Owners have been urged to take action now to kick-start equine weight loss, to prevent the development of serious health conditions. Leading veterinary figures are warning that obesity is the biggest issue facing UK equines today, and that failure to act on excess weight can have fatal consequences.
David Rendle, a specialist in internal medicine at Rainbow Equine Hospital, Yorkshire, warned that laminitis is the most serious issue and that although native-type ponies are more prone to the weight gain that causes it, other horses and ponies can also develop the condition. Mr. Rendle, a member of the British Equine Veterinary Association’s medicines and ethics and welfare committees, added that although much has been made of PPID (Cushing’s) as a cause of laminitis, “more horses and ponies are getting laminitis because they’re fat”.
“Unfortunately people often don’t notice the obesity,” he said. “Weight gain occurs gradually and people are now so used to seeing horses that carry large amounts of fat that overweight is seen as normal. It is easier to treat with a medication, whether for PPID or equine metabolic syndrome than to implement management change but without the latter management of laminitis is often unsuccessful and bouts of laminitis recur.
Most cases of laminitis are entirely preventable with correct management.” Mr Rendle said some people’s perception of body condition score is skewed, so owners often believe their horses should be fatter than is ideal, and that while laminitis is the most serious consequence of obesity, there are of course other issues such as equine metabolic syndrome and an increased risk of orthopedic disease, undesirable behavior, and poor performance.