
I record everything and take the weight of the hay net of the weight of the hay, so she will have a little bit in a morning, weather it is something to fill a gap before she goes out or just while im doing stuff on the yard, some while she comes in and then the majority over night.
She gets a tub trug of barley straw as well.
Dinner wise is:
Small handful of speedibeet and soaked balieys fibre plus nuggets
Pro hoof balancer
3 50ml blue scoops of linseed but will drop that down to 2 soon.
Need to get some more magnesium.
Atm not much exercise due to my bad shoulder. But im managing around 3days of long reining around the fields and a bit of lungeing as her feet are also a bit sore atm