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  Discussion on Horses that are just plain fat
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Posted on Sunday, Oct 28, 2001 - 12:48 am:

I have a 20 year old Morgan mare that is a very easy keeper. She has been pasture foundered but that isn't severe. I took her off my parents' pasture in June of 2000. I had her on a dry lot in a stable, but she didn't lose weight. The people running the stable wouldn't listen to my feeding instructions and gave her too much grain and hay with Alfalfa in it. I took her from that stable and I have had her in a barn at a farm for two months. I was only feeding her four flakes of hay a day and two cups of oats. She has lost some weight, but she still has a crest and a lot of fat everywhere else. The grass is dying and because of the expense of renting, I need to put her on the pasture.

This past spring my farrier told me that I could ride her but to keep it to a walk or trot. When I rode her, she was excited and wanted to run. I held her back to a trot. When the ride was over, she was breathing very heavily. That scares me about riding her.

Also someone once told me that it isn't good to ride an over weight horse. Is that true?

Posted on Sunday, Oct 28, 2001 - 12:57 pm:

My husband's big 16h3 23yr old Morgan is a very easy keeper like your mare. He gets 7x24 turnout on not very lush grass, about 6 flakes timothy hay, and about 6c of grain (half sweet, half oats) divided into 2 feedings. He's in regular work, ridden 5-6 days a week -- 1 or 1.5hr trail rides, WTC and the occasional gallop, some XC jumps. The moment he gets a little less exercise than usual, up goes his weight.

He's on the chunky side now, and I think we should further reduce his grain -- in fact, I think we could phase it out altogether and add more hay to his diet. The hard part is the human urge to dish up and serve what the horse is so keen to get. As it is, my husband feels stingy dishing out 3 2.5 qt meals a day to my 16h3 20yr Hanoverian, and just a few handfuls to his horse.

All this to say it sounds from your post that you know what to feed her, and it sounds like she will enjoy getting back into condition. Just introduce changes gradually, both on the feed and the exercise. I've always been told you can get a horse fit just trotting them. Take it slow and consistent and make it a regular regimen, maybe keep a log of the work you're asking her to do and how she's responding. Start with what seems a good number of minutes of sustained trot, give her a break to recover, repeat. Do that for a week or so, then increase the length of the intervals a little.

Exercise will help her reduce. I think keeping the older ones moving keeps them young.

Melissa
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