Small clip to shed some excess pounds??

[Horsekaren]

The boy is doing great enjoying his retirement … possibly a little to much!
He is out 24/7 unrugged and on 12 ish acres in a herd of 5 / no hay. The weather hasn’t been tobad and he is coping very well. I’m hoping he will drop some more weight before spring comes along!
I’m wondering if giving him a small bib clip might help things along but obviously don’t want him cold and don’t want to do it if it’s not going to do anything.
Has anyone found this helps things along?

I don’t want him shivering I’d just like him to burn off a few more pounds.
He is a very hairy cob if that helps!

I’m not interested in restricting grazing im just curious if this method helps Mother Nature along?

 

[MotherOfChickens]

a bib clip does nothing ime, might make him more comfortable on mild days. This is from bib clipping Exmoors and a Fell.

 

[Horsekaren]

a bib clip does nothing ime, might make him more comfortable on mild days. This is from bib clipping Exmoors and a Fell.

Ha, thanks for the honesty! I’m on the fence and really didn’t want to if it’s not likely to do anything!
Thanks

 

[ycbm]

Bib and belly would be my choice. The belly isn't getting drenched in the rain but it's a nice big area to lose some energy keeping itself warm.
.

 

[tiga71]

I am having the same conversation with myself about my Welsh D who is not in work atm. He is on 33 acres with 12 horses. Hasn't dropped any weight yet. Think I am going to bite the bullet and try it.

I was thinking bib and belly.

 

[Midlifecrisis]

When I had a porky gelding vet told me to fully clip and put a rain sheet on to protect from rain….I can’t see that clipping the underside will create enough of a chill to rev up the metabolism to lose weight….a bit like us having an open coat on a cold day…mostly we are warm with just a chilly bit in the gap in the front.

 

[ycbm]

When I had a porky gelding vet told me to fully clip and put a rain sheet on to protect from rain….I can’t see that clipping the underside will create enough of a chill to rev up the metabolism to lose weight….a bit like us having an open coat on a cold day…mostly we are warm with just a chilly bit in the gap in the front.

I think with your vet's advice you end up with almost the same thing ?

A no fill rug has two insulating layers of air. Between the outer and the liner and between the liner and the horse. I know there is a belief that a no fill rug doesn’t replace losing the coat, but when you add removing the wind chill, it think it does. So the horse's main heat loss from being clipped and wearing a rug will, I think, be the neck and the belly. (Unless you also clip the legs).

I also think that the fact we do bib/ belly clips to stop horse's sweating when we exercise them shows just how much energy they lose through clipped skin.

I don't think it's about "ramping up the metabolism" as such, more about making them spend more energy to produce more heat to keep the cold bits warm. It will only work if this ridiculously warm winter January gets a bit colder!
.

 

[Kaylum]

Can you do some in hand walking with him to keep his weight down.

No fills are OK now and again but they can end up sweating like mad.

And I would never intentionally let an old horse get into a state of shivering. It doesn't achieve anything but a miserable cold horse.

 

[Polos Mum]

It definitely helped mine - I don't think it can do any harm and doesn't cost much so worth a try.

Anything you can do now to shift the pounds will be easier than fighting the flab in spring !

 

[ycbm]

And I would never intentionally let an old horse get into a state of shivering. It doesn't achieve anything but a miserable cold horse.

This comes up every time in discussions about under rugging or clipping for weight loss.

It's not about leaving a horse shivering. It's about getting it to mobilise some fat to burn to keep warm.

 

[ycbm]

No fills are OK now and again but they can end up sweating like mad.

That's just horse dependant. My unridden 3 year old has been in one all winter with a full coat of his own, simply to keep him clean, and he hasn't sweated once. If a horse is sweating then of course its rug should be removed, or some hair, or some rug filling.
.

 

[Kaylum]

This comes up every time in discussions about under rugging or clipping for weight loss.

It's not about leaving a horse shivering. It's about getting it to mobilise some fat to burn to keep warm.

Exactly get them moving not left shivering. Get them walking even old people and animals need to keep moving and gentle exercise. It keeps the whole body going and the mind.

 

[ycbm]

Exactly get them moving not left shivering. Get them walking even old people and animals need to keep moving and gentle exercise. It keeps the whole body going and the mind.

They aren't shivering, or they shouldn't be. They don't need to be moving. They are perfectly capable of mobilising fat stores and turning them into energy to keep warm without moving. Moving helps of course but not everybody finds it easy to exercise horses at this time of year.

Are you too young to remember the old advice about losing weight? Take a blanket off the bed and you can lose weight while you are asleep. .

 

[Horsekaren]

Thanks all, I might take a bib and see
I know he has got warm a few times as when he gets hot he will roll in the wet mud but degrees in December is just not normal!
I can’t get him moving anymore than he is… and to be fair he moves a lot as he is grazing not standing at hay.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

I think I might give my mini a damn good clip and then a lite weight rug....he's still too fat

 

[Burnttoast]

My 17yo retiree has a chaser/Irish clip, so from just in front of the drip line on his flanks, across his barrel and half of his neck (head left on). I think it helps - it's hard to tell what would happen weight-wise without the clip, tbh - and he's never looked cold/miserable unless we have days of driving rain (which would make him miserable clip or no clip). It also helps him get through firework season without getting drenched in sweat. I've put a rug on him once this winter as I was feeling sorry for him after a wet spell, tho that may have been more for my benefit than his. He has a coolheat so I can chuck it on even if he's soaked and it dries him out and refluffs him.

 

[alibali]

Thanks all, I might take a bib and see
I know he has got warm a few times as when he gets hot he will roll in the wet mud but degrees in December is just not normal!
I can’t get him moving anymore than he is… and to be fair he moves a lot as he is grazing not standing at hay.

My lammi prone sect A gets a low chaser in mid November each year and is rugless but with barn access if required (I'd restrict myself to bib and belly if no barn) Mid January I assess him and if still carrying too much weight I refresh the clip. He's a late shedder so gets a full clip for comfort as soon as the weather starts to warm in March and is rugged according to his condition until warm enough to leave off. I aim to keep him at condition score 3 on a grass track with supplementary hay all summer, in autumn and winter he grazes the standing hay in the centre with supplementary hay according to need and in autumn I allow a LITTLE seasonal weight gain (being mindful of the dangers of the autumn flush) to a condition score lower end of 4 aiming to come out of winter in high end of a condition score 2 meaning spring grass holds less fear for me!

Please don't take this as critising it's just an observation but depending on how much weight he has to lose and where you are in the country you have left it quite late in the winter to address it. Fresh grass is likely only 6-8 weeks away in sheltered southern areas, I'll need to wait at least another 4 weeks on top of that. I agree with YCBM a bib clip alone is not going to do very much so given the time of year if he was mine I'd go for bib and belly.

Edited to add my sect A voluntarily stayed outside all day during the beast from the east when we had gale force winds and two feet of snow. He came in happy as Larry with unmelted snow on his back and not cold in the slightest. That was with a reasonably fresh chaser. I wouldn't worry too much about your boy shivering but even if he does a rug can be a short term solution. I certainly don't want my pony cold and miserable but neither can I risk him not losing weight over winter

 

[I'm Dun]

Even fully clipping one of mine made no difference. I suspect it probably does help a tiny bit, but not enough to manage weight in a good doer when food is a plenty

 

[Abby-Lou]

Yes bib& belly very low trace clip, keep an eye on them in rain, and I put on a rug if see they are cold.