Is my boy really that fat!!!

You Wont Forget Me

You Wont Forget Me

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Okay so following my previous thread here as some photos as requested(Hopefully you can see them!) For those that dont know i had the vet out who suggested i cut my boy down a bit and i then had a jumping lesson when my instuctor and her mum said he is obese and looks like a cob! Which he isnt! He is a WB X TB. I know he is fat but i really didnt think it was that bad so anyway here are some photos, let me hear your honest opinion and any tips to help loose some weight more than welcome!












Thanks for looking and i shall thank everyone now for any advice :D
 
Doesn't look obese to me, just well covered.

However, if the professionals who are seeing him in the flesh are concerned about his weight then I would be inclined to take some head.

He's very nice :D
 
He could do with a bit off him, as in only a slight amount, but by no means is he obese or looking like a cob! He's gorgeous btw, just try upping your riding a little more that's what I do - I have a welshy who gets fat on fresh air though lol
 
I don't think he's that fat!!

A side note is that a dinky muzle? I had one for my cob and it didn't slow his eating down at all, he errr..... chewed through it!! :rolleyes:

This is my cob so you can compare... if you want
Photo0239.jpg
 
He is a little on the cuddly size - increase his work load and I find the best way to lose the weight is to stable them at night - Mine comes in off the grass at 5am and doesn't go back out again until 8am. She has access to at least an acre of grazing so she can move around but it has been eaten really low.
 
He looks just well covered. Not fat I wouldn't say. He seems to have fairly sunbstantial bone structure.

If the cooler weather is in to stay then I wouldnt worry.
 
IN the 2nd photo he looks quite a bit too fat. the others I would say he looks like mine, who could do with losing a good few lbs but not massive :D

He is really nice :D
 
He's a really lovely horse! the first photo he looks just right, the other pics he looks like he could lose a little more, if i were to be totally honest, but lots of work esp hillwork, and long rides at a good walk should help, together with maybe some interval canter training?- that is what i've done in the past with mine if they've put on a little- i also religiously weigh their nets too and feed in small nets. Also if you can get him to "lift" his ribcage and back and stomach muscles when you are schooling him, it will make his tummy look more lifted and toned anyway!- you can also do this on the ground by using carrot exercises by getting him to stretch his neck round to his hocks each side keeping neck as low as poss- you will see his tummy muscles work!- good luck sorry for rambling on!
 
K27 said:
He's a really lovely horse! the first photo he looks just right, the other pics he looks like he could lose a little more, if i were to be totally honest, but lots of work esp hillwork, and long rides at a good walk should help, together with maybe some interval canter training?- that is what i've done in the past with mine if they've put on a little- i also religiously weigh their nets too and feed in small nets. Also if you can get him to "lift" his ribcage and back and stomach muscles when you are schooling him, it will make his tummy look more lifted and toned anyway!- you can also do this on the ground by using carrot exercises by getting him to stretch his neck round to his hocks each side keeping neck as low as poss- you will see his tummy muscles work!- good luck sorry for rambling on!
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Some really good advice thanks!:D
 
Hard to tell really from the photos as there a bit small but I wouldn’t put him anywhere near obese, maybe they think he has too much of a grass belly? and is looking ‘too well’?

Ideally you should be able to feel the ribs if you have a good poke, I agree ID’s and ID crosses look better if there covered a little more if lacking muscle they round off in places but due to his age he's still young and gangly which is how he should look. It doesn’t too them any good to be over weight at a young age…or any other age for that matter, just remember he’s 5 and therefore should look like a 5 yr old and vets do prefer to see a leaner horse than a chubbier one so I wouldn't worry too much just keep an eye on things.

He looks lovely btw.
 
It's very hard to judge condition from photos, without being able to feel the horse - try condition scoring him, which should give you a better idea. Ultimately if your vet is concerned about his weight, I suspect he is overweight regardless of how he looks in the photos and it would therefore be useful to up his exercise a bit.

A weight tape won't give you an accurate weight, but it will allow you to monitor his weight to see if he's putting more on or losing it as you increase his workload...
 
Kenzo - he doesnt have any ID in him lol Warmblood X TB :o
I think the reason they are saying he's fat/obese is because her horses all jump at top levels and that is what were wanting to do/ trying to do but with this extra weight it doesnt help, i have so far cut his hard feed right down, upped his excercise, put a grazing muzzle on him and cut his hayledge down however considering changing to hay as it has less sugars... obiously this has all been done gradually.. oh and i have also taken all his rugs off much to his disgust!!
 
Evelyn said:
He is a little on the cuddly size - increase his work load and I find the best way to lose the weight is to stable them at night - Mine comes in off the grass at 5am and doesn't go back out again until 8am. She has access to at least an acre of grazing so she can move around but it has been eaten really low.
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It's much more effective to stable during the day in spring/summer/early autumn. The grass contains a lot more colories during the late morning, peaking afternoon and high into the early evening, so you can reduce more calories in a shorter time indoors. Plus you don't then need to swathe them in fly protection. Mine queue to come in in the morning and spend all day dozing happily.
 
