Making your horse lose weight
Making your horse lose weight is important in certain cases. Risks of laminitis and the appearance of certain diseases... Excess weight must be taken care of quickly so as not to endanger the horse's health. If certain breeds are predisposed due to their hardiness, the same protocol applies to all horses and allows effective action. Here are some golden rules to follow.
Why monitor your horse's body condition?
The digestive physiology of equines is adapted to a low-energy, high-fiber diet. In the wild, horses graze grass in small amounts throughout the day (15 h/day).
By making them sedentary, domestication has considerably influenced their eating behavior. A reduced space, with access to food of too good quality and/or quantity as well as the lack of exercise promote weight gain. However, being overweight is very bad for the general health of the horse. It is a risk factor that can lead to the appearance of certain diseases: laminitis, insulin resistance, equine metabolic syndrome (EMS), cardiovascular diseases, osteochondrosis in young horses, colic, reduced fertility, etc.
Ban concentrates to make your horse lose weight
Fat horses, especially those that do not exercise much, do not need energy. The provision of energy supplements for these categories of equines is therefore useless. For horses with higher needs (growth/gestation/lactation/sport) who are overweight, a readjustment of the intake of concentrates is necessary. On the other hand, the provision of a vitaminized mineral feed (AMV) and a salt stone should not be neglected, to rebalance any possible deficit in forage. You will find certain foods suitable for weight loss in horses on La Sellerie Française .
Distribute high-fiber fodder.
A diet based on fibrous forages low in energy (sugars/starch) is the key to an effective diet to make your horse lose weight. The more advanced the stage of maturity of the grass, the more fibrous it is and the lower its nutritional value (sugar/protein content). Therefore, favor a daily intake of hay harvested late at the earing stage (mid-June/July) at a rate of 1.0 -1.5% of the horse's live weight (in kg of dry matter).
Controlling access to pasture
The aim is to limit the ingestion of fresh grass, particularly in spring and autumn, periods when the young grass is very rich. To do this, the overweight horse must be kept in a bare paddock or with little grass. Several solutions are possible: limit grazing of areas at the leafy stage (5-15cm) where the grass is too rich. For example, move the space allocated to the horse with a wire, offering a reduced area of fresh grass each day. Graze areas at an advanced vegetative stage (more fibrous grass, therefore less rich). Graze overgrazed areas. Have overweight horses pass behind horses with higher needs or other animals. The horse will then be forced to "scratch" the refuse, tall grass at an advanced vegetative stage, rich in cellulose and poor in sugars/proteins.
Slow down ingestion
Use equipment such as slowfeeders, hay nets, muzzles, etc. and divide the distribution of fodder throughout the day to encourage chewing, salivation and therefore good digestion.
Do exercise
The obese horse struggles to exercise because it lacks physical condition, not energy! It therefore needs physical activity, certainly moderate and adapted, but regular to get back into shape.
Adapting to the seasons
In spring and fall, pay attention to the richness of the grass and the quantities offered. Approach winter as the horse would in nature, that is to say without blanket. The cold will naturally make it burn fat, therefore lose weight. Consider limiting/delaying hay supplementation at the beginning of winter.