Overweight horses. The risks?

A

AFH

New User
Joined
12 April 2012
Messages
8
Visit site
I have a friend with a very overweight but lovely highland mare. She is 18, broken 2-3 years ago and is ridden maybe a couple of times a month which is more or less the only time my friend goes to the yard. The mares belly is almost level with her knees, the fat around her shoulders look like it's hanging and her body looks like three fat spheres joined up. There is no muscle tone just fat. Ive suggested more riding and to section of the massive rich field she is in but she wont do any of that. The mare is only fed when ridden and is rugged up for most the year except Summer - depsite never having worn a rug before my friend bought her.The photos of this horse are shocking. She isn't the typical chubby/stocky highland she ought to be , she is downright grotesque. The livery yard owner is at the end of her tether with her too, fed up of her wild excuses for not riding or grooming or checking up daily. My friend is more than capable of caring properly for the horse but we believe laziness has gotten the better of her. She only has a part time job, lives with parents and a boyfriend and lots of time.

Now, ofcourse I have no right to tell her how to look after her mare but I don't think she realises the damage that could be done. That being said I would like to know more about the risks associated with overweight horses.

People are talking about the lack of care and how fat the horse is and it would only take one person to make one call to the SSPCA for it all to go badly for my friend. We have tried (family friends and other liveries plus the owner) talking to her about it but I don't think she realises how bad it is.

I'm aware laminitis can be a risk and after witnessing someone elses horse go through this it truly is distressing and in the end the horse was finally put down after years of care and suffering.

What are the other dangers and risks? What would YOUR plan of action be if this mare was yours? For me it would be to section of the field and to start with very light work a few times a week, unsure about feeding though.
 
As a YO I would take some responsibility and fence off a paddock for the pony, I feel it is down to me to provide suitable grazing for individual requirements if possible especially if the owner does not do daily checks, it is more of a full or assisted livery than DIY and I would either be fencing or moving to a different field.
Yes the owner is responsible but the YO has a duty of care and in this case is not really providing suitable grazing for an overweight animal, most yards have a poor area they keep for this purpose.
 
At 18 years old thats a long time damage is going to have been accumulating! The problem is that fat is metabolically active producing adipokines that alter normal metabolism. This mare will definately be suffering with insulin resistance which causes damage to laminae, kidneys and liver (and just about every other organ). Insulin resistance is cumulative and worse the older obese horses get. Unfortunately because of this it can be very hard for these horses to loose weight - even on a diet of 1% body weight - which is far from ideal anyway. The best way to loose weight and reverse the insulin resistance is exercise, at least 20 mins of elevated heart rate per day. She is at very high risk of laminits and must be uncomfortable with all that weight going through her joints at her age. I should find a good article on equine metabolic syndrome and stuff it under her nose.
 
be positive said:
As a YO I would take some responsibility and fence off a paddock for the pony, I feel it is down to me to provide suitable grazing for individual requirements if possible especially if the owner does not do daily checks, it is more of a full or assisted livery than DIY and I would either be fencing or moving to a different field.
Yes the owner is responsible but the YO has a duty of care and in this case is not really providing suitable grazing for an overweight animal, most yards have a poor area they keep for this purpose.
Click to expand...

by law it is the yard owners responsibility, they can be prosecuted for animals suffering in their care so i would do the above in their situation
 
I'm sorry this might sound harsh towards your friend but there is no excuse really for anyone to say that she doesn't realise how bad it is. This is the second post today I've read on here about someone talking about a friend who has no idea how fat their horse is and asking for advice. The welfare charities have all done major pushes across the last few years in the summer to alert owners to the risks for fat ponies and how to manage them. Has she been living on the moon? Does she have vision problems? Does she know or read nothing about horse husbandry/care? No, she is being a poor owner and naive and laziness is the worst of poor excuses. Hands up I have an overweight good doer myself. I fight the battle of the bulge with mine every summer since owning him and sometimes don't make much progress but I'd never not taken the need to try as best I can seriously. Might be different in Scotland but the RSPCA here did make the first successful prosecution of someone for fat shetlands either last year or the year before. And also I'd be surprised if when having innoculations or jabs if a vet wouldn't have said something to her, my vet condition scores my horse with me each year and we have a chat. Highland ponies are wonderful and this mare deserves better than that.
 
