What would you do with a fat pony

[SouthWestWhippet]

I'm possibly going to find myself with a pony on loan and I'm wondering what the best way to get weight off him is.

Situation. Pony is very fat, not laminitic but is 'footy', probably due to a trim but the weight can't be helping. He's 11.2hh Welshie. He is an idle S.O.B

I can't ride him as I'm currently 10stone so WAY too heavy. I do have access to an outdoor and a lunge pen though so I can work him on the ground. I'm currently 27 weeks pregnant and I really find running uncomfortable/painful which does limit a little what I can do.

I have access to a stable for him and also a reasonably well grazed paddock.

I work full time so am limited on things like 'turn out for 2 hours a day', however I do see to my current pony twice a day, early in morning and then again in the evening.

In this situation - how would you best manage the pony's weight and reduce it quickly but in a way that is healthy for the pony.

I'm just casting around for ideas, any thoughts welcome. thanks Oh, pony is potentially for my baby to sit on and also as a companion for my boy who currently shares a field with a friend's horse who is a different turnout regime to him.

 

[3Beasties]

We managed to keep 3 ponies looking quite trim this year by keeping them in a starvation patch overnight, we didn't give them hay, they just had the bare ground to live on (were in it from 6pm till about 10am). They were then let out onto the main field during the day with a grazing mask on.

All of them were worked about 4 times a week and none of them looked underweight in the slightest (they still probably had a little to much covering for my liking but I am OCD about Lami).

Just to make life easier we used to give them half a scoop of Safe and Sound just so we could catch them!

 

[merlinsquest]

Out in a muzzle 24/7 (according to my vet it is fine to muzzle all the time) And as much exercise as is possible..... get a little sharer if you can....

 

[wildpoppywild]

i have a fat pony!!! muzzle 24/7, lunge when u can but build up slowly

get farrier to check for signs of lami they know best

ponies losing weight is never quick

trust me after having poppy for nearly 7 yrs i kno

 

[bugbee717]

hash words a muzzle and paddock to graze in, the lami pony which we have has lost so much weight with her muzzle.

yes i dont like yes she does not like it, but it does work.

if he lunges, get him going in a fast walk to help the weight come off.
dont rug him no matter how cold it gets, he will work it off.
the only time we rug her is if it is gonna rain quite bad

 

[Snowysadude]

I have literally just just taken on a 13"2 pony a week and a half ago that is a recovering lamanitic pony, its morbidly obese (according to the vet) and the owner spoils it rotten and feeds it like jam sandwiches etc :S! So i took it off her to help her out. My first hing i did was limit its grazing to a max of 8 hours a day (normally less that is only if i have lectures and cant get down till like 5) in a starvation paddock with another fat pony so there was hardly any grass. I have also banned all treats apart from these herby ones i found which are sugar free.

He has a bad back at the moment so i cant ride him for two weeks till that is sorted and calmed down. He can be lunged or freeschooled though - think is he is a nightmare to lunge so i am freeschooling him twice a day - just for 10 mins at a time (he is very very unfit) and have found the weight has already started to noticeably drop off (i can kind of see definition between his belly and his legs - he really is that fat!).

To be honest if the field is well grazed the grass shouldnt be coming through too rich at this time of year so more than a few hours turnout shouldnt hurt! If you have time to lunge first thing and last that could help too?

 

[SouthWestWhippet]

I actually like the idea of a grazing muzzle if they work, would be far nicer for pony to at least be out even if his food intake has to be restricted.

At yard, he would have to be in at night, I was wondering about feeding soaked oat straw? Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[Donkeymad]

Use a racetrack system. Best method I have ever tried, really easy and works well.

 

[hadfos]

Walking is actually the best for weight loss,so maybe long walks out in hand?I realise you are pregnant,do you still find walking comfortable?i did till i was nearly due to drop,lol!
How big is the lunge pen?If you have a long enough lunge whip you would only have to stand in the middle

,if not attatch something to the end of it so it reaches him if he very lazy!
personally i would feed hay,but soak it for 12hrs to take majority of goodness from it,it will then be just a belly filler,i would be inclined to feed a handfull of dengie light or something similar with a vit supp though if working him,i know people say they live on fresh air but i think they look far healthier when given a vit supp!
Weightloss done sensibly is a slow process,but with work and a balanced diet he will drop the pounds!

turnout is great for exercise also providing paddock is low quality

but tbh if you can work him everyday the paddock wont be to much of a problem!

 

[pricklyflower]

For those of you who successfully use muzzles, which kind do you use and how do you ensure that they can't rub / roll them off?

Thanks!

 

[SouthWestWhippet]

*Donklet* FAB idea, I've actually heard a lot of really positive things about this method and it would really help my pony as well who, due to being lame all summer and then me being pregnant and not working him as hard, could stand to lose a few pounds himself!

 

[wildpoppywild]

[ QUOTE ]
I actually like the idea of a grazing muzzle if they work, would be far nicer for pony to at least be out even if his food intake has to be restricted.

