Restricted grazing...

B

bex1984

Well-Known Member
Joined
21 February 2007
Messages
5,745
Location
Leicestershire
Visit site

Last night I moved my pony to a starvation paddock. You can see why: http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t318/bexboo1984/29052007241.jpg
He's a hippo!

Piggy paddock is pretty small, but at the moment the grass is very good. Once he's lost a bit of weight I'll probably gradually make it a little bigger....or should I just leave it?

Obviously he badly needs to lose the weight, and that is my priority, but if he's living out 24 hours on very little grazing will he be getting all the vits and mineral he should have?

He has no hard feed at the mo, he was having happy hoof until about 3 weeks ago, but now just has an apple a day.

Do I need to give him anything extra?
 
He will graze a small paddock down very quickly. Once the grass has gone, you will need to look at feeding him hay and a vitamin suppliment.

How many acres is the paddock?
 
It is VERY small at the moment, although plenty of room to make it bigger if necessary. It is probably about 10m x 20m. If I had to start giving him hay, should I soak it?
 
Let him graze it all down, but dn't make it bigger. Then feed him hay and a supplement (a handful of happy hoof and D&H multivitamin will be fine), but soak the hay for 24 hours to remove all goodness from it. The grass will contuinually grow back, so he'll still be able to nibble what grass there is, but the hay will hopefully fill his belly with no calories.
The only other thing is to put him in a muzzle, (which I know you've tried), and up his exercise. Do you lunge? 10 minutes trot on each rein twice or three times a week will do him the power of good.
 
If his weight doesn't start to drop in there within 2 weeks, muzzle will go back on and the numpty pony will HAVE to work out how to use it!!

He will lunge on one rein, and almost lunge on the other (after I completely lost my temper with him 2 days ago and made him do it!). I'm going to either ride or lunge 6 days a week from now on.

xxkatyxx don't suppose you know if Horse Wear House sell weigh tapes?!
 
If he's not keen on lunging you could loose school(if you have a secure area to do this in). I find that Jelly works abit harder this way, hence her weight stays down and she gets the exercise she needs.

xx
 
Bex, the absolute best way to shift the weight is to give him work, work, and work some more. As hard as it may be - 2 hours a day!
 
yes, HWH sell weigh tapes, but IMO they really don't give much indication of weight loss and gain. Better to take photos and keep referring back. If he has a deep girth (as the tape measures the girth) even if he lost weight it wouldnt necessarily show. Ours has lost weight but the weightape ahows him to have put weight on.

Stick at it with the muzzle, ours had a complete looney when we first put it on and screamed all day and threw himself on the floor, but he wears it quite happily now. I know how heart wrenching it is when they don't like them (beleive me, I stood in his stable mucking out, listening to his pitiful whinnies with tears rolling down my face) but you have to be brave and just leave him to it. It may take up to a week, but he'll get there! What size is he in? I have a spare pony size here which i used as a starter muzzle, and I'd made the hole bigger just so he got used to eating through it. If it'll fit you can have it.
 
d'ya wanna come and loose school g?

I tried it and he came at me... backwards,,, with his hooves waving round my face. I ran... FAST!
 
[ QUOTE ]
d'ya wanna come and loose school g?

I tried it and he came at me... backwards,,, with his hooves waving round my face. I ran... FAST!

[/ QUOTE ]

LMAO!!
blush.gif
blush.gif
I take it he didn't like the idea then?
grin.gif
 
am totally clueless as to how to go about loose schooling - is it just lungeing without the lunge line?! Pony lunges so nicely on one rein but becomes a monster ton the other rein and turns in on me all the time.

how do I know when to start giving him hay? considering he acts like he's starving all the time (typical hairy cobby pony)? How much should a 14hh fell x weigh (on a weight tape)?
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
d'ya wanna come and loose school g?

I tried it and he came at me... backwards,,, with his hooves waving round my face. I ran... FAST!

[/ QUOTE ]

LMAO!!
blush.gif
blush.gif
I take it he didn't like the idea then?
grin.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

He doesnt like alot of things....
crazy.gif
You know that theory about shetlands being obnoxious and stubborn??? And how they're nasty evil little buggers when they don't get their own way..... ?

It's 100% true.
 
