Is my TB fat?

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Sharonr

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Someone commented to me tonight that my loverly TB gelding is a fat bloke!!

I am a bit paranoid just now anyway due to my friends cob having just come down with laminitis so am trying to gauge if my guy is overweight.

He is in a lush field of grass which is not ideal but have nowhere else to put him although have taped it so he only has access to half the field. He has not done much work the past few months especially the past 3 weeks due to him being lame and then getting an allergic reaction to a bee sting however, he is now either being lunged or ridden every night.

Weighed him tonight and he has gone up 30kg since his last worming which was about 8 or 9 weeks ago! He is now 585kg. Is this too fat?
 
Can you feel his ribs easily? If not then he is too fat.

However, don't confuse having a big belly with being overweight. Often a horse out at grass can have a big belly because it is eating a lot of fibre, but may not actually be overweight. The belly goes up and down in size according to how much fibre is in there - which is why we score condition by the amount of fat on the ribs, crest and bottom.
 
How big is he?

I have a 15.3 (at the prominet withers) TB who is 19 years old, fed on Baileys No. 4, Alfa A and Soya Oil twice a day and one or two haynets a day (living out) and he's still only 475 kg but looking good for him.

I would love for him to be fat (although I was very proud when the vet said he was looking good yesterday!)
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He is 16.2hh

I can only feel his ribs when I press my finger hard against him.

I can't see his stomach either side of his quarters when I stand behind him. The girl also mentioned that she thought he was cresty although it is hard so I thought that might just be muscle rather than fat?
 
My TB (in my sig) is 15.3hh and weighs approx 585kg in the summer and 595kg in winter. Like your horse he is not in work. He has a grass belly and a bit of a cresty neck although this is due to him not being gelded till he was nearly 6.
 
Thank you Piebald Sparkle for the condition scoring info!!

Scotch Mist - I'm wondering if it maybe is a grassy belly that my mannie has. He certainly farts plenty!! LOL !!!!
 
Horses don't necessarilly have to be a great deal overweight to be succeptible. Extremely overweight horses don't always get it whereas thin ones sometimes do. Weight of course is a huge facter but not always. Not very helpful i know.
 
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Horses don't necessarilly have to be a great deal overweight to be succeptible. Extremely overweight horses don't always get it whereas thin ones sometimes do. Weight of course is a huge facter but not always. Not very helpful i know.

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And if anyone can understand that its a miracle. I know what i mean but now wish i had not wrote it as it sounds not as meant
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You could always try using a muzzle, this way it restricts his grass intake but he can still lead a normal life.
LOL here is the woman that has tried putting a muzzle on daugther's pony every night for 2 weeks and poor thing still hasn't worked out how to use it, so i feel terribly cruel for leaving him standing in the field watching his mates graze and so I take it off at 2130 then get up at 6am to get him in!!

Sliver_florin - I know what you mean!!
 
Unless you put him on a weighbridge you don't know how much he weighs.

My TB Mare is 16.3 and she weighed 625kg when she went to horse hospital last september. She looks magnificent, the vets there said so and pretty much anyone who see's her says the same.

TB's come in lots of different shapes and sizes. Mine has a big frame and is very muscular, due to the hillwork work she does when hacking and the dressage.
 
My TB x ID is 16hh. In winter weighs 504kg. Is out at grass at the moment and is currently 524kg. She does have a big, gassy grass belly
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Onlyme - Noticed about Peter Petrelli in sig. Have shirtless, Peter Petrelli as my work screen saver!!!!
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