At yard, he would have to be in at night, I was wondering about feeding soaked oat straw? Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

[/ QUOTE ]


soak hay for 12hrs to remove sugars

 

[SouthWestWhippet]

thanks hadfos, yes walking is fine! I'm a riding instructor so I spend most of the day walking around. I can still run a bit but wouldn't relish the thought of chasing this lazy fat pony around a full size areana as he is one of those 'only if you really really make me' types

I actually love his temprament and he'll be sweet for a baby to sit on if they like it but he is VERRRRRRRY lazy.

 

[wildpoppywild]

[ QUOTE ]
For those of you who successfully use muzzles, which kind do you use and how do you ensure that they can't rub / roll them off?

Thanks!

[/ QUOTE ]

i only use a best friend grazing muzzle with sheepskin round the nose, and have used it since march and she's still wearing it

after trying all other muzzles this one in my opinion is by far the best

it just takes patience to get her to keep it on, its a struggle when she first gets it on every year but hey ho......... when i'm feeding abby i feed her some carrots or a little handful of feed through the hole at the bottom which seems to be the magic trick to getting her to keep it on

its like she realises she will still get a treat if its on when i get up there

if its off she gets feck all

 

[hadfos]

Good luck with him,sounds adorable

donklets idea was a great one for turn out

 

[wildpoppywild]

[ QUOTE ]
Use a racetrack system. Best method I have ever tried, really easy and works well.

[/ QUOTE ]

where can i find out bout this method? might be something to try nxt year

 

[SouthWestWhippet]

ummm, thanks JM07, I'm not sure that I would be in a strong legal position if I got someone's pony on loan and then shot it though

I don't think the pony is deadly fat but he does need to lose weight and I've not got much experience with fat ponies so I just want some basic advice from those that have.

I might not even have him on loan TBH, it is still very much up in the air but at least now I know that I've got some ideas as to how to resolve the fat situation if I do.

 

[Rudey]

[ QUOTE ]
For those of you who successfully use muzzles, which kind do you use and how do you ensure that they can't rub / roll them off?

Thanks!

[/ QUOTE ]

My mate lines her mares muzzle with sheep skin to pad it out. She puts a head collar over the top and plaits the mane and forlock together, to hold them in place!!

 

[MagicMelon]

I wouldn't advise a "starvation" paddock by any means. Starving a horse is not healthy at all, no matter how fat they are!

I would leave the pony out permanently (better to be moving about to work the fat off than cooped up in a stable), but in an electric taped off area, just a bit so that there is grass to nibble but its very short, give soaked hay as well so there's something to always eat.

 

[MrMeldrew]

Starvation paddocks work well. Better pony out walking about searching for grass than stuck in. You just need to weigh up whether you need to provide some soaked hay to compensate, depending how much/little grass there is. Don't put the hay in one pile but spread it about so pony has to move about.
The track system is best . Google Paddock Paradise to give yourself an idea of how to do it. It can be as basic as a simple track round the outside of a paddock with water at one end or different obstacles/surfaces to make the pony rreally work.

 

[MrsMozart]

We had a very fat pony (bought that way).

Due to lammi he went on three months box rest. Ad lib hay (soaked for twelve hours) and he lost a lot of weight

.

 

[Kallibear]

Sounds like little fudge when he arrive. A good 100kg overweight (rather a lot for a 11hh shetlandX!).

He was lamintic when he arrived so spent 4 weeks on box rest with pads and deep bed. He got adlib straw and two leaves of well soaked hay a day.

When he went out he lived in a muzzle 24/7. They can't live on very bare grazing with a muzzle as they can't get at the grass. He went on out restricted but not bare grass with the rest of the horses. Just cos he's little doesn't mean he doesn't like having friends!

Easiest for you would be putting a muzzle on (I used the shires and cut a section out the front for the nostrils) when out 24/7 with friends, where he'll run about and socilaise, as long as the grass isn't rich. Long's fine, rich isn't. If he's hungry bring him in for a couple of hours to fill up on decent straw and a little soaked hay.

 

[glenruby]

If as you said, pony is in at night and you want to give it hay/oat straw overnight, then being turnd out on a bare paddock WITH muzzle would be good. However if he wont have any other feed apart from the grazing, then as Kallibear said, turn him out in a muzzle on decent grazing - so that he can actually east SOME grass.
Whoever said a starvation paddock is not the way to go - horses are designed to be fed little and often (a concept that seems to have been forgotten by most horseowners nowadays). A starvation paddock allows this to be done with the mot greedy of ponies.
If your grazing is too rich and the pony is really obese - id sooner see him turned out in a sand school with a flake of hay while out during the day(or split it in 2 and give half at turnout and the other half a few hrs later) and whatever you usually give when stabled overnight.

 

[teddyt]

I havnt read all the replies but i can imagine that starvation paddocks have been mentioned. That is not the best way and is actually harmful.

How to lose weight is simple- cut down calories and exercise. Make sure that the energy needed to live is greater than the energy going in.

Starving is very bad for the digestive system, slows the metabolism even more and you are asking for problems like hyperlipidaemia, which is serious.

Leave the pony out on minimal grass and soaked hay. If you soak for 12 hours it wont provide any energy. And dont rug so the pony uses its fat to keep warm and not the rug. Just use a LW rain sheet when its wet. Exercise/lunge in brisk walk and trot to burn fat.