Weight tape, what is 'normal'?

[Girlracer]

I've never really used a weight tape, but my mum uses one for Nimby so i thought i'd use it on Major to monitor his weight. Now i weight taped him at 506KG today, he's a 16.1 thoroughbred that looks like this...

Now i've had a look around and horses that i would expect to weight tape at less seem to be more, but i can't see that Major is a skinny runt? So what effects the weight tape, and how accurate is it? Is it best to just use it specifically to your own horse and ignore what everything else weight tapes at?

Anyway is 506 well.... normal?

 

[Chellebean]

Hate to say but Major is looking pretty damn good in that picture

 

[Petalpoos]

TBH I find that the best use for weigh tapes is to see whether a horse is putting on or losing weight (assuming you always wrap it around the same girthline - I go from just behind the front legs up at an angle to where the withers join the back). I don't believe they are that accurate for the actual weight, although I would have thought 500kg was about right for a 16.1 tb.

 

[charmeroo]

I have to be honest and say that I don't think that weight-tapes are very accurate. My horse weigh-taped in at about 650kg and on a weighbridge actually weighed 780kgs!!

Having said that - your tb looks quite fine and doesn't look as if he has a deep girth which will affectg the measurement. I don't think you can say what is or isn't normal as it's like humans - we are all different depending on our build, muscle mass etc etc.

I would use the weightape purely as a guideline and maybe look to condition score your horse to assess whether you think he needs more or less.

 

[floradora09]

At the Dengie champs I had my 15.2 TB taped and put on the weighbridge to compare and see how accurate it was for him. Weightape said 489KG and bridge said 499KG, so very accurate for him. The feed advisor said that if a horse has a shallow girth/ large bum/ big head and neck it will not be very accurate as most of the weight will be elsewhere, not where you put the tape! Hope that helps a bit xx

 

[Shysmum]

I had Shy weighed at the vets, and he was 485 kilos. On the same day the weigh tape said 420 kilos........so I am just using the tape as a rough guide

Your horse is looking fab, so I would aim to stay at about what the tape says now.

 

[Vickijay]

My 16.2 tb was last 520 on the weight tape (but that was a couple of months ago) She is fit, more muscled and covered than your boy though. She looked like this at the weekend....

I can weight tape her tomorrow if you want...

Vicki

 

[treacle_beastie]

I just use mine as a guideline to monitor changes but I dont think they are very accurate. The saddler used her own weight tape at hers read 469 whereas mine says 503 - quite a difference even between tapes. Think they still have their uses though if you monitor changes using tape and eye for condition scoring.