You Wont Forget Me said:
Kenzo - he doesnt have any ID in him lol Warmblood X TB :o
I think the reason they are saying he's fat/obese is because her horses all jump at top levels and that is what were wanting to do/ trying to do but with this extra weight it doesnt help, i have so far cut his hard feed right down, upped his excercise, put a grazing muzzle on him and cut his hayledge down however considering changing to hay as it has less sugars... obiously this has all been done gradually.. oh and i have also taken all his rugs off much to his disgust!!
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Arrh sorry, for some reason I thought it said in your post IDx....it's a Friday, been a long week, think I'm slowly loosing the plot.:rolleyes:
 
cptrayes said:
It's much more effective to stable during the day in spring/summer/early autumn. The grass contains a lot more colories during the late morning, peaking afternoon and high into the early evening, so you can reduce more calories in a shorter time indoors. Plus you don't then need to swathe them in fly protection. Mine queue to come in in the morning and spend all day dozing happily.
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Ive heard of people doing this, might give it a bash..
 
You Wont Forget Me said:
I think the reason they are saying he's fat/obese is because her horses all jump at top levels and that is what were wanting to do/ trying to do but with this extra weight it doesnt help, i have so far cut his hard feed right down, upped his excercise, put a grazing muzzle on him and cut his hayledge down however considering changing to hay as it has less sugars... obiously this has all been done gradually.. oh and i have also taken all his rugs off much to his disgust!!
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That doesn't explain why the vet was concerned over his weight. He shouldn't need any hard feed at this time of year, or rugging really (I know it's been vile in some parts of the country, but unless he's shivering it's not the end of the world if he gets wet!). Re haylage, it's worth looking into as high fibre haylage brands are lower sugar than some hay. I use haylage all the time as I'm allergic to hay (explanations usually go something like "oh do they have copd then?", "no but I seem to when I'm around hay" :D) and don't have too much trouble keeping weight off natives / cobs. If you don't already, it's worth weighing it out so you know how much he gets, and decreasing the amount and double netting when you're worried about weight.
 
JFTD said:
That doesn't explain why the vet was concerned over his weight. He shouldn't need any hard feed at this time of year, or rugging really (I know it's been vile in some parts of the country, but unless he's shivering it's not the end of the world if he gets wet!). Re haylage, it's worth looking into as high fibre haylage brands are lower sugar than some hay. I use haylage all the time as I'm allergic to hay (explanations usually go something like "oh do they have copd then?", "no but I seem to when I'm around hay" :D) and don't have too much trouble keeping weight off natives / cobs. If you don't already, it's worth weighing it out so you know how much he gets, and decreasing the amount and double netting when you're worried about weight.
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Vet knows what im planning on doing with him, and obv with his weight right now we cant, she didnt say it was a big thing but suggested i should cut down his hard feed, which ive done. It was only a fly rug or a light rain sheet he was getting while out and a cooler at night, mostly to keep him clean tbh. I am currently double netting his haynets, not weighing it tho but will look into doing that
 
When you said WB x TB and I glanced at the tiny thumbnails, I thought hummm he does look rather chunky - on opening them up saw he has massive amount of bone (are you certain on the breeding?!) and looks very much in proportion. He is maybe carrying a bit much in terms of tummy relative to muscle - it does make his neck and thigh look a bit weak - but then mid August with another harsh winter ahead I wouldn't be as concerned as perhaps if he looked like that in April?
 
fleabittengrey said:
When you said WB x TB and I glanced at the tiny thumbnails, I thought hummm he does look rather chunky - on opening them up saw he has massive amount of bone (are you certain on the breeding?!) and looks very much in proportion. He is maybe carrying a bit much in terms of tummy relative to muscle - it does make his neck and thigh look a bit weak - but then mid August with another harsh winter ahead I wouldn't be as concerned as perhaps if he looked like that in April?
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Yup deffinatly WB X TB, we have been told by vet he still has a lot of growing to do which could be reason for the big bones i think?! He stared to put the weight on about March/April time and i suppose i dint do anything about it quick enough! It doesnt help that the fields at our yard have really long rich grass :(
 
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The second picture he is quite 'chunky' are the other pictures older?
Well you are doing the right thing with grazzing muzzle IMO they are better than being in as the horse is still moving and burning calories. once you restriced intake of calories you have to increase the out put or calories i.e increase work load, to loose the weight
Keep rugging to a minimum. You dont say what he is being fed but unless he really needs it for energy or suplements/drugs etc i wouldn't being feeding much if anything.
If poss find a weigh bridge or contact a feed company as they often have portable ones and will do yard visits for a group and will weigh condtion score and give advice (altough remember they are sales people and will try and sell you thire feeds!).
I had a shock last week when found out one of mine was 70kgs over weight she is on paddock rest no feed and grazing muzzle! Not quite sure how to get it to loose weight!!!
 
loopylucifer said:
The second picture he is quite 'chunky' are the other pictures older?
Well you are doing the right thing with grazzing muzzle IMO they are better than being in as the horse is still moving and burning calories. once you restriced intake of calories you have to increase the out put or calories i.e increase work load, to loose the weight
Keep rugging to a minimum. You dont say what he is being fed but unless he really needs it for energy or suplements/drugs etc i wouldn't being feeding much if anything.
If poss find a weigh bridge or contact a feed company as they often have portable ones and will do yard visits for a group and will weigh condtion score and give advice (altough remember they are sales people and will try and sell you thire feeds!).
I had a shock last week when found out one of mine was 70kgs over weight she is on paddock rest no feed and grazing muzzle! Not quite sure how to get it to loose weight!!!
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The second picture is the oldest but only by a few weeks if that! He is kept in at night time as his field companion cant stay out and he wont go out alone. He is literally getting half a handful of pasture mix, high fibre cubes and honeychop just to mix in with his garlic and biotin and so he doesnt feel left out when all his friends get fed. I have been wighing him and had someone out to show me how to grade and weigh him so will keep up with that too
 
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