my horse is fat.

[westernriderH]

has everyone else's horses' weight suddenly shot up quickly in the week that they've been out all the time? i looked at him this morning and he's definitely looking a tad large..do i need to exercise him a lot more now or will this weight just fall off as the grass gets less lush? his feed is already less, just enough to get the supplements in.

 

[scotsmare]

Restrict the grazing a bit if you can and exercise more otherwise he will stay fat.

 

[RachelB]

Much of it will be a sort of "grass bloat" - my horse looks ok when she has had her muzzle on but let her out without it for an hour and she seems to grow! Be very very wary of laminitis, there is a lot of it around this year so obviously a lot of horses are finding themselves susceptible to it this year where previously they may not have been. My horse was fat all this winter (long story) and I am now treating her as a potential laminitis case to prevent it. She is part-stabled, muzzled whilst she is turned out, and the only thing she gets to eat apart from what she can eat through her muzzle is well-soaked hay and a balancer. I can't exercise my horse as she is injured, but if I could I would be riding as much as possible.

 

[westernriderH]

so lots of exercise, and monitor for laminitis? okay, will do, i must admit i haven't ridden him too much lately because of exams. i'll definitely do more now though

 

[Donkeymad]

Mine have been out 24/7 all the time so the grass is not new to them, but, over the last few days, it has been both warm and wet and the grass has shot up. They have all put on a little weight, so have been restricted somewhat.