Nutrition experts - need advice *PICS ADDED pg 2*

[Mellymoo]

Me again

So, my pony has wintered well so far, lost loads of weight - but not off his gut! He is thin everywhere apart from his pot belly He has been wormed, so that's not the problem.

I cannot cut his food any more, as he will end up skeletal everywhere except his tummy. I know that work will help him a bit, but it is still too dangerous round here to get out and about much.

Is it just his natural fjordie shape? Does he have something else wrong with him? Or does he just need to have a right good fart ;D

All advice gratefully received - people keep telling him he now looks pregnant, and I think he is getting a complex

[pd]

I'm not an expert, but I have one horse who also keeps a big belly. The key to it is two fold, first galloping and jumping make a big difference, once I'm getting her fit, I see her stomach muscles get fit and lift up. Secondly, I found that after a course of antibiotics it got bigger, and I was advised to give her YeaSacc, which improved her shape in just a few days.

[limepickle]

What do you actually feed him?

[irishcob]

Like pd above, I would be thinking more about muscle tone rather than diet. One of the best exercises for toning their stomach muscles is grid work and bounces - rather like sit ups for us!

[jen1]

id still test him for worms though mel, ive had a hell of a job getting rid of worms in most of mine this year and ebeded up having to worm twice , what did you worm him with and when and what for? belly lifts are also good for muscle tone, is he on linseed,?

[lisap]

Hi Mel
It's v likely that Jos has a 'hay belly' or 'grass belly'. When horses and ponies are fed a lot of fibre, often that fibre sort of 'sinks' into the belly and doesn't all get expelled. This makes the belly swell and the horse can look enormous, which is why I am a bit fanatical about people looking at their horse's topline rather than their tummy when gauging weight.

Someone else also posted about fast work and jumping helping, which is spot on. We do as much canter work as possible to help the neddies keep a toned tum, and lots of cantering up and down hills too.

There can be a danger that concerned owners see their horses/ponies with a big belly, and then just keep reducing their feed, when actually the horse still needs plenty to eat, but more hard feed and less forage, and more fast work.

[june]

What age is your horse? Diseases such as Cushings can result in ribby horses but still with big bellies.

[andyt]

One of our Dartmoors kept getting a large belly - I then read somewhere that native ponies can suffer from a magnesium deficiency when grazing on good grass which then causes their bellies to swell (a bit like us getting blown up with wind I should think!) We gave him some magnesium powder mixed up with some cubes for a while and the problem went away. Worth a try?

[jes]

My Welsh D is a similar shape. He always has a belly, even in winter. The only thing that helps is lots of exercise and correct schooling/longreining.

He always gets called fat in summer, even though he actually has no fat anywhere, just a big grass/hay belly. Gets me really mad!

[Mellymoo]

Thanks guys, I feel a bit better now! He is fed haylage, dengie good doer (which he hates!) and baileys lo-cal according to what he was on the weigh tape. He has no topline whatsoever, hence my concern - I don't want an emaciated pony on my hands!

So, correct work (we start as soon as the ice goes!) is the way to go. It is a novelty for me, having a horse that is not condition score 4 or 5!! His belly is, but the rest of him is 2 on a good day. I will try and get some of the other things you have mentioned (yeasacc etc) and see if that helps him to deflate a little!)

Thanks for your help so far!

[bertie666]

Ring Debbie at thunderbrooks feed, she is a nutrionist and will give you really good advice and their feed is free from fillers and rubbish and is organic too ;D

[lauranash]

Definately second the YeaSacc diet-wise, I saw a difference in my boys belly size when I put him on it.

[thegaffer]

I second Contact Debbie at Thunderbrook. No top line and a pot belly needs addressing, with good natural nutritional support as well as exercise.

[Telstar]

That doesn't sound the right shape for a Fjord! My mare is only getting hay, a tiny amount of mix/chaff to carry her Blue Chip balancer, and whatever grass there still is in the field. She has a rounded belly, but it's not huge, and the pretty chunky neck and backside Fjords usually seem to have. She isn't being worked at all at the moment, but is out 24/7 so retains a fair degree of natural fitness.

Do you think your little horse has lost condition because of the stress of his encounters with the wayward Exmoor? Also, why are you feeding him the Dengie Good-Doer, if he doesn't like it and isn't doing particularly 'good' at the moment? I echo what others have posted about getting advice from a good nutritionist.

Another thought - do you worm for encysted redworm? I ended up nearly losing my little Exmoor fella a few years ago due to these.

[Mellymoo]

He is on good doer because at the time I bought it he was fat! There's only a small amount left to use up now. I have contacted Debbie and Thunderbrook, and I am going to place an order for some of their feed to try him on. I wormed him for everything in November, equest I think it was, but perhaps I need to get a worm count done as well. Mmm, lots to think about!

He is bright enough in himself, and hoons around the field as usual. I thought he had worms before I wormed him, as his belly was so huge, but it has not really gone down much at all.

Debbie at Thunderbrook recommended the basic feed, plus the gut cleanse and gut restore - has anyone use the gut ones, and what did you think of them? They do sound good, and that they might help him.