Underweight & underfed horses reported to RSPCA - photos

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Donkeymad

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These two horses have been reported to the RSPCA for being underfed, infact, starved. What do you think? Too thin?
The bay is an almost 19 year old Shire X Dartmoor 15.2hh The chestnut is a 3 year old Trait Breton gelding 15.3hh
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Maybe someone was trying to cause trouble in general as I can't imagine even a non-horsey person thinking these horses are starved.

Or someone really non-horsey thought the field looked bare and did not realise they were being fed extra?
 
crikey poor things could do with a good meal!

imagine if the person who reported actually saw a horse that was underfed and starved....they'd have a heart attack!
 
It's probably half the reason the RSPCA are so slow to respond to real welfare cases at times, when their time is being wasted by many an idiot. I'm sure they get far more call outs to perfectly healthy horses than they do to welfare cases.
 
They are in a large field, and you can see the top end which is trashed but, yes, they get supplementary feeding. The person who reported them has reported every horse in the area. She doesn't have a clue. The last lot were yearlings with huge piles of haylage.

Her dogs, strangely enough, are both very overweight.
As you can guess, these horses belong to my husband. The Shire X tends to lose wieght during winter, and is given more feed as needed, but his ribs are currently only just feelable.

marmlade, the chestnut is a french breed used for meat these days, and are powerful draft horses, and all look like that. I was shocked initially, but that is how they are. Know why you think that though, he's massive
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If anything I would say they are both overweight, if you condition scored them. Looking at the chestnut from behind he has a marked gutter along his back.

Obviously someone clueless or just causing trouble.
 
No, that gutter is a natural part of that breed, you can feel his ribs, and he has lost weight since we bought him. Interesting that you think the bay is overweight though. he does have ample weight, and will definately drop over winter.
Vet was out last week to microchip Pebbles and checked all animals, OK's the condition of all. Vet has a real anger about overweight horses.
 
Seriously?

They look well covered to me, does this woman know anything about horses? what a waste of peoples time, she must be crackers
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Both look about right to me but I am no expert & I am sure some would say they look a tad overweight

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yep, that is what I am expecting, as the chestnut does look huge.
 
I was expecting to see some really poor horses but are you serious someone has reported your two for being underweight?....they blind and stupid or something?....christ what is up with these people//.....

Carrot and spud were underweight and underfed....

Have the RSPCA come out to you yet then? what did they say?
 
For the second horse, I personally would prefer to see a little more definition at the shoulder - it is hard to tell from a photo but the neck and shoulder do look as though they run into one a little.

However if he is going to drop over winter I wouldn't worry about it - it is natural for horses to have seasonal fluctuations in their weight, the trouble comes when people have overweight horses and can't see it, so stuff them with extra feed over winter to make sure they don't get 'thin'
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You would be amazed at the number of people who use welfare organisations to further some kind of grudge!
 
Lovely chunkie monkies
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I could understand someone perhaps reporting them being overweight but not underweight
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I assume they are usually rugged and therefore I 'suppose' someone non horsey might see the lack of grass and think the animals didn't have enough to eat however having read on I see this is just a clueless busybody.

What a waste of the RSPCA's time and money
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I was expecting to seem some really starved horses. they both look fine to me. My shire will start to drop weight if I am not careful and my comtois is a chunky monkie with a gutter but thats his breeding
 
The bay is rugged, but not the chestnut. Now, if they had reported they were OVERWEIGHT, I couldn't argue really.
The woman sees us regularly, talks to us, asked us to help out with some trotters nearby (starved and unrugged and as fat as the bay), so if she had any concerns, why didn't she speak to us?
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Yes, we like the bay to have a little extra weight right now, as he will drop it quite a lot. he's showing his age
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horseriderdeb, you obviously have the same taste in horses as my OH. These big french draft horses do have gutters don't they? Fully understand why people think they are over weight though, would have said so myself!!
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What a load of nonsense! is this person out to make trouble for you?

Due to an on going argument with a neighbour when my 39yr old shetland pony who I had since i was 5 years old passed away naturally in the field (yes she was a bit scrawny at that age but still happy and healthy) the RSPCA was called and a picture of her dead appeared in a scottish national newspaper with some story about her being a negelcted foal which lead to her body being taken away for most mortem and the vet 'disposing' of it afterwards. So after being with us for 18 years she had the most undignified end. It has to be one of the worst things that has ever happened to me.

Sorry that all went a bit OT but your story just really hit a nerve!

ANYWAY

they both look a picture of health to me
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Shire X Dartmoor? Its incredible how nature will always find a way! I think he looks perfect actually. The other one looks in decent weight for the breed. Some people have too much time on their hands and really if she is reporting all horses in the area she should be given a warning or charged for the RSPCAs time.
 
This is why my youngster is now wearing a rug as i got fed up with people asking why he was naked (unclipped resembling a sheep) and the others (hunter clipped) are wearing rugs..
 
The bay has a lovely glossy coat too. What did the RSPCA say? Are they going to have a word with this troublemaker woman and explain to her that she's keeping them from looking into real neglect cases?

My friend had was reported once because someone didn't like the look of her veteran, who was in his mid thirties. His coat looked a bit shaggy as he had cushings, and he'd been retired for some years so had lost his top line, and his main was long, but apart from that was in amazing condition and he was in a nice routine; in at night - out in the day, and he was still loving life. He really was living a 5 star luxury retirement.
It was the ILPH who came out and they were not very knowlegable and one of the ILPH staff gave him a whole apple which he nearly choked on (you don't give ancient horses whole apples!), and were asking really stupid questions. It was very traumatic for my friend who had had the horse for most of his life and doted on him.
 
We've had similar, field of horses reported for being out with no food and without rugs... well the only tb in the field is rugged up and I'm sure the two year olds, hairy cobs and new forest ponies are fine naked (bearing in mind it's not acutally that cold yet either, we've not had many days below a couple of degrees).

Clearly large round bailes of hayledge are ineddible to horses too...
 
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