Obese

[gtr121]

I was so looking forward this year to judges being brave enough to throw out morbidly obese ponies but it is not happening. They still seem to be winning classes! Has anyone else seen a judge brave enough to do the right thing?

[hollycane]

I'm a judge and I do put real fatties down the line and tell the owners why. I witheld RIHS qualification for one at a show last year only for it to qualify under a different judge 3 weeks later. I agree I'm looking forward to judges uniting in discouraging over fat animals. But it needs some radical action, like completely witholding all the rosettes in a class.
I want to know when owners/producers are going to stop putting over fat animals in the ring. I mean which part of obese don't they understand? We all look at the same publications from the same societies and have seen the guidelines.
It's not just down to the judges but I agree it's the only way showing people are going to learn.

[gtr121]

Thanks for that Hollycane. I was begining to think that I was the only anti obese person left on the planet.

[handcanter]

I noticed a really flippant comment from H+H on the letters page last week. In reply to a letter about stopping printing photgraphs of obese animals the reply was something along the lines of "we can only print the results as they happen" They don't seem to understand that if there is a ring full of fatties one of them will win unless they all get eliminated.
I'm with Hollycane, I think the responsibility is with the producers.

How about H+H printing a disclaimer from the judge saying something like "This animal won on the day but is far too fat. However it was the best ride/conformation... on the day"
Either that or the showing societies encourage obesity in animals to be along the same lines as a curb i.e. kiss of death. At least a horse could recover from obesity.

[mcw]

Fat animals make me sick!

[chocoholic]

Feb 9, 2010 11:35:49 GMT handcanter said:

I noticed a really flippant comment from H+H on the letters page last week. In reply to a letter about stopping printing photgraphs of obese animals the reply was something along the lines of "we can only print the results as they happen" They don't seem to understand that if there is a ring full of fatties one of them will win unless they all get eliminated.
I'm with Hollycane, I think the responsibility is with the producers.

How about H+H printing a disclaimer from the judge saying something like "This animal won on the day but is far too fat. However it was the best ride/conformation... on the day"
Either that or the showing societies encourage obesity in animals to be along the same lines as a curb i.e. kiss of death. At least a horse could recover from obesity.

Not necessarily. Laminitis is not always recovered from.

[pencaedu]

But not all laminitics are fat..........

[gtr121]

If the producers had their ponies thrown out of the ring for being obese by the judges then the producers would quickly toe the line!

[hollycane]

I would love to be able to throw them out but I think that judges should be able to really put them to the bottom of the line without fear. I just don't understand why, after quite a few years of publicity about obesity in show horses, we still have so many grossly fat animals and there is no consistency from all of our judges. Producers take this as a sign of complicity and continue to put fatties in the ring.
I for one will continue to dump them at the bottom and I'm going to be telling them why but even louder this year, hopefully so more people will over hear and I can shame 'em into knocking weight off.

[halfpass]

Perhaps the producers of today don't know how to produce a fit but flesh covered animal?

[Deleted]

I won't put fat up

[thecremellosociety]

You cant win !!!! Notoriously charlie always tucks up pre show, sho week before show made sure warm with good access to hay, and a small feed of fibre based feed NO cereals once a day, Hes looking over well for him, did well but told he too fat, to be honest i agreed and hes back on a really amount of hay again, but also been told my coloured mare, i got her quite fit last year, she had dropped too much !!!!! I have always belived in fit not fat, and never over fed mine, sure charlies has come from lack of going out and being in quite a bit bit soggy fields, i resgularly condition score both mine in my head and at the mo char is over a 3 and Keisha i would say 2.5 ideally would like them both with enough covering if not quite a bit less coming into spring.

[thecremellosociety]

Re Laminitis the mare i had PTS in 2002 after a long fight was positivly thin

[mcw]

I was actually watching an M&M first ridden class years ago and the one of the little dartys was soooooo chubby! I was actually concerned for the child, she really couldn't get it to move. It turned out that the judge had told the jockey that her pony was way to fat and made the jockey cry! But when you think about it, keeping an obese animal is animal cruelty. The pony was asked to leave the ring in the end. I quite like that judge, at least she made the owners see how cruel they were being! The pony could barely move! But whether the pony got taken off them I don't know.

