Feeding pony - How much hay to feed?
Many people are not sure how much hay to feed.
If you feed a horse too much the horse will gain too much weight and also hay will be wasted as it will end up on the floor and will get trodden on in the process.
Once the hay has been contaminated the horse will not eat it.
To little hay and the horse will begin to loose ground.
What to feed horse
In order to get the balance right you need to know how heavy the horse is.
Other factors to consider are whether the horse is over weight or underweight.
How heavy is my horse?
There are a few ways in which you can determine the weight of your horse, guessing the weight is not the answer.
Weighbridge
You can walk the horse on to a public weighbridge and calculate the weight of both of you, then minus your weight gives you the correct weight of the horse.
The other option is to weigh the horsebox or trailer with the horse in it, then weigh again minus the horse to calculate the weight of the horse.
Weight tape
A weight tape is a special measuring tape, which you can purchase online, tack shops or good feed merchants stores.
You measure around the girth area back up to just behind the withers so you might need another person to give you a hand as you pass the tape under the belly and up over the other side back to you.
The tape will read off his weight.
Is your horse the correct weight?
Feeding pony
A fat horse is put under a lot of strain when you work him.
He will tire very quickly and his organs such as the heart and lungs will be affected, it is also very difficult to find a saddle that will fit an obese horse.
The ribs of a horse should be covered, but easily felt.
The backbone should be well covered but again the spine should be felt.
There should be no gutter or dipping along the back and neck should be firm without a crest.
An obese horse has a wide firm neck or a fold and pockets of fat.
The ribs cannot be felt and the back is wide and flat with a deep gutter,continuing to the top of tail.
At the other end of the scale the underweight horse has visible ribs with a narrow neck, slack or ewe necked.
How much hay to feed -What to feed horse?
A deep cavity under the tail and a sunken rump.
This diagram shows a horse that is very poor.
Very sunken rump
Deep cavity under tail
Skin tight over bones
Very prominent backbone and pelvis
Marked ewe neck
Poor horse
Sunken rump
Cavity under tail
Ribs easily visible
Prominent backbone and croup
Ewe neck, narrow and slack
Moderate condition
Flat rump either side of back bone
Ribs just visible
Narrow but firm neck
Backbone well covered
Feeding pony
Good condition
Rounded rump
Ribs just covered but easily felt
No crest, firm neck
Fat horse
Well-rounded rump
Gutter along back
Ribs and pelvis hard to feel
Slight crest
Very fat horse
Very bulging rump
Deep gutter along back
Ribs buried
Marked crest
Folds and pockets of fat
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