I Bought a morbidly obese late term older mare

[slaneyrose]

Perhaps we just have our horses in different condition, and are therefore used to different weights

I agree with Rabbit, it IS different types of minis from the american ones, I have a mare from Rabbits stud and she is the chunkiest horse I own, and she only has to LOOK at food to put weight on!!

: Its their shetland breeding (the original ones from scotland) that are responsible as these ponies had to survive practically on fresh air!! I also have several american minis and 2 of them eat like racehorses and I am always feeding them up to keep weight ON them. :lol: If this mare is shetlandy (the scottish type) even sensible feeding wont help her reduce her weight....I definitely think you should follow the good advise here and get the vet to examine her to see what is foal and what is fat and ask him to advise a feeding program as I have seen a friend of mine lost a foal at birth BECAUSE she was too fat to give birth easily and he used to think pregnant mares should have hay constantly, which is probably true in most cases but like my Slaney that would be detrimental to her and her foal, so she is on restricted hay and feed while pregnant and is STILL fat!

 

[Hosscrazy]

I am one of the moderators on the Cushings/IR (Insulin Resistance) site and while your mare may be IR, the first thing the group will ask you to do is have your horse vet checked. Please let us know what you find out.

Best wishes,

Liz R.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

That is not what I meant, as I think you well know.

The mare in question is out of an AMHA mare, as I told you.

I meant that different horses are different types- Blue is definitely a very chunky mare- as are a lot of American horses- whereas the majority of my animals, although they weigh in at a different weight to their American counterparts, are a completely different build, sylph like in comparison!!

I like my broodmares to look like broodmares and each horse, as each human, has a different optimum weight.

I do not actually think the American horses are slimmer, naturally, - they have exactly the same origins as ours, the same bloodlines, the same Shetland ancestors (proper Shetlands, not American Shetlands only).

I think we have become accustomed to keeping our animals at different weights, that is all.

 

[slaneyrose]

Having both american and british horses I would have to disagree, as I have said the americans I cant feed them enough and they are still extremely slender and the ones with old style shetland in them are the opposite. I`m not keeping them at different optimum weights, they just are...different...

Do you know what the breeding of this mare is?? A picture probably would give us more of a clue but as Hoss crazy said....your vet is the one to advise you.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

Well said Jane! :aktion033: :aktion033: :aktion033:

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[midnight star stables]

Hey Rabit, my Billy IS over 500 pounds as of last week

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[Boinky]

honestly i'd be hesitant to do a diet with her at this stage of the game without discussing it with a vet first..HOWEVER...don't forget that she's due to foal anytime now and the foal will be sucking the snot out of her for the next 4+ months... MANY MANY mares loose weight during this time... If it's truly just a weight issue and nothing medically wrong with her to make her obeses.. then i'd wait and see if the foal brings her down some BEFORE you make her loose weight. she just may need all that extra weight if it's like some foals!