[ShowPonies&Shetlands]

i in no way agree with morbidly obese ponies being shown, but my old SP was a horrifically good doer, and with dainty little show pony legs he looked very fat at shows. no matter how much i rode him he still stayed fat, but he was happy and healthy and never got lami.I think that people forget that horses are often kept on farm land, which is notoriously rich, if it has been used for hay, and is nigh on impossible to keep a horse slim on. no smiting please, only my opinion, i abhor it when the ponies can obviously not handle the showing/jumping and are uncomfortable because of their weight, but not all chubby ponies are unhappy and mistreated.

[dun4u]

In my book you shouldn't be able to see the ribs but you should be able to just feel them, when stroking with the fingers along the rib-cage.

[hunter]

also remember the depth of the pony makes all the differance ,say a traditional deep welsh cob will allways look fatter than an arab or tb no matter how thin it is ,so when covered in summer /show condition to the un educated eye if may appear fat !

[nici]

One of my two mini Shets always looks fat, especially when compared to the other (her mum), however despite their close relationship, they are built completely differently. Mum has a smaller ribcage and longer legs, daughter has a much rounder ribcage and shorter legs. However on both I can feel the ribs when running my hand along, as dun4u says. People often comment on how "fat" little Megs is, and then are quite surprised when they feel her ribs.

The difference is even more pronounced at the moment, as mum is clipped and rugged this winter, while daughter is very woolly and naked - and that adds a good few inches to her visible size!

[viklady]

Feb 9, 2010 17:30:18 GMT pencaedu said:

But not all laminitics are fat..........

Mine was not fat and had a really bad case of lami for 6 months BUT think these really fat ponies are becoming a joke now, The poor animals are feed up to there eye balls on crazy feeds just to be in with the trend and winning the reds.

Its about time now that the owners realise how fat they are and need to be told.

My pony was not at all fat but yes mine got lami and really opened my eyes to fat ponies and to think of them going through all the pain mine went through for 6 months and it all to be caused by there owners is SICKKKKKKK

[hs]

There are other methods of reducing his weight other than just exercise - feeding and management can really help - for example he could have soaked hay and wear a grazing muzzle in the field. If he did get laminitic you would have been forced for health reasons to get his weight down - there are plenty of people with laminitic good doers who have to keep their ponies weight in check it can be done if people really want to do it.

I do have a good doer and I know it is really hard to keep the weight off in the summer but I try and make sure he does not come out of the winter too fat and he is deliberately kept on not so good grazing during the summer with other good doer ponies and if he has hay for travelling it is soaked and he is on the diet food as well as exercise.

I am sure if people realised the health risks of being overweight not just lami but their hearts and lungs and strain on their legs of carrying too much weight even if the ponies are happy they might be more careful. After all ill ponies who have to stay at home to recover are not going to win many reds are they.

Feb 10, 2010 20:01:11 GMT ShowPonies&Shetlands said:

i in no way agree with morbidly obese ponies being shown, but my old SP was a horrifically good doer, and with dainty little show pony legs he looked very fat at shows. no matter how much i rode him he still stayed fat, but he was happy and healthy and never got lami.I think that people forget that horses are often kept on farm land, which is notoriously rich, if it has been used for hay, and is nigh on impossible to keep a horse slim on. no smiting please, only my opinion, i abhor it when the ponies can obviously not handle the showing/jumping and are uncomfortable because of their weight, but not all chubby ponies are unhappy and mistreated.

[ShowPonies&Shetlands]

here is a picture of us at ivybridge show 2006 - we had several comments about his weight, but in my opinion he looks fine - this was at his fattest. i know i am too big for him, so no need for any comments about that. sorry for crapness of pic, taken from telly. he is now with a new owner on poorer grass and is lovely and slim, btw.

[sweetpea]

my 3 y/o mare wasnt placed at a show.i asked judge why and i was gutted.she said bit to fat and didnt move well.lol.bit to much nice grass.i thought she looked good not fat.

