Overweight / Grass Belly

[ThreeWBs]

As title really. Feeling like my horse is piling on the weight this spring and measuring tape confirms he’s 610kg and as a 16.1 WB, he should be less.

Can still feel his ribs, but I have to dig for them. Neck is always well rounded by conformation there’s no hardness or fatty pillows.

It doesn’t help that he’s super compact at only 6’ in chest to butt length, giving the impression of an even rounder belly!

He’s worked/ridden 4/5 times a week mainly hacking at walk and trot (not a lot of places to canter) and then polework and schooling a couple of times too.

Any tips to shift the extra podge?!

 

[AdorableAlice]

The only way I can get the weight off my big horses is restricting grazing and upping road work. Both have plenty of well soaked hay and both have dumped a lot of weight. This spring has helped them as the grazing has not flushed due to the drought and cold nights.

 

[HollyWoozle]

What do you feed him?

 

[ThreeWBs]

What do you feed him?

Per day:
1 scoop Hi-Fi molasses free hi-go
1/2 scoop fast fibre
Saracen shape up
Equimins hoof mender
Magnesium
Sea salt
Brewers yeast

 

[milliepops]

What's your grazing like? Prob have more of an effect than the bucket feed. I've had to dig out the grazing muzzle for the first time in a few years ?

Plus up the work if you can.

 

[ThreeWBs]

I don’t think he looks obese - but maybe I’m just looking through rose-tinted spectacles..

 

[Sossigpoker]

I would stop all feed bar a bit of chaff for his supplements. Restrict access to grass and weigh his hay and then soak it. He is on the larger side and at the moment when the grass is a bit distressed due to lack of rain it is high in sugar. We've just had one of the field liveries come down with laminitis, vets say it's rife at the moment. Also up the harder work , plenty of active trotting will help if there's no place to canter.

 

[AmyMay]

I think he looks ‘well’. If your grazing is good drop the amount of grub your giving him.

He’s really smart x

 

[HorsesRule2009]

If you are wanting him to drop a bit then ide probably stop the hard feed all together, other than a very small token amount of maybe the fast fibre to carry supplements.
Also up the exercise not necessarily longer or more but faster plenty of trot work and canter as much as your able will help shift the weight

 

[Sprig]

Why are you giving him bucket feed? If he was mine I would drop that.

 

[scats]

I feel your pain. Millie is on a bald field (used summer and winter), has half a cup of fast fibre to carry her supplements and is worked 5-6 days a week, including boxing out most weekends to either a lesson or to a farm ride. Her belly and backside are immense. Polly, same food and field but maybe long reins once a week at present in walk and trot, maintains a far more trim look and you can get the weight off her easily.
It’s the absolute bane of my life and I feel like the worst owner sometimes. In my defence, every vet who sees her comments on her exceptionally deep rib cage, so her shape certainly doesn’t help the overall look.

 

[Squeak]

Mine have both suddenly gained the grass belly too. I'm hoping we're going to have enough rain this week that the ground will be ok for a couple of weeks of faster hacking work but if not or it doesn't shift the weight then I'll have to dig out the muzzle unfortunately.

 

[Jellymoon]

He‘s only a little bit podgy, so I wouldn’t reduce time out grazing just yet, he’s better out and moving around. I would drop the bucket feed, and up the hacking. If you can’t up the hacking, then I’d drop the bucket feed and reduce the size of his field.

 

[HBB]

A small token feed to mix in your supplements is not going to cause him to put on weight, it is the time spent grazing, quality of grass and the quality of exercise that determines how much a horse will gain or lose weight. Restrict his grazing, maybe bring him in for part of the day with soaked hay and I'd make sure he is getting a good mixture of strength and fast exercise.

 

[milliepops]

i would not drop the bucket feed as you are feeding hoof supplements which presumably you want to keep up with and a horse in work will need to have some salt. it's not like he's ginormous and it's time for emergency measures.

this post from Clare Macleod contains some interesting stats.

https://www.facebook.com/ClareMacLeodEquineNutritionist/posts/5551396561567595

 

[scats]

i would not drop the bucket feed as you are feeding hoof supplements which presumably you want to keep up with and a horse in work will need to have some salt. it's not like he's ginormous and it's time for emergency measures.

this post from Clare Macleod contains some interesting stats.

https://www.facebook.com/ClareMacLeodEquineNutritionist/posts/5551396561567595

Completely agree with that. I think the amount of bucket feed that most of us feed our good doers to get supplements in would barely register on the calorie scale.

 

[hollyandivy123]

muzzle but not with the small whole it came with (its about 2-3x the size) which has meant the horse has to find long grass, move around more vs the short and sugary growing type, this has reduced the intake when on grass. 4kg of hay soaked 12 hrs, 2 kilos when the horse comes in from the field (out over night) and then the other 2 through out the day once the previous net has gone. 10-12h in through the day, 12h out at night. plus exercise.

feed lowest chaff to add minerals etc due to the soaking of the hay, also it is means when the rest of the yard gets breakfast bucket so does the horse, it is more a physiological feed.

bring back into work so the work is upping proportionally with increased fitness, continually on the look out for a track system which would be the best thing for the horse.

 

[Goldenstar]

I think your horse is too far and needs to lose weight .
I have managed to get weight off all mine because the dry cold spring means I have not a lot of grass .
I would reduce the bucket feed to just enough to get the supplements you want him to eat down him and look at reducing how forage he can get at .
I have upped work and work twice a day twice or thrice a week .

 

[ycbm]

Mine has been in a muzzle when out since February. If yours will keep one on, they are a good solution. I'm having to increase my mare's food when she's in during the day at the moment.
.

 

[Bellaboo18]

Can you put a track system up? It made such a difference for us.

 

[SEL]

I have 3 who look pregnant & 1 is a gelding. A million miles of electric fencing tracking round the field, a muzzle on the worst one and soaked hay (there's only nibbles on the track). There's not much grass but I think it's very sweet

 

[Sussexbythesea]

Completely agree with that. I think the amount of bucket feed that most of us feed our good doers to get supplements in would barely register on the calorie scale.

I’ve always thought that and don’t really understand people’s obsession with cutting it out. Compared to eating hay and grass especially spring grass it’s negligible.

 

[ecb89]

I’ve always thought that and don’t really understand people’s obsession with cutting it out. Compared to eating hay and grass especially spring grass it’s negligible.

I agree. My ID gets a handful of hifi lite to get his supplements into him. It’s probably the equivalent of a few mouthfuls of grass, cutting it out would achieve nothing.