Why do so many people think its fine to have fat horses?

[Reacher]

Am I the only one who finds weigh tapes a bit useless? According to the 2 times I had mr h on the weigh bridge he was 475kg coming out of winter and a rather shocking 505 kg at camp in May 2019. The weigh tape has been around 415 kg all summer. I can’t believe that is his weight . I can feel a covering on his ribs at the moment so am watching his intake.

Wow @Fjord that is an amazing transformation

 

[ester]

I remember seeing a pony rescued by WHW that was hugely obese, simply through being abandoned on lush grazing.

I think possibly, this is part of the problem- so much grazing in the UK is really too lush for horses. I don't know if there would be a way of reseeding it, or rewilding it to make it more horse friendly?

I always say as well as the hills there was a massive difference between the grazing on thin chalk soils compared to the low lieing clay I was used to. Much less dense sward, a lot more variety, and a fertilising needed to get a hay crop. Clay, grass everywhere, 2 crops of hay if you wanted it etc, old pasture not been fertilised in at least the last 37 years, still grass everywhere!

 

[Wishfilly]

I always say as well as the hills there was a massive difference between the grazing on thin chalk soils compared to the low lieing clay I was used to. Much less dense sward, a lot more variety, and a fertilising needed to get a hay crop. Clay, grass everywhere, 2 crops of hay if you wanted it etc, old pasture not been fertilised in at least the last 37 years, still grass everywhere!

I think this is probably really relevant too!

If we think about where native ponies live easily/happily (at least weight wise) with minimal intervention, it's very often on moorland with poor soil and very rough/poor grazing. But most people keep their ponies on much lower lying arable land with a very different type of soil/grazing.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I think this is probably really relevant too!

If we think about where native ponies live easily/happily (at least weight wise) with minimal intervention, it's very often on moorland with poor soil and very rough/poor grazing. But most people keep their ponies on much lower lying arable land with a very different type of soil/grazing.

I thought about this too.

I thought about it when bringing my PRE from Spain to Germany, but then we've had dry summers and the fields easily get overgrazed or just don't grow nearly as lush. So I sort of lucked out in that respect. He often prefers to forage off of the dry and crusty weeds, bushes, and whatever else he finds. I guess it reminds him of home, who knows.

 

[brighteyes]

The riders have a choice the horses don’t .
But it is a horsey thing the fantastic looking horse managed by someone who spends no time on themselves .
For a horse, too fat it is too fat - it does not matter if you like the look of it or not .

THIS 100%

 

[Wishfilly]

I thought about this too.

I thought about it when bringing my PRE from Spain to Germany, but then we've had dry summers and the fields easily get overgrazed or just don't grow nearly as lush. So I sort of lucked out in that respect. He often prefers to forage off of the dry and crusty weeds, bushes, and whatever else he finds. I guess it reminds him of home, who knows.

I have known a few ponies who came off the moor who actively seek out gorse to graze from. Apparently it can provide nutrients that other plants don't, so there may be a reason for this. But I think it shows what we think might be "nice grazing" and what horses even prefer might be two different things!

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Goodness, I agree that if a horse is too fat it is too fat. The end. It is not whether I like the look of it. I simply don't like when my horse has ribs and other points showing, with poor muscling. Sometimes this cannot be helped due to a medical condition, I get it. Just not something I'm about to brag about when my horse is "thin" but not healthy looking. However, I understand we all have varying opinions.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I have known a few ponies who came off the moor who actively seek out gorse to graze from. Apparently it can provide nutrients that other plants don't, so there may be a reason for this. But I think it shows what we think might be "nice grazing" and what horses even prefer might be two different things!

Yeah, that's true! It is similar with hay. I have thought before that hay looks and smells wonderful but my horse felt very "meh" about it!

 

[Tiddlypom]

I simply don't like when my horse has ribs and other points showing, with poor muscling.

Has anyone said that they do?

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Has anyone said that they do?

No, did I say that? I simply stated my preferences. I've seen people (here and elsewhere) post photos of condition that I personally would not be satisfied with. But thats fine. I'm not about to burn anyone at the stake over it. I just have a different preference as to what is thin, healthy, and fit. Some may share my preference, some may not. What people need to not do is think that this means that I think overweight horses are ok or that my opinion is the end all be all, or that it even matters in the grand scheme of things, really.

 

[J&S]

I think this is probably really relevant too!

If we think about where native ponies live easily/happily (at least weight wise) with minimal intervention, it's very often on moorland with poor soil and very rough/poor grazing. But most people keep their ponies on much lower lying arable land with a very different type of soil/grazing.

A typical example of this are Welsh ponies, in their native environment they have two blades of grass for six rocks and have to climb to get them! Bring them down to "civilisation" and wham bam too much grass. I have a Bodmin Moor companion pony and now spend more time and effort over her welfare than my precious retiree who she came to keep company! They are on a track which is monitored daily, I did ride and lead all summer long, I have clipped her front out already and devised a system to soak her hay and feed them separately. She will not be rugged but they can get shelter at any time. I have re-sown bare patches with a Meadow Mania specialist seed (non rye) and over winter I will very judiciously strip graze into the central area. I have bought last years hay and she gets a tiny handful of chaff when I feed the other pony. I am hoping winter will be my friend!

