Suitable exercise plan for an overweight cob

[NeoRider]

Hi All

We are buying a welsh cob around 14.1 whos arriving this week. Shes just turned 13 and hasnt been in regular work for the past 2 years.

I want to get her fit and her weight down especially due to her risk of laminitis.

We have an electric horse walker which i think will be great alongside lunging & ridden work. But what do you think is a reasonable amount of time per day to start with on the walker? Its only a fast walk max speed.

Any ideas of how much exercise to begin with would be a great help as i dont want to over do it.

Thanks

 

[AntiPuck]

Not an expert, but i'd probably avoid the walker and lunging, at least to begin with, as it puts them on a constant circle which adds more stress on the legs - regular short walks in-hand in straight lines would probably be the best place to start if the horse is completely unfit, either leading or long-lining, then progressing to longer walks and eventually ridden work and adding faster intervals.

 

[milliepops]

a horsewalker wouldn't be my choice for a horse that's been out of work, personally.
nor lunging to begin with.
My welshie came to me after being turned away for several years and we just hacked, some in hand and some ridden, until she was walking 40 mins and starting a bit of trot and then i started doing arena type work with her in a fairly low key way.
we started with 20 mins walking and built up weekly.

 

[Red-1]

Rigsby had been out of work when I got him, just finished box rest and had medical conditions. We started with in hand walking around the lanes.

Once we could do 40 minutes walking in hand, we swapped out some days for 20 minutes ridden. We built ridden work up from there.

I would do a fair bit of straight line walking before adding lungeing and walkers.

 

[NeoRider]

Thanks always appreciate advice.

There is a good short hack from my yard which is very straight so maybe that will be a good starting point for us.

She hasn't been totally out of work but shes only been ridden 1/2 per months max.

 

[AmyMay]

In hand walking and then ridden walk. After 6 to eight weeks having built up the walk time gradually you should be up to an hours walking and able to start some trot work.

I wouldn’t lunge an overweight horse, nor use the Walker.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

As per the others, I wouldn't be doing any circles for the 1st month at all, probably 8 weeks or so, def not lunging or horsewalker as too much strain on joints and soft tissue that will need hardening up 1st.
I would def keep to level surfaces for the 1st 2 weeks, 20 mins a day for 1st 5 days and then add another 5 mins for next 5 days and repeat. When up to 30 mins a day walking, introduce trotting. Keep adding 5 mins every 5 days, fitness will build up steadily and muscles become acclimatised.
Have fun ?

 

[w1bbler]

Agree with above re no walker/ lunging. If you have another riding horse then ride & lead is a useful way of adding more exercise

 

[NeoRider]

Thank you all for the input glad I asked now. We will start with a nice short straight hack/walk as there’s a perfect one from my yard and gradually build that up.

 

[sbloom]

Well, same old same old from me - postural groundwork first, horses aren't built to carry us and unless we do very specific work then most still won't be, even when fitter and stronger, as we'll have just strengthened their asymmetry. Bodywork first actually, then work to, amongst other postural type issues, lift the thoracic sling, then gradually add fittening work.

 

[Goldenstar]

I would use the Walker for one lot of ridden work a day .
Start with five minutes on the Walker slow speed and increase in two minutes increments every three days , personally I don’t think horses should be on walkers more than twenty minutes although I know they are often used for longer .
I don’t like walkers myself but people I know who are far more experienced than use them to fitten horses and that includes riders who have the fittest horses in world .
On Walker speed I would ask someone with experience I do know that the top riders use them with the horses walking quite quickly it increases the heart rate better and reduces the amount the horses muck around .
I would walk starting ridden exercise at twenty minutes a day and half way through the first week increase five minutes and by the end of the first week be at half an hour .
By the end of week two be at forty minutes at the end of week three at fifty.
I would do six weeks walking and in the last two weeks the horse should walking for one and half hours .
This can be spilt into two lots of work in fact it’s better if it can be .
I would not lunge but I would do in hand pole work to get the horse to strengthen it’s core walking up hills is also good and should worked as you go on depending of course to what you have access to .
Going into week seven start short trots uphill is best I never trot on the road for more than five minutes a time but all this depends on what you have access to .
At week nine start some short sessions in the school and some canters uphill on grass is best but again you need to work with what you have got .
At week twelve you should have a horse who is ready to some jumping training and harder work generally .
Within each week I usually do one rest day and one easier day spaced apart this helps with muscle recovery and increases strength .
However horses are individuals and they vary in what works for them but that’s where I would start with an unfit horse I did not know .
You can also lead from another horse I like to add that in as well as it rests the back .

