Winter weight loss

[Supertrooper]

Not sure what else I can do really and in my heart I think I'm worrying too early.

Pony (13.2hh native type) is on 3/4 acre, he's been on this all year and it is grazed right down. The other 1/4 acre I'm not using although once a fortnight or so I move the fence a tiny amount and I mean I give him about a 10 x 10 foot section to munch on.

I don't see him grazing at all when I go up, he generally is just loitering around. He does bomb round the field and likes rearing and bucking.

He currently has.......

1 medium tub trug of simple systems lucie stalks
1 simple systems lucie brix
A handful of thunderbrooks muesli with his supplements in
One or two sections of hay depending on how cold/wet it is

I spread his food out so he walks around more and I'm careful not to give him anything with molasses or oil coating.


He's weigh taping at 408kg, I weigh tape him weekly as I know not accurate but I can see trend. This is the lightest I've ever kept him but I want him to start dropping now.

In the past two winters he's not lost weight until Feb onwards, by May he looks perfect weight wise so I'm doing my normal panicking too early.

He's not rugged or clipped and is out all the time, he doesn't use his field shelter unless I put food in there.

He can't be exercised so I'm very restricted.

I feel he's getting enough as he's the calmest he's ever been in winter and therefore I'm a bit scared to change anything as he can be very aggressive if he's hungry.

Any other ideas or do I just need to be patient 😝😝

 

[Goldenstar]

Why does he need the lucie stalks and bricks ?

 

[PerfectCoffee]

Get rid of the tub of lucerne if you want him to lose weight.

 

[Shay]

It sounds fine to me. My 13.2 cob X weighs in at between 390 and 405 Kgs on a bridge - normally weigh tapes at 380isgh (as you say not accurate.) He is super fit and in hard work so your lad weighing in at about 408kgs sounds fine. You could cut his fed back a bit - but he will lose weight on his won once the temperature finally drops!

 

[Slightlyconfused]

My elephant is on a diet
He is on a bare paddock and 8kilos of hay a night. Handful of chaff with his balancer for dinner and a half scoop of fibre nuggets for breakfast otherwise he will not stop bang on the door when the others get fed.
He is in 4/5 days of light work as he is teaching both mum and dad to ride as well as my brother and I riding him.

He has lost a lot of weight, I can see his shoulder and withers, feel his ribs and hos saddle needs narrowing.

Cut the feed down and it should start dropping off