 

[Goldenstar]

Has anyone said that they do?

No

 

[Goldenstar]

We reseeded the winter field this spring it was very tired all that was left was rye and that was pretty sparse .
Fit young friend ( he’s the grass maestro) used a mix of low energy hard wearing grasses it was direct drilled .
its taken really well it’s been rested since April and topped several times we left it alone mid August to allow it to run to seed and get more stalky .
Its looking good they will not go onto it until I am forced and I am going to have them on severely restricted rations when inside .
if I am lucky we will get another six weeks of them living out .

 

[Goldenstar]

View attachment 56272
This was my mare the day I tried her. Mid winter and after 3 months off work. Its a nightmare to keep her weight down but I'm loving the more slender beast that's underneath.

Holy cow that’s one fat point .

 

[oldie48]

I always say as well as the hills there was a massive difference between the grazing on thin chalk soils compared to the low lieing clay I was used to. Much less dense sward, a lot more variety, and a fertilising needed to get a hay crop. Clay, grass everywhere, 2 crops of hay if you wanted it etc, old pasture not been fertilised in at least the last 37 years, still grass everywhere!

Totally agree and I find that even when there's been little rain, the grass still keep growing although the clay is like concrete!

 

[shamrock2021]

My mare when I just bought her. before
After 60 kg down she will get to a ideal weight come winter she actually Looks thinner now. I just don’t have updated photo.

 

[laura_nash]

It’s not hard if you exercise your horse, keep it in a decent size paddock (hills are my favourite) on rough grass if it’s a good doer and just don’t feed it!

Not everyone can exercise their horse though. Mine is currently out of work. He's in a decent size paddock, with rough grass and steep hills and a young field companion who likes a canter around, and I even bought a small herd of cows last year to eat down the grass who went into the paddock first. He's partially clipped, unrugged and not fed. He is (of course) putting on weight.

I do manage his weight and got a lot off this summer, but it wasn't at all easy. I had to keep him in or on completely bare ground and manage the hay and straw intake very tightly, it was much like having a horse on box rest. Mine was extremely obese when I got him many years ago and I suspect this has had a permanent impact, he's always been a ridiculously good doer.

 

[RHM]

We've had lots of horses and ponies over the years but the only fat ones we've had were companion ponies, one sect A and the current sect C. I've had the odd one "looking well" at the end of the summer but never coming out of winter. I could at least keep the sect A behind a substantial electric fence provided it was on the mains but the sect C will go through anything to get to better grazing. Perhaps the key is that I don't have suitable land for native ponies or cobs for that matter. I think you need bare scrub with the ability to make a track if needed and although I don't fertilise or have particularly lush grazing, it is just too much for some breeds and I think that is true for many of us. I, at least, keep my horses at home and am around so I can do more to restrict intake than someone on a livery yard who visits twice a day but it is still bloomin hard work.

I could not agree more with this! I have a native who due to a old injury is unable to be ridden for more than a couple of straight line hacks a week. I never had a problem with his weight until I moved to Yorkshire and now we are surrounded by livery yards with tiny lush paddocks. Within a year he had developed EMS. Trying to follow vet advice I managed to get some weight off but he was miserable and his old injury was flaring up. What solved it for us was finding a very friendly farmer who owned some low lying moorland and chucking him out on it 24/7 over winter. Unfortunately this wasn’t something I could continue long term (field being 2 hours from my house!) but it managed to get him 85kg lighter and reversed his EMS. I am now back on a typical livery yard and although he looks well, I can very easily feel ribs and he is full of energy.
I would be so interested to hear if anyone has successfully created scrub land from a typical field as this is something I will hopefully be attempting in the future.

 

[ecb89]

I tell you all these horses are having a lean winter that presentation has got me motivated we will be seeing ID ribs if it kills me .
me .

Same. As a fellow ID owner I feel your pain. Fat lad has been clipped and will be under rugged. I’ve never had him in more than a 200g and that was only during the beast of east.

 

[ycbm]

I would be so interested to hear if anyone has successfully created scrub land from a typical field as this is something I will hopefully be attempting in the future.

I have owned ten 10+ acres of hill meadow for nearly 30 years. When i bought it, it was dense green sward of uniform height and colour. I realised quite quickly that borrowing sheep was suppressing the development of a more diverse grazing. I could see around me that areas which were well populated with sheep stayed lush and those that were more sparsely grazed were more like the moorland which I wanted. I stopped borrowing sheep, I dig up or weedkill thistle, ragwort , dock and nettle. Everything else is allowed to do what it wants, with no fertiliser, no topping. I see new species growing in it every year and it gets rougher every year. I only keep two horses on it and it isn't safe unrestricted for typical good doers. I'm muzzling my PRE but she did arrive already fat in midsummer and she's losing weight in a muzzle with an enlarged hole. My more sports type had 1kg a day of supplementary food all summer and his ribs are only lightly covered.
.

