by Mary Knetter

Created on: August 01, 2008   Last Updated: December 11, 2010

Just as humans struggle with obesity, overeating and nutrient-rich foods that are readily available, so does the horse. Wild horses seasonally fluctuate between fat and thin. Survival of the fittest meant those that utilized nutrients off poor forage and soil lived to produce a next generation.

In the past, domestic horses were used for transportation and farm work. Some were given grain as an energy supplement, but many were simply turned out to poor quality pastures or given grass hay. Horses were able to consume enough energy to work a full day and maintain weight.

Today, horses are no longer used for transportation, are often kept in small confines and have plenty of nutrient-rich forage, grains and treats provided to them, often along with little exercise. The biggest factor in a horse's ideal weight is the owner's perception of that horse's body condition. If not careful, we can literally spoil our horses into obesity, a variety of health problems related to it and eventually death.

Obesity Defined

Obesity is a dietary oversupply of nutrients. The horse consumes more energy and food than it needs to survive. What the horse doesn't metabolize for muscular energy is converted to fats and stored in the body.

Some fat is beneficial to the horse's body. It cushions bones that are close to the skin surface, provides backup stores of energy when needed and helps the horse regulate body temperature in wet and cold weather.

Some horses are naturally easy or hard keepers, a term defined by the amount of grain and forage a horse needs to maintain a healthy weight. Factors affecting the ability to maintain weight includes age, what grains and forages are available, how appealing those foods are, the horse's breed and temperament.

For example, a dominant horse may get more to eat than a horse lower on the hierarchy. Older horses and breeds that are naturally light-skinned or flighty in temperament tend to burn energy at a faster rate than what they can consume.

Seven Disorders Caused By Obesity

Laminitis >>Excess carbohydrates, combined with excess fat, can cause laminitis and eventually founder in horses. Because the liver cannot effectively remove toxins from the blood stream, hoof circulation is severely reduced, causing painful inflammation inside the hoof wall.

Exercise and Heat Exhaustion >>Excess fat in winter can be an advantage, but in warm weather the horse is unable to dissipate heat effectively. Even under the most ideal environmental conditions

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