over weight ponies and the show ring, why is it ok

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hollyandivy123

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why has the trend of having over weight ponies become ok for showing. it has been known for years that obesity is bad for health and joints and just think about the amount of fat round the internal organs. we have a friend whos daughter has been told to feed more even though you cant feel the ribs on her horse as it is so to improve the chances in the show ring how can this be ok?

shouldn't part of the craft of the ring to have a horse true to type and manners and well and not fat to win?
 
It's disgusting that judges are continuing to do this. I thought that they were supposed to place overweight horses down the line, not encourage them!
I was at a local show lately and the judge did say my pony was slightly overweight (the coloured one in sig). I agreed with her, she isn't half as overweight as some of the ponies you see but I did appreciate that the judges took this into consideration, even if it did mean I was placed further down the line!
 
It never fails to shock me - I saw some showing horses and ponies at Hickstead last month and it was awful - they don't even look nice if you are used to looking at fit horses.
Not one horse there was a healthy weight as far as I could see and some were positively ugly they were so obese.

I went to view some youngstock at a producers a while back and saw a "normal weight" yearling - ie you could see his ribs. I was told not to worry they would soon get some weight on him and he would look like his friend in the next stable who I thought was at least a 3 yo he was so "well developed".
Horrible
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Its the cobs that always shock me most. They are so obese they can barely trot at all, and as for being capable of doing a days work, not a chance! They look more like pigs than horses!

I do like to see a horse well covered though, but many show horses would look so much better a bit slimmer
 
My feelings too Oldmare. I swear that, in spite of the fact that this subject comes up year after year, they keep getting fatter. I agree that cobs seem to be the worst (and yes, I am allowing for the fact they are naturally rounder-barrelled than other types), but hunters and ponies are not far behind. I also understood that this was going to be penalised but it just doesn't seem to be happenning. And I have to say the professionals are as bad as anyone, if not worse!
 
I agree, I've given up on showing my normal weight, fit horses, as I always get told they're too skinny and get put down the line, whilst some horse that is so fat I'd be embarrassed to take it out if it were mine, wins.
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You haven't seen anything until you watch a welsh youngstock class!! there are yearlings that look like 3 year olds, 3 year olds that would put a charolais beef steer to shame, and it is actively encouraged
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I do not show my welshies at WPCS shows because of this trend...I am constantly being told that the chestnut on the bottom right of my siggie is in "poor" condition, by the people who bred her!!! her future job is as a pc pony not the show ring, and half a ton of blubber won't help her jump will it??!! I do sressage with my welsh D now, and I was told he was under condition for showing despite having fat deposits on his bum!! dear god!!

ETS these so called "top class" in hand welsh winners are rarely seen to go on under saddle hmmmmm I wonder why....
 
It is definately a problem in the show-ring, but I do believe it is beginning to change slowly. This spring our fell seemed to balloon overnight - we have been working to correct it but for a while judges were commenting that she was too fat (quite correctly) and placing her down accordingly.

Having judged recently, I do think people who havn't judged don't realise just how hard a job it is. Sure we are told to place fat horses down the line, but should an overweight horse that behaves well be placed below ones who are very naughty? Or ones that are completely off confromation-wise or not true to type? It is very easy to say don't place the horses that are fat but it is harder to do in real life. It is really difficult to balance. I eventually placed the horses on performance/confo in my head, then dropped every fat horse one place.

I do want things to change and I honestly think they are beginning to. but like all things, these do take time. It would really help though, if the professionals would get on-board with this.
 
Agree- its disheartening when you spend months getting your horse in a good condition ie. fit NOT fat! to be stood in a ring with others that makes yours look annorexic(sp?)!!!!!!
especially hunter classses-half the ones placed first,second etc surely couldnt do an hours hunting let along a days!!!
its encouraging bad health, laminitis and a number of other health implications and in my opinion is cruelty. better to be a little under weight than too much over im my opinion.
 
Drives me mad!

I have lightly shown my sec D this summer. I have had to put a bit of weight on him to make the judges even look at him, but I will not be letting him get any fatter (and he still looks half the size of most other D's you see at shows!).

I think partly it is because it is an easy way of getting "topline" rather than through hours of correct schooling, and you can cover up some conformational faults with excessive weight.

Still, I'm carrying on with my one woman crusade to show a sec D that isn't morbidly obese. And any judge that comments on his lack of weight will be politely informed that he's a fit riding horse, not an ornament!
 
That's fair comment I think MissSBird and I think they way you have approached it when judging sounds both sensible and fair. Do you really think it is changing? I agree that it is bound to be a slow process but I honestly haven't seen any difference in the show ring in a very long time. It actually does seem to be worse - I'm frequently taken aback my many photos of show winners in H&H. However, you're obviously rather more at the front line than I am and probably have a much broader view of what is happening!
 
It isn't OK it's cruel and stupid
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Judges should tell people they would have placed them higher but for the rolls of fat hiding any number of confo faults and jeopardizing their animal's health and soundness. To go home and get it thin.

I get apoplectic when I see anything overweight, and it doesn't have to be waddlingly so.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
 
I think its disgusting, so many overweight horses and ponies about, alot of owners seem to have a warped view of weight and do not realise just how fat their horses/ponies are and how much they are risking their health. It is infuriating to think and know judges are encouraging more weight, they should be suspended!
 
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Still, I'm carrying on with my one woman crusade to show a sec D that isn't morbidly obese.

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You're not alone! I refuse to let Genie get majorly overweight, I'm too worried about laminitis etc! At the moment she's got a bit more weight than I'd like, but even without the weight she does ok as she's a chunkier D so doesn't look too poor next to the fine ones!
 
I showed a worker for a friend a few seasons ago. One show, we were at the top of the line up, next we were told he was a bit underweight, and the next we were told he was overweight (he was a bit rotund at the time)
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My show horse isn't obese and is very fit and he has qualified HOYS .... that said he is generally the most slim in his classes and does sometimes look like a beanpole compared with others. Many of the show horses though are very fit - they do a lot of work to build muscle and to give a good well mannered ride.
 
You must be attending different shows to the rest of us
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Well done on doing well with a non overweight horse.

At a show a few years ago, a cob was so obese it could only trot for about one minute, and it's gasps could be heard from the other end of the field.
This is such an ongoing problem and I'm afraid I haven't seen any improvement. The biggest problem is that people see these animals, think that is obviously how they should look, and most people do not seem to realise what a fit animal looks like.
 
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