barrel belly!!

horsemad

horsemad

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Jul 16, 2001
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My horse will be out on grass 24 hours a day for the next 2 weeks - she was put out on Sunday afternoon. When I went to see her last night, she had a huge barrel belly! She was a bit on the porky side to start with, but I just cannot believe how much bigger she has got in just 24 hours out at grass. Is this normal? It looks like she's been eating non-stop since she was put out....

Anyway, do you think she will continue guzzling at this rate for the next 2 weeks, or will she stop being so greedy after a couple of days? If she keeps going at this rate, I dread to think what size she will be....
 
Yes, the barrel belly is normal. Not to put too fine a point on it, some of it is...... gas. Which is why horses suddenly turned out can get a bout of gas colic from the change in diet and the fermentation of the extra grass in their stomachs. There is also the problem that wet summer = good grass which is bad news if your horse suddenly gets extra grazing. I would invest in some electric fencing (or try to borrow some) rather sharply, and then limit the area she has, just giving her a few inches of new grass every day. Strip grazing in other words. My TB is out all the time at the moment, and we are in the dryest part of England, but with this summer the grass just hasn't stopped growing, and even he is getting porky. He is on just over half an acre now, with the electric fencing pushed back just one post at a time each day. So if a TB in a "dry" part of England is doing well, anything that is a good doer has to be at risk of laminitus. In fact our farrier has said that this year is one of the worst he has known for laminitus. I would limit your mare's grazing with electric fencing pronto. And try to make sure that she gets steady daily exercise as well.
 
hi,

i didnt read the posts, cuz i needa go,

but this gelding at my barn,

hes a pony, and like, an arab/welsh, and fairly "petite"

he looks like hes in foal!!! lol

ok, bubye!
 
grassfed

Eating 'non-stop' of course is the normal way that horses eat, a little and often. You'll find that there will be much less chance that a horse with 24hr access to good grass will colic, choke or founder (BIG caution on that last one, of course) - since when they know that they have 24hr grass, they don't tend to 'guzzle' but instead eat what they need as they feel they need it. There can be problems in adjusting, ie when they change from stable to paddock as it takes quite a long time for them to be comfortable that all this grass isn't going to be 'taken away' again.

Yes, they do get bigger bellies, not only is there gas, but high water content and just the additional bulk of grass vs grain. On the good side, grass bellies do 'deflate' easily with exercise and when you replace some grass with hard feed. Many performance horses switch to higher grain fed diets prior to competition to not only provide extra energy but to REDUCE the body mass that the horse needs to cart around...
 
Totally agree with virtuallyhorses - even in this awful weather, my TB prefers to be out rather than in - eating 24hrs (or, I believe it is normally only about 22hrs - the other two are spent dozing, grooming or playing).

I keep my horse in one night a week at the moment, so he can recharge his batteries (all that eating makes him very tired!) and 'deflate'! It does literally take just one night away from the grass for this to happen.

Once the grass goes down, the belly becomes less 'gassy', but if your horse is a little round anyway, i would recommend one night a week in the stable if possible and up the exercise. I also bring my horse onto the yard each night for an hour or so, which also helps.

Once they get used to being out 24hrs, they do slow down their eating, as virtuallyhorses has said. Just keep an eye out for the solid crest situation!! My friend's pony developed this within a week!
 
change of routine - unsettling?

Thanks for your replies - I'm still quite new to this looking after horses business, so I'm keen to get as much info as possible.

On a related note to her 'barrel belly' problem....my horse has been acting a bit strangely since she went out to grass. She has been quite tense and fidgety when I've brought her in, and she seems to have developed a very strong bond with the horses she is in the field with - whinneying, getting agitated when she is away from them etc. These are the same horses she is usually out in the field with, although she is usually just out for about 4-5 hours in the afternoon, rather than 24 hours.

When I've brought her in the last couple of evenings to check on her, I've had to tie her up in a different place because the livery yard is closed, and she has been quite agitated and tense to start with. She has that 'giraffe neck' stance, and doesn't even seem to realise I'm there (normally, she starts frisking me for treats as soon as she sees me!) She did relax after half an hour of fuss and attention, but it is quite strange behaviour for her.

I presume she is acting like this because her routine has been changed, and she has developed a stronger bond with her horsey friends because they have spent more time than usual together. I would love to get into her head to know whats going on in there.....

I'd be interested to hear your views.....
 
yep, sounds like you've dropped in importance to her. You now aren't her only source of food or friendship so you'll probably have to re-establish your relationship along new lines (respect).

Simple exercises like leading and basic ground manners will help, even if she's good, put her to the test and be firm but fair (consistant) so that she HAS to be aware that you're there. Make sure she ONLY gets treats if she does something particularly good, just turning up isn't good enough, and 'frisking' is not polite! a gentle smack on the nose might be in order - you are not a food vending machine ;)

Check out some of the NH info for things to do too if you like.

BTW if she is only out for 4-5 hrs - do be wary of the grass guzzling - she will definitely not get into a relaxed 16hr feeding routine and probably try to stuff as much down as possible, so a grass muzzle or restricted access may be required if you want to avoid laminitis etc

good luck
 
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