Ponies are not just short horses; their breeding has made them hardy animals which can survive in harsh climates on lesser-quality feed. When we mix those bloodlines with today’s forages and concentrates, we see a large number of obese ponies that are at a significantly higher risk of laminitis. Ponies are more prone to obesity than horses, partly due to their easy-keeper metabolism, and partly because the public has a perception that ponies should be a little fatter (fat equals “cute”). This is a dangerous combination.

The National Research Council’s Nutrient Requirements of Horses (2007) does not list specific nutritional requirements for ponies, other than for accounting for lower body weight. For a 200-kg pony the NRC recommends 6.1, 6.7, or 7.3 mcal of digestible energy per day for ponies that tend to be easy keepers, average keepers, and harder keepers, respectively. However, Pearson and colleagues (British Journal of Nutrition, 2001) used an equation that would suggest a requirement of 5.9 mcal per day for a 200-kg pony. Regardless of what the calorie requirements may be, the best way to gauge energy balance is with body condition scoring ‒ if they get fat, they are consuming too many calories!

The Henneke body condition scoring method that uses the 1-9 rankings can be applied to ponies, noting that some pony breeds carry fat in slightly different areas than horses; for example, Connemaras tend to have crestier necks. It is also very important to note that most owners are not very good at body conditioning their own horses or ponies, and an outside, more objective opinion is often needed. It is critical that owners learn to keep their ponies at a body condition score below 6 on the scale to reduce the risk of laminitis and insulin resistance.

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