From: Betsy Harrison
Hi! I just found your site while surfing and I love it and think it's full of great advice! Thank you!
My question is this: We have just brought (a month ago) our pony home from a boarding barn where he lived for 3 years. He had very little, in fact no pasture at all. He was turned out everyday but the grass was all eaten away. He was fed 2x a day (morning and evening) a cup of grain and a flake of hay, at each feed. Since bringing him home, we have kept his feed the same (12% sweet feed) and stayed at the same feeding amounts and schedules. He is VERY happy here, even though he is alone (except with 4 barn kittens!) We have grass in our pasture, so his turn out has been very limited. I am aware how quickly a pony can founder! The touble is, he is very fat! He looks like he's in foal! Help! Am I doing something wrong? How can I safely reduce his size? He has always been a little stocky, I think it's his breed. (We aren't sure of his breed, but he looks like a combination of a Welsh and a Dales)
He's a wonderful pony, 16 years young, and a great companion to my daughter. How long do ponies usually live? I've heard of some as old as 40+!! With the weather turning colder, I don't want to slim him down too much. Should I wait until spring to put him on a diet? He also isn't ridden as much now due to the snow and ice (terrifies my daughter). Maybe once a week! He loves to run and play in his little pasture (and roll in the mud as often as possible) :)
Thanks for any help you can give! Suggestions are always welcome as this is all new to us!
Betsy Harrison
It won't hurt your pony, and it may help him a lot, if you cut the grain out of his diet. Call your vet and ask his advice -- he'll probably agree that you should cut out the grain; he can always change his mind once he's seen the pony. And he DOES need to see the pony! In fact, he needs to come out to look at the pony, inspect the hay and pasture, and help you design a feeding program for this pony AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. A foundered pony is not something you want, and a pony that founders once is likely to founder again, with even less provocation.
Don't worry about the weather turning colder -- yes, it's good for equines to go into winter carrying a little bit of extra fat, but a pony that looks pregnant is in danger. Your vet will be able to recommend a vitamin supplement if he feels that the pony needs more than grass or hay -- and you may find that you're giving the pony high-quality, "high-octane" hay when what he really needs is lower-protein grass hay. Two cups of grain doesn't sound like much, but for a pony, it can make the difference between "in good flesh" and "dangerously fat." Again, your vet will be able to advise you. In the interest of keeping your pony warm throughout the winter, though, he's better off eating MORE grass hay and NO grain -- the grain won't keep him warm, but the hay will. It's the process of digesting roughage that keeps a horse warm in winter.
Talk to your vet about the pasture grass, also. It's quite possible that at this time of year, its nutritive value is so low that it would be safe to keep the pony out most of the time -- and the exercise would help keep the pony healthy. I'm sure that between you, you'll be able to devise a good program of sensible feeding, regular de-worming, and turnout and exercise. He's only sixteen, which means that you could have another twenty years to enjoy this pony -- enlist your vet's aid in keeping him healthy and fit!
Jessica
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