 

[NeoRider]

I would use the Walker for one lot of ridden work a day .
Start with five minutes on the Walker slow speed and increase in two minutes increments every three days , personally I don’t think horses should be on walkers more than twenty minutes although I know they are often used for longer .
I don’t like walkers myself but people I know who are far more experienced than use them to fitten horses and that includes riders who have the fittest horses in world .
On Walker speed I would ask someone with experience I do know that the top riders use them with the horses walking quite quickly it increases the heart rate better and reduces the amount the horses muck around .
I would walk starting ridden exercise at twenty minutes a day and half way through the first week increase five minutes and by the end of the first week be at half an hour .
By the end of week two be at forty minutes at the end of week three at fifty.
I would do six weeks walking and in the last two weeks the horse should walking for one and half hours .
This can be spilt into two lots of work in fact it’s better if it can be .
I would not lunge but I would do in hand pole work to get the horse to strength it’s core walking up hills is also good and should worked as you go on depending of course to what you have access to .
Going into week seven start short trots uphill is best I never trot on the road for more than five minutes a time but all this depends on what you have access to .
At week nine start some short sessions in the school and some canters uphill on grass is best but again you need to work with what you have got .
At week twelve you should have a horse who is ready to some jumping training and harder work generally .
Within each week I usually do one rest day and one easier day spaced apart this helps with muscle recovery and increases strength .
However horses are individuals and they vary in what works for them but that’s where I would start with an unfit horse I did not know .
You can also lead from another horse I like to add that in as well as it rests the back .

Thank you so much for the detailed advice

 

[Goldenstar]

Ps - in the first line I don’t make sense I meant one piece of ridden work and one trip on the Walker

 

[maya2008]

Bear in mind that your saddle fit will change with her weight, so something adjustable would help there! Equally, get a muzzle and soak hay/small hole net if stabled for part of the time.

For exercise, I would just pick a standard fitness programme and build up accordingly. So start with 30min in walk, gradually extending to 1 or 2 hrs if you can, then adding in little bits of trot and so on. When our cob first arrived (aged 3) he was so fat it was physically uncomfortable to sit on him! We put him out in a field with not too much grass, and started taking him for walks in-hand then led off another horse until we could get a saddle to fit. He still tends towards chunky, but we take him out twice a day if needed in the summer, as he is a master at getting the muzzle off!

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

My cob mare was clinically obese this time last year; she was on strip-grazing but it just wasn't sufficient to control her weight, and on vet's advice we transferred to a Track system.

All the exercise in the world isn't going to do any good unless you tackle management first and foremost.

Some good advice above. Also be aware that saddles & backs need regular checking if on a weight-loss regime as the last thing you want to do is introduce discomfort into the game-plan.

Good luck!

 

[Cob Life]

She wasn’t obese but this winter I brought a 16 year old mare back into work

we started slowly
5 mins hand walking for 2 weeks
10 mins hand walking 2 weeks
15 mins hand walking 2 weeks
20 mins hand walking 4 weeks
when I started riding we would do
10 hand walking 3 ridden
until we gradually over 8 weeks got to riding in walk for 20 minutes
then moved on to trot work

it was a very long process but we avoided any soreness or injury and she built her hind end up so nicely, she looks fantastic