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  Discussion on Near 2 yr old colt has prominent spine, hay belly, but otherwise healthy!
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Posted on Monday, Mar 5, 2001 - 2:33 pm:

Hi Fellow members,

I need your advice again. Our 1 3/4 yr old colt's spine is prominent from right behind the withers to halfway down his back. By 'prominent' I mean slightly visible (not swollen or anything). He is by no means thin anywhere else. In fact, we are working at getting him to lose weight because he has such a hay belly. He looked GREAT last Summer. I know this is going to sound pretty silly, but could it be his big belly that is stretching his skin down and making his spine look this way? Any thoughts or advice??

Another thing to mention is that the skin is not 'sunken in' around this area. I have all of our horses on the Ivermectin deworming program that Horseman Advisor outlines in one of the articles, all are also current on their vaccinations. We have 3 horses and the other 2 look great.

Any insight and/or advice is greatly appreciated!!

Julie

Posted on Monday, Mar 5, 2001 - 5:05 pm:

Ahhhhh.... the shopping bag age. Meaning: They are SOoooo ugly and gangly at this age, between 2 and 3, that you want to put a bag over their head,... or yours! ;0) What you are probably seeing is just the gangly phase they all go through. Keep him on a balanced diet and make sure that you are not shorting his calories trying to get rid of a belly that realy is not fat. Wait and watch, chances are this spring he will start to bloom. However be prepared for him to do the uglies again, once they reach 5 they should pretty much have it togather. Just remember, it is safer to have a colt that developes slow than fast.

Respectfully yours from under my own bag,
Emily *grin*

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 6, 2001 - 6:57 am:

Hello Julie,
just to emphasize Emily's point: the hay belly does not represent fat but is a response to a high fiber diet. If the dorsal processes of the spine is becoming visible on the back it may be your "diet". Check the article on estimating condition (Care for Horses: Health Care: Weight, Condition, and Eventual Height Estimation) and keep him around a 5.
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 6, 2001 - 10:53 am:

Emily and Dr O,

Thank you SOOOO much for your advice. I became a member of this site last year and will never let it expire. I am so thankful I found you!!

I sincerely appreciate your information and encouragement. Finally, my mind can be at ease again. This colt is the most well behaved horse I have ever owned/trained and it was making me sick to think his conformation was going bad. (Especially since we plan on using him as our stallion in a couple years.) I can't wait to pass the good news onto my husband. He says I was worrying about nothing, but of course, I had to make sure from the Pros!! :-)

Thanks again,
Julie
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