Fat is Not Jolly

To all of you who cringe whenever I laughingly refer to my fat mare, the joke's on me, and it's not very funny. One of the main risks for obese horses is a condition called Founder that is very serious and can be life-threatening. Basically the horses feet are made in proportion to the size it's body should be and are not made to support hundreds of extra pounds continually. They break down and ultimatly the hoof separates from the bone and sloughs off leaving the horse unable to stand or move until a hoof grows back which can be a year or more.

Well, Tickles, my paint mare has always been "an easy keeper," even in the winter with little to eat she keeps her weight on. But the last few times I rode her I noticed her stumbling, a lot. Then a week or so ago she had a major trembling or shaking episode, followed by lameness in both front feet. She can still get around, slowly, but stepping on the smallest rock immobilizes her temporarily.

This was a wake up call I didn't want. We all knew for years that she was fat enough to be at risk for Founder, I just liked to think that there are thousands of "at risk" horses who never actually get what they're at risk for. I never thought it would actually happen, and technically it hasn't, yet. She is not in full blown Founder yet and with luck, never will be, for once it hits, it's there for life. She could never be sold without disclosure of this fact, and hiding a past Founder is one of the cardinal sins of horse-selling, because it could always flare up again for as long as she keeps surviving the flare ups. That's what I would worry about, since I would never sell her anyway.

The vet said she's going on a diet NOW. I just have to be careful because if her body interprets less food as an emergency situation, it could get more insulin resistant, meaning she'd get even fatter. I also have to exercize her daily, as much as she can handle which right now means hand walking her up and down the long driveway on the grassy shoulder that doesn't hurt her feet. Each painful step makes me ache when I think of indulging her with a handful of grain so she wouldn't feel left out when the others got theirs. Or watching her eat all day because she happened to be with horses that need lots of feed. Of riding mainly for fun and to teach kids rather than making sure she worked up a sweat and burned some calories. Her misery now is all my fault.

I'm really hoping I can pull her out of it before it's too late. She has to be a priority too, just because I always had younger, greener horses to work, leaving Tickles standing in the pasture, eating. Well, now I know better. And I'm becoming aware of my other horse's risks as well. Until recently I had no idea how many things could cause it. Too much grain, too much grass, too much cold water when animal is hot, hard or fast work on a hard surface, as a complication from foaling, viral respritory disease, certain kinds of wood shavings used for bedding. Then you get into the Miscellaneous Causes and the list goes on.

I know it's easy to get bogged down in what ifs, and you find your horse wrapped in bubble-wrap, never allowed to move, for fear of death. But if you see clear warning signs, heed them before it's too late. I wish I had.

On The Menu

All of the horses on our place have strange tastes when it comes to snacks. Not a one of them will touch a carrot or an apple, the generally accepted treats that horses are supposed to appreciate. I don't dispair however, because I have found, after much experimenting, several alternatives.

Tuff's very favorite treat is apricots. We have two apricot trees in our orchard and he can always be counted upon to eat those that have fallen on the ground or had the birds get at them (I have to pit them for him first, ofcourse).

The two yearlings my in-laws have now just live for grapes (no pitting required ). They also had a gelding that liked Pepsi and of all things, brandy. My mother in-law liked to have a couple drinks in the evening, then go out and ride on her apparently tipsy horse. I always wondered how they both survived those night rides.

My chubby Tickles doesn't mess around with anything that might have any nutritional value, she only accepts straight sugar cubes or peppermint striped candies.(pretty much only on Christmas or her birthday).

Some of the other horses like things like bread, strawberries, watermelon (rind and all), bananas, peanut butter, and lettuce. I had been giving potato peels to a couple that liked them until I read somewhere that potatoes can be toxic to horses, so I stopped, but became interested to learn what other harm I might be doing. So I started researching the other foods I was using and learned that with a very few exceptions, fruits and vegetables can be very nutritious treats if you can get a horse to eat them. Far better than sugar or molasses coated 'horse treats' that are sold in stores.

It just takes some trial and error to see what each horse likes. It seems funny to me. Horses eat hay and grass, I would think anything would be a welcome change, but they have very highly developed palettes, it seems, and distinct tastes. Finding just the right flavor for them is our problem. Nonetheless, I enjoy trying out new foods on them, even if just to see the faces they make when it isn't right. And yes, horses most certainly can make faces. Lemon juice produces some good ones.