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Concern
Jun 17, 2015 12:22:50 GMT
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Post by Genuine on Jun 17, 2015 12:22:50 GMT
So the vet has visited and made a comment He said be very careful as your horse has a crest n will be prone to lami... I am aware of all this.. This isn't the issue
What is the issue is I thought I was working my pony in a correct outline and building his muscle and top line..... So how do I know the difference Thanks
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Concern
Jun 17, 2015 15:24:54 GMT
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Post by titch on Jun 17, 2015 15:24:54 GMT
No large crest is a good one. Ponies I have had in the past with crests have had laminitis . I have a fattish pony no crest and touch wood never had it. I do think crests do show a case of a horse or pony more likely to develop it.
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sarahp
Happy to help
Posts: 9,510
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Post by sarahp on Jul 4, 2015 10:05:23 GMT
A crest is bigger than correct muscling up would be, and if hard can signal danger. A pony that has had a big hard crest for some time may never lose it - you can slim them but it will soften and fall over on one side in extreme cases. I have a couple of ponies that threaten to get lami if they get too fat, and I monitor them by feeling their crests - if soft they're OK, but if hard they come in off the grass immediately and it's amazing how quickly the hardness goes from the crest, long before any discernable weight loss takes place.
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Post by sageandonionagain on Jul 6, 2015 7:37:57 GMT
Fat is often described as 'topline' in the showing world. I would lose the term completely from your vocabulary. Continue to work your pony correct from back to front in a snaffle bridle and the correct topline will be there. Anything on his crest is fat. Vets rarely comment on this to clients as owners are sensitive to any suggest that their ponies (or children) are the F word. So if my vet made this comment to me unprompted I would be on red alert, you have been warned.
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sarahp
Happy to help
Posts: 9,510
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Post by sarahp on Jul 6, 2015 11:39:58 GMT
I have always taken the term topline to mean the whole length of the top of the horse from the poll to the tail root, regardless of its condition. It may have no topline, ie no muscle (let alone fat) whatsoever, have good desirable muscle development as a result of correct schooling, be over fat, or anywhere in between. And stallions may well have a crest anyway, not necessarily an undesirable one, purely because of their sex. I wouldn't know what word to use instead if I lost topline from my vocab!
Having had my say on terminology, I entirely agree with S&O that many ponies are over fat these days, especially in the showing world, to the detriment of their health.
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Post by Hopefully helping on Jul 8, 2015 19:49:06 GMT
There is a great video on youtube made by Dodson and Horrell: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgQMA5iACyUBasically anything above the area of the nuchal ligament is fat as a horse cannot build muscle above it, the video shows you where to look and feel.
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Post by Toaster on Jul 8, 2015 20:02:20 GMT
There is a great video on youtube made by Dodson and Horrell: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgQMA5iACyUBasically anything above the area of the nuchal ligament is fat as a horse cannot build muscle above it, the video shows you where to look and feel. Thats a really interesting video thank you for posting it
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Post by Hopefully helping on Jul 8, 2015 20:57:29 GMT
No Problem Most of the info I could find relating to fat scoring only showed pictures or basic info. This really helped in understanding what to feel for rather than just what to look for
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