Tips for winter weight loss?

[saddlesore]

Following on from post below I'm wondering if anyone can advise winter diet tips? My horse is at a different yard this year to last winter and he is very fat and I cannot shift his weight

He lives out 24/7 and gets a small feed of 1/3 scoop speedi beet and 1 handful good doer once a day to carry magic calmer. Obviously these have no molassas. I cannot get him brought in during the day as no one else can catch him and I live too far away to go up more than once. He is in a 200g rug with no neck (it has been seriously horrible and cold here and when I check him he is the correct temperature under his rug - no heat in there what so ever. He is exercised most days. ANy ideas??

 

[Kallibear]

I'd cut out the speedibeet (it's very good for weight gain!) and just go with the chaff. If he needs the flavour to eat his calmer them make up some really weak watery speedibeet to dampen the chaff.

Taking his rug off will be the biggest thing you can do to help weight loss. Keep it off unless it's really wet or, if that's not a possibility, put just a lightweight no-fill on to keep him dry. With a 200g rug on he's unlikely to be using much energy keeping warm.

 

[badgerdog]

Take his rug off or just use a rain sheet. Mine just has a rain sheet on and is sometimes a bit warm in it. If your horse is overweight he'll have more than enough fat to keep him warm!
I'd also cut out the speedibeet.

 

[stencilface]

We have this problem with one of ours, he lost more weight when he used to be in over the winter. I would take his rug off (regardless of weather) during the day, and at nighttime if its not going to be too bad.

What is the calmer needed for? Would he need that at all if he was turned out rugless and wasn't getting any feed?

 

[vallin]

DItto above ^^^ I have this problem with my mare, and the biggest thing is weight loss through keeping warm so she is just in a rain sheet (and only that because she's clipped) and gets no hard feed at all

 

[stencilface]

Just to add, said fat pony will be chaser clipped in a week or two, and he will still be having his rug off in the daytimes if its not too horrid and will be out on frosty days rugless if its still and not raining/sleeting.

 

[saddlesore]

Thats great guys thanks - just goes to show you can't beleive what you read on the tin! I thought the speedibeet would be fine because it has no molassas! Do you think he'll be ok in a 100g g rug? I'm west coast of Scotland so constantly very wet and windy!! Wouldn't take rug off becuase of risk of rain scald. He gets the calmer for his nerves as oppposed to energy, he is a very tense boy and I was hoping it would help settle him a bit, although to be fair its not working so far!

 

[Spyda]

I'd ditto dropping the unmolassed beet from his diet, and just sticking with the low cal chaff. Either the one he's on now, or something tasty like Spiller's Happy Hoof if he's reluctant to eat up his his calmer without the beet.

I'd also be inclinded to add a good all round vit/min supplement to his daily feed, since he'll only be on poor winter grazing and a minimal amount of bucket feed.

Switching to a good quality no-fill turnout rug would also help, as I appreciate whilst he's hard to catch you won't be able to get anyone to take off what he's been wearing over night to go naked during the day. If he's getting a chaser clip I'd invest in a combo version or one with a detachable neck cover. That way his neck and chest area will be protected from the wind and rain.

Additionally, is there any possibility of creating him an electric fence paddock with moveable plastic posts, within the main field where he usually goes out? In this vile weather it would have to be moved regularly to prevent poaching, but would probably eradicate the catching issue if you did need someone else to help you in the mornings when you can't get up there. Just a thought. They do this at my yard - although mainly in summer for weight control.

BTW, do the wintered out horses get hay or haylage in the field at all?

 

[TGM]

[ QUOTE ]
Thats great guys thanks - just goes to show you can't beleive what you read on the tin! I thought the speedibeet would be fine because it has no molassas!

[/ QUOTE ] It is not just mollasses that makes horses fat! It is the calorie content that you should be looking at - this is usually on the bag expressed as MJDE/kg. Speedibeet is has 12.4 MJDE/kg (dry weight) which is high compared to feeds such as Dengie Good Doer 7 MJDE/kg, HiFi Lite 8 MJDE/kg, Spillers Happy Hoof 8.8 MJDE/kg, Spillers High Fibre Cubes 8.4 MJDE/kg.

Speedibeet confuses people because it is Laminitis Trust approved, so they assume it is low calories. However, it is safe for laminitics because of its low sugar content, not because it is low calorie!

 

[stencilface]

I don't think rainscald should be a problem if he has a good coat? We never used to have rugs for any of ours back in the day (although granted, in Yorkshire not west coast scotland!) and they never suffered from rain scald. Unless its a recurring problem? One of our had rainscald when we first got him, but has never had it since, and is an unclipped TB out 24/7 with rug for bad weather.

