getting fat off a 2yr

[dpj]

hi everyone,

just wondering what you do to get fat off a 2yr almost 3 (will be in 2016)? i have two really fat 2yr olds, and dont know what to do with them to make them thinner cause free lunging is not cutting it... they get 1/2 cup of a ration balance pellet, and a cup of roughage chunk a day. for hay really not sure how much cause i board them, at least 3lbs.

they show aswell, after show season finish i gave them some time off. this is when they got fat, i have been back to free lunging for 1 month now but they still seem to be getting worse not better. whats the best fat burning gait trot or canter?

my one has huge issues with keeping a top line even with work. in show season hes getting close to 4cups a day, 2 roughage and the other 2 mixture of a fat pellet and then ratio balance. and 20 mins a day of free lunging. the other one keeps so easy! looks good most time when she not fat.

thank you

 

[chandab]

How tall are they? What do they weigh? Are you sure they're fat? Winter hair makes them look bigger than they are; lay your hands on them, how do the feel through their fur. Are they thin along their topline (spine and hips)? Are they thin along the ribs? [How easy or hard is it to feel their ribs/bones.]

[i had a very sick mare, who's time had come, so I had the vet out to euthanize her. The mare was fuzzy. I asked the vet how she thought she looked, vet said fine... I asked the vet to lay her hands on the mare and feel through that hair, she said "oh my, god", she couldn't believe how thin the mare was under her fuzzies. Why did I tell this story, to illustrate how important it is to lay your hands on them, especially this time of year, when fuzzies can really hide their condition.]

 

[dpj]

It's fat no ribs no hips not one bone felt. I pressed and felt its fat. They are 30 and 31 inches. 250# I would like to see them at a little over 200, espically for show season. This is what they where prior to me giving them time off(was a big mistake)

Thanks

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

I'd cut the hay by half.

 

[chandab]

If you want or need to keep the roughage chunks, then drop the hay down to 2# daily, might have to weigh it to verify only 2#. Or perhaps start with weighing what they are eating now, and verify it's 3#, they might be getting way more than you think.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

I agree, weigh the hay.

I'm also very against 'free lunging.' I work my horses at Liberty, yes, but often times free lunging is just 'free chasing.' Think of the top equine athletes - I really doubt American pharaoh's exercise regime involves being chased around a pasture on a 4 wheeler or an indoor with a whip. I came from a horse family - mom managed a very big and successul apply training farm for 8 years - free lunging as I see 98% of people do it would've gotten us beaten into the next week! I was always taught it's a recipe for a leg injury and just plain bad and lazy horsemanship to chase. You can accomplish training while exercising by being a little more controlled. A lot of people here in particular disagree with me, but to each his own.

Try lunging on a line with a bitting rig on at a trot. I start with a low headset and bring it up slowly, so they learn to properly get under themselves and round their back up - and tuck their belly up in the process. I also lunge on hills, over poles, small jumps, cavalettis, 'obstacles' (such as tarps, through a chute, etc) at a trot. It makes them work their bodies and brains harder. Cantering is easier so they don't muscle up quite so well. My rule is lunge until they are sweaty and tired, then 10 more rounds on a biggy, 3 or 4 more on a mini, cause they have a lot further to move and more steps on a 25' line, then cool out for 10-15 minutes.

When I do work at Liberty, it's rarely over a controlled canter. I can send my stud around me, over or under things, or tell him to step into things. 99.9% of which he learned without a halter or cookies, just a stick ( I should add not in a threatening way!!). I still force him to work his brain at Liberty, not just a mad chase.

 

[amysue]

How often do you go see them and work them? Since you board, are you sure that they are being fed properly? Many people over feed the little ones. Could someone at the stable be sneaking treats? I used to encounter this a lot working at other barns before running my own. Perhaps you could go buy a small scale and leave it at the stable to aid the manager with proper rationing. Actually weigh it out to get an idea of what it looks like and check to see what they are actually getting now. If you plan to pursue showing, I would recommend figuring out an exercise and training schedule and sticking to it. The above post is right on about the exercise suggestions. Free lunging doesnt usually do enough to keep a show horse fit. If it is a time constraint, at least round pen them in a bitting rig or over poles to encourage trotting vs cantering and be sure to gradually increase the workouts in duration and intensity to ensure that they are building muscle, not just maintaining.

 

[dpj]

Good Point about the free lunging, I was only doing it ca use I thought lunging on a line with a bit rig was bad for a 2 year old?

I have started long liNing, to prep them for driving next year. Is that any benefit.

I tend to to worK them 5-6 days a week depending on my work schedule.

I don't think any one is giving them treats because it is only me and the owner of the property and she knows they are on a diet. As for the hay I will ask her to cut it back.

Thank you everyone.

 

[AngC]

I'm also very against 'free lunging.' I work my horses at Liberty, yes, but often times free lunging is just 'free chasing.' Think of the top equine athletes - I really doubt American pharaoh's exercise regime involves being chased around a pasture on a 4 wheeler or an indoor with a whip. I came from a horse family - mom managed a very big and successul apply training farm for 8 years - free lunging as I see 98% of people do it would've gotten us beaten into the next week! I was always taught it's a recipe for a leg injury and just plain bad and lazy horsemanship to chase. You can accomplish training while exercising by being a little more controlled. A lot of people here in particular disagree with me, but to each his own.

hmmm, I'm puzzled by the terminology, I think?

I don't understand the difference between what you call "free lunging" vice what you call "at liberty." We encourage ours to run. ...no 4-wheelers or whips; sometimes I clap my hands to get them going. Is that bad to have them run around the pasture?

I'm kind of hesitant to lunge because we don't have a nice solid surface; and we have voles and moles, whose holes seem like leg-snapping potential. I do lunge Nicky because he's a smidge lazy and blind so he doesn't run as frequently on his own (try to do it on as level surface as I can) but for the girls, I prefer them to pick their footing and run free. I didn't realize this was frowned upon.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

When I work at Liberty, I do not ever just chase for exercise, I make them work! I can send my stud around me in a tight circle each direction. We practice showmanship at Liberty too, cause it works his mind better. I've even done jump courses without a halter (not just chasing through a chute!). I work on moving away from me, but still 'joining up.'

My stud I'm beginning to teach how to 'send.' For example, we worked on stepping in a tire. Then we worked on him walking away from me and stepping into the tire on command.

I want to win our showmanship freestyle this year, so I'm working on getting him to do a perfect showmanship pivot without me until he hits my other side, then come back around the other way.