luckyoldme
Well-Known Member
How patient of your vet.
I bet you £5 it's not the last advice you hear from her though!
I hope I'm wrong!
I bet you £5 it's not the last advice you hear from her though!
I hope I'm wrong!
So I don't think I will have any more trouble from this lady! This morning YO told me that she had asked him to speak to me about the 'state' of my horses, which of course he said were fine. I had the vet today doing teeth and told him about it, so when we saw her he asked me to call her over, said that he understood that she has concerns, and could she tell him what they are.
She proceeded to go into a lengthy explanation about how hard my horses work, and how good-doer has his hay in "one of those nets with holes that are far too small, he can't even get a proper mouthful". Vet was very polite and professional, showed her each of my horses one by one and explained how to look for good condition in a horse. Told her that all are healthy weight, poor doer could gain a bit now Spring is here but is certainly not underweight, good doer and other about right but that he advises me to continue to be vigilant, especially with good doer. Explained reasons behind soaking hay and using small holed haynets etc. I know I should not feel smug, but I could not help but be pleased when he said that in his opinion they were all great and that he wishes all his clients would be so diligent.
The lady then said that she does not understand it because "everyone says what good condition my horse is in and he is much rounder". So of course he asked her to bring the horse. He was not unkind, but he is quite a direct man. Told her that the horse is obese, that she has to stop listening to friends who say everything is fine, and gave her a long list of illnesses and injuries that she is risking by not managing his weight. Also told her that seeing a nutritionist sent by a food company is pointless as the horse just needs less food and more work.
So I hope that she is now happy, and maybe she will even do something about her own horse. Maybe buy him 'one of those nets with holes that are far too small' for a start!
Your vet sounds great. How did the lady react?
How lovely of your vet.
No pressure at all, but it would be great to see what your horses look like - if only to look at my own more realistically.
Wow! He looks like a million dollars!So this is good doer, sorry for some of him cut off but I didn't want to include photo of my friend who was also in photo
View attachment 70746View attachment 70746
Wow! He looks like a million dollars!
I think the analogy my vet gave me for labradors is equally relevant for horses od all shapes and sized
If you run your flat hand over the ribs and either you cannot feel them or they feel covered in a duvet they are obese
If you can feel the ribs and they feel like they are covered in a blanket they are overweight
If you can feel ribs but feel like they are covered by a sheet then thats the perfect weight
If they feel no covering they are thin
If your fingers fit between the ribs like piano keys they are too thin
if your finger fit so the back of them is level with the rib they are emaciated
Works well with cobs and labradors so would be fitting for any animal I expect. It also allows for variation in type as you are looking at the ribcage not the whole horse
Wow Winter they look absolutely perfect and very healthy with it mine look distinctly scruffy and moth eaten due to losing winter coats
It's a shame but so few (me included) have the time to get them properly fit I think everyone is just accustomed to seeing show condition on the brink of laminitis horses.
I would LOVE to have the time and energy to get mine looking as fit, shiny and well as yours - well done
What a stunning shine on that coat. They all look fantastic.OK, had to edit out my friend's kids from this one, but tomorrow will take a proper side on of all 3. Anyway this was a few weeks ago, good doer.
View attachment 70751
Here you go Winters, this is the photo I was talking about. He was a growing youngster here and the Vet was really happy with his weight then. Now he's older and the same vet called him chubby a few days ago. He still puts weight on over the ribs last. It's actually pretty shocking how quickly his neck went from normal to having the start of a hard crest. I now know that's the area to keep a real close eye on with him.
So I don't think I will have any more trouble from this lady! This morning YO told me that she had asked him to speak to me about the 'state' of my horses, which of course he said were fine. I had the vet today doing teeth and told him about it, so when we saw her he asked me to call her over, said that he understood that she has concerns, and could she tell him what they are.
She proceeded to go into a lengthy explanation about how hard my horses work, and how good-doer has his hay in "one of those nets with holes that are far too small, he can't even get a proper mouthful". Vet was very polite and professional, showed her each of my horses one by one and explained how to look for good condition in a horse. Told her that all are healthy weight, poor doer could gain a bit now Spring is here but is certainly not underweight, good doer and other about right but that he advises me to continue to be vigilant, especially with good doer. Explained reasons behind soaking hay and using small holed haynets etc. I know I should not feel smug, but I could not help but be pleased when he said that in his opinion they were all great and that he wishes all his clients would be so diligent.
The lady then said that she does not understand it because "everyone says what good condition my horse is in and he is much rounder". So of course he asked her to bring the horse. He was not unkind, but he is quite a direct man. Told her that the horse is obese, that she has to stop listening to friends who say everything is fine, and gave her a long list of illnesses and injuries that she is risking by not managing his weight. Also told her that seeing a nutritionist sent by a food company is pointless as the horse just needs less food and more work.
So I hope that she is now happy, and maybe she will even do something about her own horse. Maybe buy him 'one of those nets with holes that are far too small' for a start!
So I don't think I will have any more trouble from this lady!