Reducing Appy's weight and how do you tell what wieght is best

Drm2Go

Drm2Go

Dreamin' with Sugar
Aug 1, 2005
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California, USA
Guys, I have noticed lately that my 11 year old mare is getting a little porky lately and my saddle fit is now in question. When I got her almost two years ago she was quite a bit leaner....in the upper 900 lb region and now she has broken into the 1000lb region.

Her neck is looking thicker, her barrel is not as contured, her ribs are hard to find and her whithers are not as prominent.

I am wondering if anyone knows how to tell what your horses weight SHOULD be....I know HOW much she weighs, but how do you tell the ideal weight.

So, when I want to reduce her weight, how...should I just reduce her alfalfa flake, switch to cubes for a more controlled portion....etc

I am just worried that she will founder. She is ULTRA healthy and worked out two to three times a week so she is not just a pasture ornament.

Any help is gladly appreciated. Thanks guys!!!
 
Firstly, I think you've pointed out all the problem areas, so you seem to know that your horse is carrying a bit too much weight in all the usual areas that horses tend to get porky.
I think in general, the weights can vary so much. You can go on the weights given on some worm packs, but they are only a guide.
You don't say what height, or breeding your mare is, or how much feed she is getting, or how much hay.
You really want to reduce the fat in these areas, as laminitis isn't confined to ponies, but to any horse that tends to be overweight - and a cresty, fat neck is one of the danger areas.
Most horses only need fibre feeds plus hay unless they are in very hard work, or unless they have a weight/condition problem, which doesn't sound like your girl.
You could probably switch to laminitis trust approved feeds which are low in sugar, like Happy Hoof, Hi Fi Lite and Speedibeet which is what I feed to one fat cob and one laminitic pony. Lots of people rate Simple Systems feeds as well. Remember to switch feeds gradually over a week to avoid any upsets in the metabolism. The use of a small holed haynet can make her hay last longer if you need to cut down on this. I never have a problem with hay and weight control, but I cut my own and leave cutting until July, so the sugar content is less.
Hope this helps.
 
Condition scoring is the best way to assess your horse, then when you get a perfect condition score weigh her and then you will know what you are aiming for, but if you are using a weigh tape you will notice that depending on fitness, muscle mass etc that it could be inaccurate, eg. my anglo arab is 15.1, about 3 years ago he looked all over thin at 1050lbs, but now at that same weight he is quite fat - as he has grown up and changed shape and filled out that same girth measurement tells a very different story :rolleyes:
How to Condition Score
 
ratehr than reducing her forage and continuing to give her hard feed, cut the hard feed entirely and instead use either a small handful of unmolassed, preferably Laminitis Trust-approved chaff (such as Dengie Hi-Fi Lite or Good Do-er, if you can get them) with about 50g of a vitamin and minerla supplement (e.g. Global Herbs Globalvite or Dengie optinum), or you can just feed about 500g of balancer (such as Blue Chip Original/Lami-Light or Baileys Lo-Cal).
give her a minimum of 1.5% forage in her diet (so, as her ideal weight should be around 450-500kg, feed a minimum of 7-7.5 kg each day), preferably hay as it has a lower nutritional value compared to haylage, and then soak or steam for 20 -30 mins it as this will lower the nutrient levels even more.

feed forage from a haynet rather than from the floor, as although feeding from the floor is generally healthier, feeding in a large, small-holed haynet (or one over another) will give her essential ad-lib forage whilst still restricting her forage intake as it will take longer to eat.

stabling her in the day and turning her at night is ideal if you have a stable, but not using one also has its advantages as while stabled your horse cannot move around using calories as she would in the field.
try strip-grazing her when she's in the field, until she eats the grass right down in a restricted area (fencing with tape is useful) and then moving it a couple of metres onto a 70:30 (or something) new patch.

if stabled, make sure the haynet - two preferably as they usually run out during the night and long periods with no food and nothing to do is unhealthy both mentally and physically - is on the opposite side of the stable to her wate and/or the door, so that she has to move between them: using up calories in the process.

