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As you increase his work, he'll lose some of the belly.  I have a 14.2h CMK gelding who often looks pregnant.  He loses some of the belly with riding...but if I let him go more than a week without a good long ride, it's back in a flash.  He also has very wide/well-sprung ribs, which just adds to the picture.  He has an extremely short back (my husband jokes that he only has one vertebra between his withers and hips  LOL), so I make the excuse that since his mid-section is so short, all of his innards are crammed into a smaller space and give him the big belly.  LOL  If you and I ever end up at a ride somewhere riding Sundance and 7, sounds like we'll have to look for a REALLY wide spot if one of us wants to pass the other.  <G>  Ross is threatening to use a grease marker and write "wide load" across Sundance's butt at our 50 in two weeks.  <G>

 

Dawn Carrie

and Epic Sundance (I'm in shape...round is a shape)

 

On 10/6/07, rides2far@xxxxxxxx <rides2far@xxxxxxxx> wrote:

OK all you ab work junkies. Here's you a project. My new horse, 7, is the
proud owner of the *largest* balloon of a belly around. If he were a
human male he would definitely be on a Harley with a skinny chick behind
him. When I got him he was malnourished and had a protruding backbone and
skinny neck but his belly was huge...like the starving "Save the
Children" bloated poster child. He had actually been wormed during that
time by a woman who was trying to help but actually bought *straw* to
feed them. When he came here he was an absolute vaccuam. He inhales
anything you put in front of him and went from borderline starving to "on
a diet" in record time. He's been a great help during the drought because
my other horses who used to turn up their noses at less than *perfect*
hay have learned to eat anything I throw out there fast or he'll eat
theirs too. I can just imagine him eating a bale of straw a day when he
was at his old field and just stretching that stomach out to broodmare
level while getting no nourishment.

So, what should be my plan to get it off? *Will* it come off? Josie loves
to take my photos of him and photo shop the gut off to show me how great
he's going to look someday but I'm kinda wondering. I wormed him once
with Quest but saw no signs of worms in his manure. It's been 8 weeks and
I'm going to worm again. Anything that specializes in FAT worms I should
use?  I'm ponying him and have ridden him on the trail once while being
ponied. He's out on a 4 acre *big* hill 24/7. I'm going to have to break
him to a crupper immediately because the only place the girth can sit is
right up behind his elbow(the pear bulges out  immediately after that.)

I know racehorses get their tuck while eating small amounts of alfalfa
for minimal bulk and lots of galloping. I don't want him to look like a
grayhound, but it would be nice if he didn't look like he might foal
twins any minute. Right now he gets 2 flakes of coastal morn & evening
and 1/2 a 3-lb coffee can of grain but I don't think *calories* are what
put the gut there since he had it when his back was so bony.

If I could keep his saddle in place I might not care so much. As he
stands right now I dare *anyone* to try to pass me on a narrow trail. If
that barrel starts swinging you'd be knocked to kingdom come! The rest of
him has shaped up *very* nicely and his personality has won everybody
over.

Angie


Angie McGhee
http://www.lightersideofendurance.com
Some people are like slinkies. Not really good for anything, but they
bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs.


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