PREVENTING weight gain is the key to battling equine obesity – but a pioneering initiative is helping make positive changes, vets believe.
The Horse Trust’s Healthiest Body Condition Awards, which have been running since 2019, were presented in some showing classes at Royal Windsor (10–14 May). Vets assessed the animals and presented rosettes to those in the healthiest condition.
One of these was Jane Nixon, an experienced equine vet, chair of The Showing Council and advocate for healthy equine weight.
“I was delighted,” Dr Nixon told H&H. “It was a marked improvement from what I’d seen in the past.”
Dr Nixon said she spoke to all the exhibitors in her classes, and “there was understanding and appreciation” of the importance of a healthy weight, although some found it difficult to maintain this, especially in older horses who had been overweight in the past.
She said the “overwhelming majority” in the working hunter classes were of a healthy weight, “the most pleasing being the heavyweight class”.
Denne historien er fra June 01, 2023-utgaven av Horse & Hound.
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Denne historien er fra June 01, 2023-utgaven av Horse & Hound.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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'Sorry, but I wasn't feeling it'
Fresh from the opening meet, Tessa Waugh hasn't quite yet been bitten by the hunting bug. Without the crisp autumnal air and cheek-pinching cold she hoped for, it's a sluggish start
New pair pull off a win
A former European Championships pony is on form with his new rider, while elsewhere former showjumpers and eventers take ribbons
Lording it over the rest
Horses who have returned from injury, a second generation homebred and a long format specialist score on the final weekend of the British season
Smith hits flying form
A \"her way or no way\" mare helps Zoe Smith to an impressive ribbon haul and a rider beats his own boss to the top spot
Jankorado hits the jackpot
Paul Sims is triumphant despite his interrupted jump-off preparation and a borrowed horse comes up trumps
Peanut
From \"dangerous, scary\" to hedge-hopping brilliance, hunting has been the making of this unstable but very lovable equine character
She's a corker
Communication, says long-standing and highly respected Belvoir master Lady Sarah McCorquodale, is the key to all, as Catherine Austen discovers
Access all areas Cavalier Centre
The Cavalier Centre is a fully accessible, state-of-the-art equestrian centre designed to improve lives through horse-based activities. Ellie May Forrester pays a visit
'Use it or lose it'
Not everyone wants to reach for the pipe and slippers at a certain age. Becky Murray speaks to some veteran horse-and-rider combos for their secrets of human and equine longevity
A new way forward
Worm control in horses is vital, but established methods will not remain effective for much longer. Tim Mair FRCVS explains why and how we need to change