 

[saddlesore]

Thanks guys. I'll cut the beet pulp down to a watery dribble to help him eat the magic and just give him the good doer. I actually have him on pink powder as he is receiving so little hard feed - is this suitable?
Yes haylage goes out in the field but as he is out in a herd I have no control over this, he is also a serial houdini and will jump out of any field he doesnt want to be in so a starvation paddock isn't possible. He was also VERY headshy when I got him so I am highly reluctant to muzzle him - plus if he got it off you'd never catch him again! I have the PE trio rug so I could just use the 100g outer shell? I can't really afford to buy a decent rain sheet, and I have never found one that is toally waterproof.
He doesn't make things easy lol!

 

[SO1]

My pony has the same problem although he is not getting any hayledge or hay in the field.

He has a breathing supplement so I have to feed him something - he gets good doer 7 (DE) one handful plus just swapped from Ride and Relax to A&P slim and healthy 8 (DE) as that is lower in cals. He won't eat his supplement with just the good doer. He will get 1/3 scoop of slim and healthy - if you add water it will expand and become big like the beet and is much lower in caleries. I also add mint to his feed as this is low in cals and a good way of disguising supplements.

He is blanket clipped and was in a LW no neck until Sunday and he lost according to the weight tape 4 kilos last week - it was very nasty weather though. I have now put him into a 150g rug no neck as it is a bit chilly and the rain has been awful. Holding off the warmer rugs until he slims down a bit and he probably will once the weather gets colder. If he was not clipped he would have no rug - most of the non clipped ones have no rug and have never had any rain scald.

I went to the BHS weight management lecture at your horse and exercise wise brisk walking and trotting is best for weight loss you don't need to do lots of cantering. So even if you are bringing your horse in from the field you make sure he walks briskly rather than dawdling and that will help.

 

[saddlesore]

Thats great - thanks for the suggestions re feeding! I honestly hadn't realised the non-molassed beet was so fattening!

The A&P slim and healthy sounds like a good option

I only say rain scald becuase unless you have the pleasure of living in the west coast of Scotland you really cannot appreciate just how cold and wet it is - all the friggin time!!

 

[ofcourseyoucan]

dont feed horse and leave naked or in a rain sheet only!!!

 

[tabithakat64]

Your horse is out on pasture 24/7, rugged and fed (including Pink powder which is known to aid weight gain due to improving digestion) so is bound to be overweight if he is a good do-er.

His grazing needs restricting.
Either make time to go to the yard twice a day so he can be in over night or during the day if you are the only one who can catch him or section off a small paddock or muzzle him.

In addition to this I would up his workload, feed a handful of Hifi-Lite with the Magic and a broad spectrum vitamin and mineral supplement and nothing else, clip him and rug in a lw rug or rain-sheet only.

I really struggle with my cobs weight despite doing all of the above and worry constantly about his health.

My boy is worked as much as I can manage (I'm also paying someone else to ride him), he gets a handful of Happy Hoof and soaked hay when stabled. He is clipped and out over night in just a rain-sheet during the autumn/winter and has restricted grazing as much as possible over the summer (he cannot wear a muzzle as he was injuring himself and doesn't repect electric fencing).

 

[saddlesore]

Thanks, thats why I asked above about the the pink powder. I actually stopped it about 10 days ago to see if that would make any difference - none so far lol. I also cannot muzzle him and no option for a restricted paddock (large yard and on winter grazing). As of yesterday he got a tiny dollop of VERY watery beet to dampen the good doer and gave him a few equi-bites in his feed instead of a powder vitamin supplement, but apparently they are a complete vitamin supplement anyway. He has also been reduced to a 100g rug with no neck and the weather here is very wet (lots of flooding) and very cold so he certainly isn't warm! I'll just need to keep plodding away I guess - although like you say it is a worry

He was at a different yard last winter and his weight was great, on the poor side if anything, and he was actually kept in with adlib haylage. The grazing here is obviously far richer

Thanks all, I really appreciate all the help and suggestions. I will implement as many as is possible!

 

[Kallibear]

A fat horse with a full winter coat is probably going to be too hot even in a 100g outer rug - my pathetially pansy welsh cobX gets sweaty under his 100g if it's anything but cold. Unless they're useless TB types, horses only get cold when wet.

I'd be inclined to clip him if you don't have a no-fill rain sheet. A trace clip would make a huge difference to him having to use some fat to keep warm. It would also mean he won't get as sweaty when worked.

I'm planning on giving my boy a trace clip, not because he gets sweaty but because he freezes when it rains if unrugged (doesn't seem to be very waterproof!) but is plump and gets too hot under his 100g rug. I'd like him chilly to use up some fat, but not freezing cold if it rains.