Minis mystify me!

[Kim Rule]

Okay, Wynnie is going very nicely in the cart now. I’m trying to condition her for a show in July…and I figure the best was to kill two birds with one stone (get her fit, and put miles on her) is to drive. She’s pudgy…I just finished walking and trotting her about 5 miles. She was puffing a LITTLE, and her only sweat was behind her ears. I think she could have done another 5 pretty easily. If I had taken a pudgy big horse and worked them the same way, pulling their own weight, they would have been lathered! What is it with minis? Do they have fewer sweat glands? Does anyone else experience this? What will I have to do to condition her, drive her 10 miles a day?

She gets one flake of hay a day, and 3 cups of soaked beet pulp...NO GRAIN!!! She also gets BOSS, some cinnamon to boost her metabolism, and garlic powder to keep down the flies.

Bilbo is the same way…he hardly sweats at all. He’s in better shape than Wynnie is, but last year he was at least as pudgy as she is now, and I experienced the same thing. Bilbo just keeps himself trimmer these days!

:

Kim R.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

That's a mini for you! There were 25 minis at Happ's doing the full marathon courses right along with the big guys and I don't think any of them came back sweated; I know Kody didn't have a drop on him after trotting a full 11km. The sad side effect of that is that yes, most of these guys can do incredible distances without actually giving up any of that waistline.

:

Try dressage work, if they are using their abdominal muscles correctly then those get nice and trim at least when the horse is moving. It seems like that hay belly comes right back as soon as they stand still and relax though! :lol:

Leia

Edited for grammar and to add that galloping them in a roundpen does seem to help.

 

[Ashley]

First if you are going to be working her that hard she really does need some type of grain.

Second, my opinion is that she isnt getting enough food period and the belly probably has to do with that more then anything.

 

[chandab]

First if you are going to be working her that hard she really does need some type of grain.

Second, my opinion is that she isnt getting enough food period and the belly probably has to do with that more then anything.

I kind of agree, it doesn't sound like nearly enough feed. How big is Wynnie? Do you know her weight? All horses should recieve 1.5% to 3% of their body weight in feed per day, depending on age and work load. So, a 200# mini should recieve 3 to 6# feed per day. [i have all B minis in the 300-350# range and they get 6-10# hay a day each plus their ration balancer. (two to four flakes per day, depending on the size of the flakes).]

 

[HGFarm]

My first stallion was worked for miles every day, and was not fed any grain. Cut back on the hay if she is still too pudgy and from what I heard BOSS also puts weight on a horse. If the horse is getting good quality hay, and worked that much and still too hefty, just cut back your rations a bit.

We used to joke about the stallion not cracking a sweat either. Minis are pretty tough little horses and 5 miles was pretty much a nice warm up for him. If they were big enough to ride they would be awesome endurance horses, LOL!

 

[Kim Rule]

LOL!! Laurie, you're right! I could see Bilbo as a mighty endurance horse!

Okay, I'm interested...I should be feeding her more?? I just cut her back! I can feed her separately and take the BOSS out...I can see where that would be adding fat. The hay she's getting is good clean alfalfa hay...it's tough to get just plain old grass around here...argh! So, what do you suggest? This mare is about 36 inches tall, and weighs in at a little over 300 lbs, I'm guessing. She has a pot belly and a big round butt...kind of like me! She's easier to keep than Bilbo...and I don't want to starve her. Should I get her some senior, and feed her a little? I know that's what Lisa feeds.

I want to show her in a halter class because she is NICE!!

: She will also be in a few driving classes. I have spent the past few months breaking her, and started really working her harder in the past couple of weeks. She is porky, she gets tired, she breathes hard, but she doesn't sweat! She comes back pretty quickly too!

I figure time and miles will just make her a better driving horse.

Kim R.

 

[Miniv]

With the work she's doing, I'd pull back on the beet pulp and give her some grain instead. Do the switch gradually......... I'd also weigh the amount of hay she's getting. If the flake weighs more than 2 lbs per feeding, she's getting too much.

Just MO,

MA

 

[Ashley]

Do you have a pic of her? It would be easier to see her to guess what the pot belly is.

 

[Kim Rule]

I have a camera that I'm not sure how to use, but let me give it a shot...I'll try to post one either tonight or tomorrow...

Kim R.

 

[HGFarm]

I have only always fed alfalfa- and have no pasture so it is dry lot feeding. My broodmares might get a bit hefty, but I have never gotten a 'pot belly' from the alfalfa- they just get pretty ROUND all over. It sounds like she is getting too much feed. I agree with MA- if you know anyone with a scale where you could weigh what she is getting, it would give you a better idea on how much to feed. (I was SHOCKED at how little it was) However, when I gave him grain about 3 times a week, he got higher than a kite, even being worked for miles on a daily basis, so that was cut off!

