Weight loss plan?

[AmeliaA]

Hi, what does everyone think of my horses weight loss plan?
he’s currently fed 250g top spec lite balancer, 1/2cup soaked unmolassed speedibeet twice a day with hi supplements. He also gets a dry net of 4.5kg during the day and 6.5kg soaked at night. He’s a 15.2 cob x. I try to ride 4-5 times a week 2 hacks and 2/3 schooling or 1 groundwork/trot poles in hand.

from tomorrow he is on summer turnout schedule. I was planning on turning out around 12 and bringing in at 5:30/6pm. He grazing is average and he currently only has 1/2 the paddock which is around 1/4 acre max. There is another horse in with him.
Was planning on dropping his balancer to 200g but not sure if that’s a good idea. I’m going to also drop his hay to 1.5kg in the morning and 5kg at night. All soaked for an hour. Will also split him night feed into 2. Will slightly up the intensity of our rides too.
Let me know if you have any suggestions or exercises you recommended. I would say he is a 3/5 on the body score - possibly bordering on 4. He has been losing weight on his current plan but it doesn’t factor in grass and he seems to have stopped losing a bit and his fat pads seem a bit fuller on his bum.

 

[NOISYGIRL2]

If he was in 24/7 during winter i'd increase the turnout slowly, its good that you were only going to put him out half day, perhaps muzzle aswell, then you can build up the turnout to all day. I found the best one was the ultimate grazing muzzle, it has large nostril holes so they don't feels so enclosed. I would manage him as a laminitic, keep the balancer and sugarbeet to get his supplements/balancer down him, if its not speedibeet, change to that from normal sugarbeet. See how he goes, you could double net so it takes him longer to eat the hay

 

[I'm Dun]

I'd swap the balancer for a better one. Spillers light is probably the best of the commercial pelleted balancers. Then either muzzle or track/strip graze the grazing. The grass is very nutritious at the minute and I'd want to keep him very restricted until he's a good weight. Even then he might not be able to have unrestricted access to grazing.

Reducing the daytime hay is sensible, but I'd want to make sure the night time hay lasts nearly the whole night, so I'm not sure you can reduce it or not. Soaked hay is going to be fine calorie wise though so it wouldn't worry me feeding it at near ad lib amounts

 

[Highmileagecob]

I used a Tough 1 Easy Breathe muzzle on 24/7 as my very good doer had to lose weight for COPD issues. It was extremely well tolerated, and if you get the sizing right, allows full movement of the jaw when grazing. It appeared to allow 50% of his usual greedy intake, which kept him at a sensible weight. I can't muzzle him now as his teeth are starting to show signs of old age, and I am hoping his weight doesn't balloon.