Thanks katy - very kind offer but he is a cob size. He just stands around with the muzzle on, looking miserable and not even trying to eat. silly boy.
 
Have you tried making the hole bigger? It will mean you buying another muzzle but it might help ease him into things better. Other than that just bung it on , offer him a few bits poked through and leave it on, he WILL get used to it and when he gets hungry enough he WILL eat through it. You could also try sprinkling some mix on the floor, or polos, just to get his head down and get him TRYING to get the mix / polos. He might realise what he has to do then.
 
[ QUOTE ]
am totally clueless as to how to go about loose schooling - is it just lungeing without the lunge line?! Pony lunges so nicely on one rein but becomes a monster ton the other rein and turns in on me all the time.

how do I know when to start giving him hay? considering he acts like he's starving all the time (typical hairy cobby pony)? How much should a 14hh fell x weigh (on a weight tape)?

[/ QUOTE ]

More or less, but you will still need your lunge whip to encourage forward movement, and they do sometimes take a while to get the hang of it. I've found with Jelly, that she pays more attention to body language than the whip, so if I turn away from her and drop the whip she moves in, if I "shush" her and send her away she knows that it's time to put the effort in and 'work'!
This is a very short vid of Jelly being loose schooled.

xxx
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
d'ya wanna come and loose school g?

I tried it and he came at me... backwards,,, with his hooves waving round my face. I ran... FAST!

[/ QUOTE ]

LMAO!!
blush.gif
blush.gif
I take it he didn't like the idea then?
grin.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

He doesnt like alot of things....
crazy.gif
You know that theory about shetlands being obnoxious and stubborn??? And how they're nasty evil little buggers when they don't get their own way..... ?

It's 100% true.

[/ QUOTE ]

Waaa...nooo....they are absolutely NOT all like that
mad.gif
. My shettie has never been any of the above. Mind you I've had him since he was 4 months old and have taught him how to behave...
smile.gif
 
Right, so here is pony's diet plan (please bear in mind he is obese, not talking just a little bit of extra covering).

Out 24/7 in starvation paddock. Weight will be monitored every few days with weightape, and will be boring you all with pictures (took pre-piggy-paddock-pics last night). Think I might start a Pony's Diet Blog!!

Once grass is eaten down pony will get a few handfuls of Happy Hoof and his apple, and when the grass becomes poor I will either move the fencing slightly, or feed a slice or two of soaked hay.

Pony will be ridden or lunged 6 days a week.

Will consider using the grazzling muzzle again and putting him back in the large field he was in once his weight is down and needs maintaining, rather than reducing!

What do you all think?
 
[ QUOTE ]
Right, so here is pony's diet plan (please bear in mind he is obese, not talking just a little bit of extra covering).

Out 24/7 in starvation paddock. Weight will be monitored every few days with weightape, and will be boring you all with pictures (took pre-piggy-paddock-pics last night). Think I might start a Pony's Diet Blog!!

Once grass is eaten down pony will get a few handfuls of Happy Hoof and his apple, and when the grass becomes poor I will either move the fencing slightly, or feed a slice or two of soaked hay.

Pony will be ridden or lunged 6 days a week.

Will consider using the grazzling muzzle again and putting him back in the large field he was in once his weight is down and needs maintaining, rather than reducing!

What do you all think?

[/ QUOTE ]
That sounds great
smile.gif

Do bear in mind these cobs, like native ponies, live on fresh air lol. And bear in mind, when you soak hay or he's on rubbish grass he'll not have the vits and mins he needs to maintain a healthy coat, hooves and inside
smile.gif
. So feed him a multivitamin, just for peace of mind really, so you KNOW he's getting what he needs.
If the grass is scarce (later in the summer) and he's not in a muzzle give him something to keep him occupied, I find a snackball filled with fibre nuts or diced up carrot provides hours of fun... plus it will keep him moving
smile.gif
(but only do this if he's on his own in the field).
 
Mine live out 24/7. 2 of mine are on what you would call "starvation paddocks" (although hate the word as they arent starving!). I just make sure mine get as much hay as they want. They also get a feed with an all round Vit & min supplement in it. I would recommend the same, although in place of hay - maybe soak it? Or feed older hay?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top