| Weight control is one of the most important | | | | every day. |
| issues facing many horse owners. Fat, lazy horses | | | | Most professionals will tell you that you need to |
| are simply unhealthy horses and they are more | | | | provide the horse with at least .5% of its body |
| likely to live a shorter life than their in shape | | | | weight in food every day. This is done in order to |
| brethren. How do you control a horse's weight, | | | | make sure that the horse gets plenty of nutrients |
| while still providing him with the right amount of | | | | and vitamins. Sometimes, this guideline can cause |
| food and vitamins? It is a delicate balance | | | | your horse to get fat, though. For horses that do |
| between healthy and obese, but these are a few | | | | not get a lot of activity, this rate of food will be |
| ways to walk that line. | | | | too high and calorie intake will soar to a point |
| In spring and the early summer, horse owners | | | | where the horse gains more weight. |
| must make sure to limit the amount of time that | | | | If you want to truly improve your horse's fitness, |
| their horses spend grazing. During these times, the | | | | then a training program is necessary. Horses are |
| grass in your pasture will grow at its fastest rate. | | | | much like people in that they must be conditioned, |
| If left unattended, horses will take advantage of | | | | though. If your horse has no been put through |
| the overgrown grass and fill themselves up. It | | | | many exercises, then you must take it slow. As |
| may seem like quite a task to keep a horse from | | | | you slowly build the horse's exercise program, |
| grazing, but there are some techniques which you | | | | calorie reduction and better overall health is sure |
| can use. For starters, you might want to use a | | | | to follow. |
| grazing muscle in order to stop the amount of | | | | Many of the common hays that people use have |
| grass that the horse can eat. Be sure to remove | | | | a high number of calories. Alfalfa and clover, for |
| the muzzle when the horse is in his stall, though. | | | | example, have more calories per pound than |
| This might seem like an obvious one, but many | | | | regular grass hay. If you want to control the |
| horse owners overlook calorie intake. You must | | | | horse's weight, outfit him with high fiber hay that |
| make sure to keep all high calorie aspects out of | | | | has fewer calories. |
| the horse's diet. Among those things that are high | | | | It is difficult to control a horse's weight, but these |
| calorie items are corn oil, flaxseed oil, and rice | | | | steps must be taken if you want the horse to be |
| bran. These items also have a very high fat | | | | healthy and operate at a high level. Focus on |
| content, which is never good for the horse. If you | | | | limiting the horse's diet while improving its fitness. |
| want to control the horse's weight, you must | | | | Improving the horse's fitness might take a while, |
| control the number of calories that he brings in | | | | but it will be well worth the time in the end. |