try to have jher exercised as much a spossible, even if you ionly have 15 mins to spare - could you ask someone ion the yard to work her for you once ot twice a week or so, even if you are required to pay them?
a 20-min lunge is the equivelant of a 1 hr schooling session, so rather than twiddle about thinking of what to do, spend a short amount of time working on one particular area needing improvement; such as canter transitions or polework.

out hacking, slow (aerobic) work burns fat, and fats work (anaerobic) gains fitness.
therefore don't feel guilty spending lots of time establishing a good quality walk or steady trotting.

good luck, and if you are still unsure please don't hesitate to PM me!

also, nutritionists are only a ohone call/email away - try Dengie ro Baileys.

also
 
Is she only getting alfalfa hay as forage? If so that's not a good idea because it is very rich (high in protein which is really hard on a horse's system).

Your best bet would be for her to be on a Timothy hay only. She doesn't need the hard feed. If you're worried about vitamins, get her a vitamin/mineral bloc for pasture kept horses.:)

I too have a porkie appy: she looks at food & gains the weight!;)

Once she looses the required weight, you'll be able to easily feel the ribs but not see them.
 
WOW, guys thanks!! Sorry I did not post more infor. She is 15.2 and about 1018-1030 lbs.

I did the condition scoring (thank you so much for posting that link) and I definitely think she is a seven or eight...definitely not a 9...but is fleshy.

Like I said, her neck is what really got me thinking....and as of late, I am having major saddle fit issues that I never noticed before and then (ding ding ding, light bulb) I thought, hmmmm, maybe that fat over her whithers is doing it.

Yes, forage is her main food source. She gets a flake of alfalfa day and night, couple times a week she gets turned out on pasture for 1-2 hours and then is fed very lightly that corresponding evenging.

She also gets a cup or so of Equine Senior grain and a scoop (five ounces I believe) of Equipride mineral supplement (which is absolutely wonderful for anyone who is interested) http://www.equipride.biz/default.aspx

It is a wonderful supplement of absolute minerals and vitamins (no sugar or molasses), it is already predigested so it goes to work immediately in a horses system. It is amazing!!

Okay, so anywhoooo...getting Timothy is very hard in my area...alfalfa is just what we have....so should I cut back on that, reduce by ten percent or so?

I wish there was a chart that says...if your horse is this tall, he/she should weigh this much!!!

Anyway, thanks again guys, any more info would be VERY APPRECIATED!!!!
:D
 
Yes, forage is her main food source. She gets a flake of alfalfa day and night, couple times a week she gets turned out on pasture for 1-2 hours and then is fed very lightly that corresponding evenging.

She also gets a cup or so of Equine Senior grain and a scoop (five ounces I believe) of Equipride mineral supplement
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If alfa is what you have got then you are stuck with that, but there might be other options which you could mix with it, to bulk it out without adding extra calories so you could safely reduce it, can you get access to straw? oat straw is best but barley straw, so long as its good clean straw should be fine. Mixing straw 50/50 with 1/2 the ammount of alfa will ensure she is getting enough forage but will greatly reduce her calorie intake :D

Also swap her off the senior feed onto a regular maintainance grain (find the lowest energy/protein you can) and only give just enough to put her vitamins into :D senior grain is almost always higher calories and more easily digestable to ensure you can keep weight on your oldie, but if you have an older horse who is well covered already then there is really no need to give a senior ration :p

Increasing time out on a poor pasture would also benifit, more exercise without eating too much rich grass can only help :p and if she was out most of the day you could cut out the morning alfa ration?

J x
 
Being an easy keeper to start with, the food you're stuck with is very rich unfortunatly.

"She is 15.2 and about 1018-1030 lbs." Actually that's a good weight. Did you weigh her with a tape or are you guessing?

My QH was 15.1HH and weighed around 1015lbs

Do you have a photo?
 