[network]

I always struggle in breed classes with my D Gelding as am always told he is not fat enough , you cannot see is ribs but can feel them if you run your hands over them, I have to be careful because I also show him as a veteran and they seem to like them leaner Perhaps judges should take a leaf out of the VHS judges books

[sarahp]

Well I've been moved down from 2/10 to last because the pony was too fat a few years ago! Fair enough, she was, I've no complaints on that reasoning. But she's SUCH a good doer she is a nightmare to try to keep slim, she spent the winter of 2008/9 out on a desert with no extra food whatever, and at the first show in the spring she was in perfect show condition, so much so that when we took her with the babies (she was often are lorry "nanny' to avoid leaving a yearling on its own) we took her in the ring too and she won her class! Subsequently she got too fat even on what looked like nothing - and I manage my grass for natives and low ryegrass, it looks dreadful from a farmer's eye - only being broken and ridden did the trick. I always have a field or two that is VERY poor keep, but some will still get fat unless drastic measures are taken which aren't always practically possible. She's not laminitic, by the way.

[presley]

I watched a couple of showing classes last weekend at the Trailblazers showing event and was apalled at the weight on some of those poor animals... i couldn't believe my eyes on a few of them on walking round the arena, you could literally see the fat wobbling... what a sight.. it was an awful sight to see......

I too have an extremely good doer who could live off a concrete field and STILL have a good covering!! I'm constantly fighting to keep his weight off and just when i have him looking good,.. along come summer and the grass... He will be taken off the herd grazing this summer when needs be and be put into a small grazing paddock as i don't want a repitition of last year and his crest coming up and him putting on far too much weight.

He comes in during the day and he's out over night during the summer months too so he's managed that way too..

[dun4u]

Presley said "He comes in during the day and he's out over night during the summer months too so he's managed that way too.. "

Trouble is, when you think about it, the number of 'night' hours grazing are usually more than daylight hours, and they are more likely to eat their heads off during the long, cool night than they do when standing under the shade of a tree during the heat of the day. Can't win, either way!!!

[mol123]

out at night and in in the day does keep weight off - dont ask me why but it does work. presley this sight seems to be common at shows atm - especially m and ms - the mare i ride stares in horror at some of them on the go round panting and sweating after 1 lap of canter! we keep getting beat by fatties as she looks almost thin stood next to then (and she isnt thin!) seems unfair but at least she is healthy if judges place these ponies people will continue to produce them as all they want are the placings/qualifications, wish judges round here would grow a pair and throw them out!

[presley]

I know Dun4U...!!.. Ha.. I can't win can i! He's a traditional cob so feels the heat more than others because of his mane, tail and feathers that he has (which are constantly plaited in summer).. bless.., that's another reason why he goes out at night,.. that and if we get a chillier night then he has to work at keeping warm rather than having the sun on his back during the day!! I ride after work when he's been in and he's nice and fresh so I'm not bringing a 'stuffed' boy out of the field to ride of an evening!..

He's on half hay half straw in his nets at present and he will stay on this now as it helps so much with keeping the weight down, but gives him enough fibre in his diet...

I'm determined to try my bloomin' best to keep the weight from piling on this year as i want me boy to live for a few more years yet ... and i want a healthy and fit boy at that!!

P x

[manes&muzzles]

dont think you can win really..especially with Ds as thats where alot of the debate is..the breed of a D is so versatile you can have lean Ds and well set extremly stocky Ds..i was told a D should look in three almost parts shoulders bum and belly by a judge...therefore people quickly jump on the waggon and say its to fat for a D...(can i just say I hate fat ponies) but in my opinion when you look down the front of a horse and its belly doesnt stick out i dont consider it fat but deep set..because obviously bigger shoulder width means bigger belly...but what gripes me is sp with fine legs and heads and pot bellys and M and Ms with fallen down crests this is my version of horrendous...I think judges dont withdraw the ponies simply because they all dont agree with what they thinks fat and what the other judge thinks fat...after all what is the deffinition of fat...i think all horses should be weighed in that would then shock owners-producers just like horse racing horses..if its overweight go home and get your pony in fit condition lol xxxx

[sarahp]

Must admit my youngstock seem not to get fat naturally, they just grow! And I won't feed them up for showing, I want them to grow up healthy and last a long time, they get balancer and more attention paid to their exact weight if going showing but that's all. It's the adults I can have trouble with, As more than Ds, those are fine. But D youngstock do seem to be shown fatter than As, so I just hardly show the Ds any more, only a little for valuable ring experience. And they don't get shod either.