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Post by Skye Pilot on Mar 11, 2003 15:11:16 GMT -5
I have a girlfriend's horse that is going to be eventing. She has a pot belly even though she is worked all the time.... any suggestions on loosing the gut? Appy/TB cross.
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Post by relativecolor on Mar 11, 2003 15:18:17 GMT -5
I have the same question. My trainer has an Arab that breaks all conventions. He is over 16 hands tall and still growing at age seven. And he is so fat! If you didn't know hw was a gelding you would think he is pregnant. He is also not the 'flighty' type. But he is a big dork. He insists on tossing his head, trying to act like an Arab but then he quickly loses direction and walks the way he tossed his head, tosses it again, then walks that way, etc. But all the same he is a cutie.
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Post by Vida on Mar 11, 2003 16:33:14 GMT -5
It takes a good 4-8 weeks of consistent work to start seeing the belly diminish on a habitual fatso/easy keeper (if it's not worms or diet imbalance), especially if it was sitting idle for a long time before the work started. If the back is a little saggy, you really want to work on carrying power with the horse - ie. not letting it blob around on it's forehand but getting it to use it's back muscles/back end. Poles, hills, lots of changes of gait etc and don't sit into the horses back in the saddle. Kind of sit on the front of your crotch bones with your body in a straight line and try to keep the weight of your butt bones off the saddle (don't sit deep in other words) and this will encourage the horse to use it's back/bring it up and use those muscles which will in turn get rid of that belly flab. You'll know when you're sitting straight and not digging into the horses back when you're not flopping forward or backwards with changes of gait and when you're back feels good like it's in the perfect spot. This takes quite a bit of effort on the part of the rider so you'll be building the same muscles nearly that you're wanting your horse to build.
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Post by Skye Pilot on Mar 11, 2003 16:45:19 GMT -5
Thanks Vida....I will pass this along....really appreciate this.. She has a good topline ..... she stretches well into it and lifts her back.... she is a big mare... 16.1 H ... she has been worked all winter and ready for jumping and eventing competition in a few weeks..... my girlfriend has been riding her 5 -7 nights a week. Just a big bellie.... you can see her heave line when she is working...... again..... tubby.. the trainer has her doing 3 minute canters about 25 laps around the arena to condition her....
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Post by Lynne on Mar 11, 2003 17:55:16 GMT -5
Wow! good question and you know, you described both me and my horses! And Vida, thanks for the good answer. You make me feel even more shame than I already do because mine are all big bellied, all saggy in the back, and I definately need to work on those same areas of my own body!! Eeeeeshhhh....sounds so painfulllll...lol!
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Post by Vida on Mar 11, 2003 19:21:28 GMT -5
Ok, if the topline is good, then concentrate on opening the lungs. Add periodically every 2nd or 3rd ride to the lung work - ie. the canter/gallop. A couple of options. Add poles all over the place so she has to shorten and lengthen during the canter which is also a good option when you don't have access to hills or long grass to work in (don't do this if the horse is tired and could trip). After the 3 min canter, let her get her breath with some suppling work and then add another canter for 30 seconds or so and increase that time each 2nd or 3rd ride too. Build it up until the horse can easily manage 4 sets of 3 min canters during a ride (I'd do this every other or 3rd day). Generally I've found that once the lungs are fitter, the belly goes. Be careful to feed the work. Some people don't feed enough to a fatso horse thinking they're too fat and that just generally leads to their legs breaking down or them tripping when they're out of energy. If you keep on a good programme of fitness, you'll find that all of the sudden when you've about given up, the metabolism will change and the horse will start to use the fat and burn it up for fuel. The lung work is to get it to start burning the fuel. This is basically what I do with Mikhail who is terribly obese come each spring! The most fun and easiest thing is just to get the horse out with another for a good long ride as much as possible - they're a little competitive and raring to go. Trail riding builds great stamina, a great mind and a great body. If that's not possible, ride with another in the arena, or even pony the horse from another. I like to work on different muscles each day so that if we've worked on something hard one day, I'll rest those muscles the next day and do something different. Send them out in the arena with another and get them to free jump together. I free jump all 3 of mine together about once a week (when the weather allows) and they have a blast, plus it's fun to watch. During the freejumping, they often do short spurts of gallops which is great for their fitness (and bellies!). Whenever the horse has had to work pretty hard, be careful not to let it sit the next day so it doesn't tie up. If the horse doesn't lose it's belly, maybe it just wasn't meant to! Good luck and I'm about out of ideas!
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Post by Luci on Mar 11, 2003 19:31:02 GMT -5
Wow. Great info. for conditioning even without a potbelly. Thanks Vita!
Hmmmm, I think I'd better do that free jumping myself while my boy is laidup. ;D
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Post by Luci on Mar 11, 2003 19:32:25 GMT -5
Ops, I mean Vida, not Vita.  |
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Post by Kat on Mar 12, 2003 0:54:55 GMT -5
well, I just answered your post on the "other" BB, so hope you don't mind my copying and pasting...
I've always used Ration Plus to help with the hay bellies. It's what we gave all the Sales Prep TB's who were going to the Keeneland Auction, and I figured if it was good enough for them, then it was surely good eough for my backyard horses. Besides it's fairly cheap so it you're not out much if it doesn't help. Some other things you may try - besides general conditioning, which of course is key- is U Guard (for ulcers) and a daily deworming suppliment, like Strongit C.
Kat
ps - swimming is also great for conditioning - and its easy on the joints - though not on the hooves.
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Post by Skye Pilot on Mar 12, 2003 7:52:05 GMT -5
Thanks everyone.... I will show this to my girlfriend today.... sorry kat you had to post twice.. on the crazy on TB Horses site LOL (c-o-t-h) ....
Red and I ride lessons with the mare and her mom.. they are the same height, red and mare, but wow that girl is big!!!! Red is so much thinner. Her mom asked me to ask you guy what she can do about the belly.
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