 

[RHM]

I have owned ten 10+ acres of hill meadow for nearly 30 years. When i bought it, it was dense green sward of uniform height and colour. I realised quite quickly that borrowing sheep was suppressing the development of a more diverse grazing. I could see around me that areas which were well populated with sheep stayed lush and those that were more sparsely grazed were more like the moorland which I wanted. I stopped borrowing sheep, I dig up or weedkill thistle, ragwort , dock and nettle. Everything else is allowed to do what it wants, with no fertiliser, no topping. I see new species growing in it every year and it gets rougher every year. I only keep two horses on it and it isn't safe unrestricted for typical good doers. I'm muzzling my PRE but she did arrive already fat in midsummer and she's losing weight in a muzzle with an enlarged hole. My more sports type had 1kg a day of supplementary food all summer and his ribs are only lightly covered.
.

That’s really interesting thank you. Me and the OH are hoping to get some land early next year and everything we go and see would currently kill my pony! Random question but if you plant heather do you think it would take hold?

 

[ycbm]

That’s really interesting thank you. Me and the OH are hoping to get some land early next year and everything we go and see would currently kill my pony! Random question but if you plant heather do you think it would take hold?

We do plant heather, just not in the field. It goes very gnarly. Gorse would also grow.. But we have both growing near us, i don't know what would happen elsewhere. If you have that kind of shrub, you will get paths through it which will get very churned up unless the ground drains well. But if the ground drains well I'm not sure heather would like it.
.

 

[RHM]

We do plant heather, just not in the field. It goes very gnarly. Gorse would also grow.. But we have both growing near us, i don't know what would happen elsewhere. If you have that kind of shrub, you will get paths through it which will get very churned up unless the ground drains well. But if the ground drains will I'm not sure heather would like it.
.

Thanks, trying to explore different options of “roughing off” land. Lots of research to do I think! Thanks for sharing your experiences. There will doubt be a separate thread when I buy something with me pulling my hair out ?

 

[windand rain]

Explore the use of yellow rattle and wildflower mixes to reduce grass and increase herbs

 

[johannayessi]

I'm new here but saw this thread and thought I would participate. My pony was extremely fat before I got her, but look at her now! Moral of the story: it's possible and definitely worth it.

 

[sharni]

I'm new here but saw this thread and thought I would participate. My pony was extremely fat before I got her, but look at her now! Moral of the story: it's possible and definitely worth it.

View attachment 56320View attachment 56321

Absolutely brilliant result, and bl%%dy well done. Looking fabulous now.

 

[Bambelina]

Or

'Why do so many unqualified amateur horse owners think it's fine to police other horse owners'?

If it's not a horse's weight, it's the rider's weight.
And if it's not that, it's rugging too much, or too little.
Or having your horse shod, or having it 'barefoot'.


Live and let live.

I agree with this lol. I think more people need to ask themselves “am I genuinely concerned about the welfare of an animal (and then by all means report it/say something) or am I just wanting to give unwanted advice to ‘prove’ how much I know” ?

 

[Goldenstar]

I agree with this lol. I think more people need to ask themselves “am I genuinely concerned about the welfare of an animal (and then by all means report it/say something) or am I just wanting to give unwanted advice to ‘prove’ how much I know” ?

lol !!!! there’s nothing remotely funny about this subject .

Fat is a huge driver of misery and blighted lives for horses .
I have just bought an obese cob he’s massive, awful .
If some one pointed out this fact to me , I would simply say yes I know it’s awful isn't it .
What is the possible issue with that .

 

[Bambelina]

lol !!!! there’s nothing remotely funny about this subject .

Fat is a huge driver of misery and blighted lives for horses .
I have just bought an obese cob he’s massive, awful .
If some one pointed out this fact to me , I would simply say yes I know it’s awful isn't it .
What is the possible issue with that .

like I said, some people just love to give out information just to prove how knowledgable they are, it’s like they’re just reciting a text book. Obviously ideally no horse would be over, or underweight, both are detrimental to the welfare of the animal. And I agree, in severe cases maybe something does need bringing up!! But people try their best and do what they can. They don’t always need ‘advice’ no matter how well intentioned it is! There is no problem as such, but know it alls on livery yards can make it an unpleasant place!!

 

[Bambelina]

like I said, some people just love to give out information just to prove how knowledgable they are, it’s like they’re just reciting a text book. Obviously ideally no horse would be over, or underweight, both are detrimental to the welfare of the animal. And I agree, in severe cases maybe something does need bringing up!! But people try their best and do what they can. They don’t always need ‘advice’ no matter how well intentioned it is! There is no problem as such, but know it alls on livery yards can make it an unpleasant place!!

Oh, and I’m not saying anyone who goes advice is a know it all, before that gets taken out of context. But people who love to point out what everyone else on the yard is doing wrong, and how they know so much more, aren’t any fun to be around really ??‍