WEIGHT WATCHERS FOR PONIES

Ponies are like people in that some seem to maintain a slim figure quite easily and some only need to glance at a biscuit or a blade of grass and it goes straight to their hips.  Ponies are also like people in that it is not healthy for them to be overweight and it is difficult for them to lose the extra pounds. We call these chubby characters ‘Good Doers’

That is why the pony field at Station road is sectioned into two halves.

The half of the field nearest the railway embankment is  ‘Slimming World’. In there are grey Connemara,  ‘Fennela’ and young threequarter Arab, ‘Flora’ They stuff themselves with grass and anything else they can find and get too fat in summer. In winter they get a tiny feed, vitamins and a ration of hay. This should help them get nice slim figures before the grass starts to grow in spring. Little old brown pony, Mac, and grey half- Arab, Bella, are in the other half of the field which is ‘Weight Gain Clinic’. They are fussy eaters. They get big buckets of high calorie pony cubes. Even with these they are choosy about the brand.

They have a big round bale of nice hay from a local farmer. Bella picks at this and Mac has hardly any teeth and can’t really digest hay so he and Bella have lots of high-fibre mash to replace it. If Fennela and Flora could get to this hay they would demolish it in days and their waist-lines would expand. It is hard not to give the Good-Doers extra hay when the weather is terrible but mostly we manage to ration them and tell ourselves, ‘It is for their own good’. I’m not tempted by hay but must apply this to myself when weakening over chocolate and cake. It’s not easy.

These are before and after pictures showing the benefits of diet and exercise.