Thanks to everyone for your replies!

I will look for a good article about the metabolic syndrome and show it to her. As far as her jabs go I'm not sure if she gets them done. I know for a fact everyone else on the yard does so and the vet who visits is great - I used him for my horse when he was stabled there.

Considering the response to this post I think this has happened due to laziness, irresponsibility and her refusal to listen to those more experianced than her. She is one of those people that thinks they know best because she has been riding for so many years which as we all know (except her) means nothing in terms of proper horse care. This has happened due to plain neglect and I hope I can get through to her before someone else takes further action to help her poor mare. The yard owner I'm sure will snap soon and take more action.

Thanks again to everyone for your help and advice.
 
AFH said:
Thanks to everyone for your replies!

I will look for a good article about the metabolic syndrome and show it to her. As far as her jabs go I'm not sure if she gets them done. I know for a fact everyone else on the yard does so and the vet who visits is great - I used him for my horse when he was stabled there.

Considering the response to this post I think this has happened due to laziness, irresponsibility and her refusal to listen to those more experianced than her. She is one of those people that thinks they know best because she has been riding for so many years which as we all know (except her) means nothing in terms of proper horse care. This has happened due to plain neglect and I hope I can get through to her before someone else takes further action to help her poor mare. The yard owner I'm sure will snap soon and take more action.

Thanks again to everyone for your help and advice.
Click to expand...
You can ask WHW to send out a field officer who will advise, but if she is not on site, she will need to be contacted through the YO.
 
Sorry if I sound harsh, my anger is directed towards your friend not you.

This is neglect. Your friend is lazy and/or ignorant and needs a serious kick up the backside. I am another horse who spends every waking hour at this time of year making sure my horse is care for (moving fences/changing paddocks/riding whatever the weather). Its part and parcel of being a horse owner.

I am furious with your friend - she doesn't deserve to have this horse.

Lets hope your yard owner takes the bull by the horns pretty quickly and prevents this horse from suffering the acute and painful condition of laminitis.
 
The YO needs to step up and get tough she should ring your friend tell her to come to yard read her the riot act .
I would tell her to get the vet for advice and make sure she took action of course the horse will need a strip provided and if the owner did not toe the line I would serve her notice .
 
You might find World Horse Welfare's info useful. Here's their stuff on fat scoring and getting weights down:

http://www.worldhorsewelfare.org/information/right_weight_advice

Is there a horsewalker at the yard, or could the pony moved to somewhere where there is a horsewalker, so even without the owner's direct input they pony could get at least some exercise each day to start tackling the weight issue?

At the laminitis awareness days a couple of years ago, it was said that working ponies of the same fat score as non-worked ponies were less likely to develop laminitis.

Sarah
 
Thanks again for even more replies! I understand the anger some of you may have, I have it too. I used to be a horse owner at the same yard until my circumstances changed and I even had my beloved boy out on long term loan to her (which lasted 6 months) and was a total disaster. She wont take anyones advice - not mine (when she had my horse) and not the yard owner who has extensive knowledge after more than 3 decades of competing, owning and having a livery business. Most people would use that knowledge that the yard owner is happy to share, right? I did. Anyway I get so annoyed as I would love to own a horse again and am so excited for when I will have the means/time to do it. I'm looking at a 15-20 year wait which is fine, it's worth it and I'm sure you will all agree. I wish she would appreciate what she's got!! Unfortunately who is suffering in all this? The pony.

I knew about laminitis, joint damage etc but I was not aware of some of the other health problems that can come about. This is even more serious than I first thought and really needs to be sorted out like yesterday, infact it should never have happened in the first place. She should stick to riding lessons and not have the privilege of owning. I can't influence the yard owner and I cannot understand why she hasn't taken more action but I know for a fact she is getting more and more fed up so hopefully she will do something soon, for the mares sake atleast. I think my friend needs shocking into some hometruths about what she is doing to this pony before she will change - I hope those truths don't come too late!

I wish my friend was more like those of you who have the battle with the spring/summer grass year in year out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top