Here, our alfalfa is 3 wire bales and a 'flake' weighs about 6 pounds!! (Oh yeah, you should have seen my first Mini until I found out how much he was really supposed to be eating, LOL- he was not happy when it was time to 'diet')

You may have to experiment some, but maybe cutting back just a bit on each item that you feed??

Yes, if you have a pic that would be great??

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

I think you are going to have to seperate her to see how much she is really eating.

I got a scale at Walmart in the food section for like 5 bucks. I dont weigh it every day now but occasionally to see if my "feel" is still on.

I also think you cant always equate sweating with being tired or working hard. If she is puffing.. she is working hard. Some horses just dont sweat alot and to be honest with you I have found as a general statement now that I am thinking about it minis tend to sweat less then my large horses even though they are still puffing, working hard and hot not sure why though

 

[EAD Minis]

I know I can drive roy for a half and hour in hot conditions and he wont puff or sweat AT ALL!!Im sweating just sitting there. I stop regularly to check his temp, sweat nothing. Its crazy!

 

[Kim Rule]

Well, I took pictures tonight...I'll have to wait until my hubby gets home so I can get the cable for the camera. She doesn't have a pot belly, she's just WIDE!!! Starting tomorrow, I'll separate her out to feed her...Lisa, that's a good idea. Here's how feeding goes at my house:

In the pen with 4 horses, in the morning I throw two flakes of hay. I tear them up into 4 to 5 pieces.

In the evening I throw two more flakes of hay, torn up into 5 pieces, and separate a mixture of beet pulp, BOSS, cinnamon and garlic into 7 bowls. It's about 2 cups driy, and about 6-8 cups of water thrown in and soaked. I'll spearate Wynnie tomorrow, and feed her in the back yard. I should have pictures tomorrow.

Kim R.

 

[Mnmini]

That's a mini for you! There were 25 minis at Happ's doing the full marathon courses right along with the big guys and I don't think any of them came back sweated; I know Kody didn't have a drop on him after trotting a full 11km. The sad side effect of that is that yes, most of these guys can do incredible distances without actually giving up any of that waistline.

:

Try dressage work, if they are using their abdominal muscles correctly then those get nice and trim at least when the horse is moving. It seems like that hay belly comes right back as soon as they stand still and relax though! :lol:

Leia

Edited for grammar and to add that galloping them in a roundpen does seem to help.

There were only 4 vse's at Skunk River this weekend, but all came through the marathon in good condition. Jazz wasn't sweating when we crossed the finish, but popped a sweat when we were un-harnessing. Our marathon wasn't as long as everyone else's (I think we could have easily done the 7k) at 4.5k, nor yours at 11k, by a long shot, but was a very hard course. Course received an inch of rain on Friday, and did little to no drying on Saturday. Was greasy slick, swampy in places, and rutted from the bigger, heavier horses having gone out on the course first, not to mention the enormous, long, steep hill everyone had to climb! Whew! We were allowed "any pace" on both the downhill stretch, and uphill. Thank goodness. I walked Jazz down portions of the downhill, was a little scary, and let him lope the uphill if he wanted. We all made time. We walked the last 400 or so, to keep from coming in under. Heart rate was 88 I believe at the finish, and down to 60 at the 15 minutes check, so was pleased. Vet said many of the ponies/horses were coming in at 100.

My mini is probably around the same height as the OP's horse. While I have good grass hay, he gets 2 flakes a day..probably more than he's "supposed" to, as total weight is probably 6 pounds, but only gets 1/2 pound total of Farnam's platform mini feed a day. He's got good coverage, but is not potty..just very fit.

I've never quite grasped the penchant/desire for "flat" bellies on minis. I don't see other performance breeds, hunters, dressage horses and the like "fitted" like that, and have to say, I've never seen recommendations of cutting roughage as a suggestion towards "fitness" anywhere but mini forums. We feed our riders pretty much all they will eat, as they look "richer" when carrying weight, than they do all slab-sided and skinny, not to mention, have the strength to lift their backs and do the difficult manuevers we're asking them to do. We aim for body scores of 4.5 to 5 on the riders and the minis alike, which seems to work well for us.

Fitness should be judged on stress and recovery rates on working horses, and body scores, not the "shape" they are, ie, some minis have little spring to their ribs, those that DO have spring in their ribcage, should not be starved down in an attempt to make them appear the same "shape" as the former.