Blimey, my girl is 15hh and isn't fat at all (can't see bu can easily feel her ribs) and is 545kg ...... thats 1200lbs :eek: but that was with a weight tape - must be wrong :eek:
Here she is, she can't weight that much, surely that just shows how inaccurate weigh tape can be.
Jess.jpg
 
Jessey your horse is perfectly fine and healthy-looking!

Drm2Go - what breed is your horse? because if she is a cob or even warmblood type then she will appear to be fleshy and will never look 'slim and sleek' as such, as a thoroughbred or arab could.
 
I will try and get a pick for you. And I can post a good one from a year ago almost exactly so you guys can compare. I will take one this weekend and post it.

She is an appy. Ya, I was thinking that too about the weight tape.....I mean, how predictable can a tape around the girth ACTUALLY be when her neck and butt is where it is all at!! :) heeheheh

I like the idea about the oat hay mixing...we DO have oat hay!! :)

Guys, you have been soooo great. Ya, that pic of your horse looks great, but Sugar definitely looks heavier in her crest....

I am just so thankful for all the help and info. I will make sure to post that pic ASAP!! :) Thanks again!!
 
OK, I thought about it all last night and now I am getting excited. I know we have oat hay in this area so I can do half oat and half alfalfa and that will cut down calories....so that is promising.

Also, the minerals she gets are soooo nutritious that it even says hay consumption will decrease by 25%.....so cutting back is okay!!

Ya, the senior feed I bet is a HUGE culprit...but as I said, she really only gets a few large handfuls (couple of cups)...but I know what you mean about mostly fat and protein to give TRUE seniors the nutrition they need.

I am just using that so I do not give her some hot grain that is gonna wind her up tighter than a top and have her explode while I riding her!! :) hehe

Today I should be able to get a pic or two so I will have them posted by tonight or tomorrow!! :)

Thanks guys!!:D
 
don't forget to make sure her diet is balanced!

a few handfuls is not going to fulfil all her needs for protein, vitamins and minerals that veterans needs - a balancer will do this without the calories.
and if she is not showing any real signs of age then don't bother with the veteran feed, she really does not need it; it's designed for those needing extra condition, muscle, digestive and general health boosts.
so add a digetsive enhancer, such as about 2 scps pf Dengie XP Triple Action, to her daily feed to enhance her digestion as older horses do tend to deteriorate in this area most.
 
a few handfuls is not going to fulfil all her needs for protein, vitamins and minerals that veterans needs
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I totally agree with this puzzles :p but do bear in mind that she is getting a fair ammount of alfalfa hay as well which has lots of nutrients in it.

I would agree about veterans tummies slowing down, but given she is a good doer it really doesn't sound like thats the case with her yet :p Drm2go, you could replace more than 50% of the alfa with oat hay, if you find she is still holding onto the weight and if she seems hungry giving her more of a less nutritious hay would be a good plan, and check out your local feed store and get her a mineral block - my guys have one of those big pinky colour cattle blocks so they can have free access to it when they are not getting alot of other highly nutritious food, these also supply salt which is great to have free access to in the summer.

that pic of your horse looks great, but Sugar definitely looks heavier in her crest....
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Thanks :D Jess is QH x and quite heavily muscled all over but not fat, she is also growing again at the moment :D

The weigh tapes are only accurate for your average horse, if sugar is a stocky appy who has a deep chest then the weight will come out as more than perhaps she really weighs, or if she is finer and has a smaller girth it may come out to less than what she really is, it also depends a bit on where they carry their fat.
This web page has info on another girth/length calculation and also a bit relating to height and condition score and what weight that corralates to, so you coud work out existing weight but also your desired weight from the chart :p

J x
 
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Jessey said:
check out your local feed store and get her a mineral block - my guys have one of those big pinky colour cattle blocks so they can have free access to it when they are not getting alot of other highly nutritious food, these also supply salt which is great to have free access to in the summer.
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I'd be very leary in giving a horse a cattle food product as the levels of ingredients (and types) are not the same requirements for a horse. Unless of course it states on the label that it is intended for horses as well.
 
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