Weight tape woes

[Flibble]

OK so I have purchased a Shires Weight tape.
The instructions are poor I put it around Drifter 16.3 and a lot ISH and the reading says 19:2 198cm and 538 kg this doesnt sound right to me any ideas. He is high withered does that make a difference I need to know his weight for worming.

 

[AmyMay]

So it's telling you that he is 538 kg's. Sounds bang on to me.

My horse is 16.2 TBX and is 525kg.

 

[Flibble]

Sorry just amended subject as I cant spell. When I posted on here about wormers I was told he would be over 600kg so I got two oh well looks like one for spring!!

 

[Ziggy_]

My TBx mare is 16.2hh and only comes up as 480 on a weigh tape, condition wise she's spot on so your measurement sounds fine to me.

When you take the measurement the tape is supposed to slope back slightly, so the tape goes from the base of the withers to behind the elbow - high withers therefore shouldn't have too much of an effect on the reading at all as the tape doesn't pass over them.

 

[Kallibear]

The tapes are generally useless for anything other than the TB's they were designed on. They're good for monitering weight gain or loss, but not for actually accurate measurements.

It depends entirely where you put it (an inch further back can add 50kg!) and on their build. One told me my 15.2 cob was 900kg

 

[kerilli]

weight tapes are rubbish. one of my horses was weighed at the vet's one day, and then i used the weight tape on him when i got home, and it was shockingly inaccurate.

 

[Flibble]

oh goody money well spent then (Not!)

 

[Ludi-doodi]

Whilst probably inaccurate if you use them at the roughtly the same point on the horse - I use my microchip mark as guide, then I'd have thought that at least you'll be able to tell whether weight is going up or down. Like the bathroom scales, don't suppose it matters what it says but that shows when there's a difference?

 

[kerilli]

[ QUOTE ]
oh goody money well spent then (Not!)

[/ QUOTE ]

ebay is your friend.

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Well, Sunny is a 15.3 Welshy. He had to go for an endoscopy the other day and while he was there I weighed him on the vet's proper scales. When we got back home I put my Your Horse weigh tape round him and it's absolutley bang spot on! And a TB he most certainly isn't! I don't dare say what his weight was after reading that the OP's 16.3 ISH is 538kg!!!!

 

[TGM]

I agree with the others - whilst weigh tapes are very useful for monitoring condition, they are not very accurate for giving a precise weight for the horse as conformation varies so widely.