# Ok guys tell me what ya think please



## Jake and Dai (Aug 15, 2008)

They are both awfully pretty but there really is no way to give a conformation critique without proper photographs.

You should stand them on a flat surface, squared up, no distracting background and take pictures straight on from the side, front and back. Oh...and no tack other than a well fitting halter.

There is a thread on how to take good confo shots but I don't have time to link it here at the moment. Sorry.


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Oh thanks! I am new to this lol! They both were given to me and I was told they were both TN walkers ! I will post some more pictures on here like you said ..Thanks for letting me know !!


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## EmilyJoy (Dec 30, 2011)

Subbing for when you post good pictures


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

They're chubby guys, aren't they? xD Also subbing for better pictures


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Ok , I went out and took some more pics , would have went alot better if the goats would have left us alone ! ( I got to many animals lol ) Yeah , I know Cash is over weight , I measured him and he is 15.2 hh and his estimate weight that I got was close to 1500 lbs!!! He is a lot bigger than Scooter! (Cash=black Scooter=Red) Oh and I just love Cash's mane !!! I think I may have got a little to picture happy ! Sorry for so many pics!


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Oh and I didnt brush them today , so Cash has a dirty butt lol ....If these aren't what ya'll need let me know and I can take some better ones tomorrow , it was just getting ready to storm here and I was tyring to be quick!


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

Is Cash gelded?


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Ya I believe they both are


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

they are both cute.TWH have a little different conformation than quarters and TB's. Love the Nubian goats. Have fun with your new horses! Hope they stay happy and healthy. The one pic of the sorrel looking through the fence at (sheep or goats) is really cute.


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## calicokatt (Mar 5, 2012)

Cash is SERIOUSLY overweight (looks like you already know that). I would really recommend getting him off that grass, and putting him on a diet. Your vet will be able to help you formulate a diet that will meet his nutritional needs, and allow him to lose weight. I don't want to alarm you, but if you leave him on that grass, with how overweight he already is, he could have serious health issues, or even die. (maybe you only turned him out for the pictures)


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Thanks Stevenson ....Ya Scooter was looking in on the pigs that we have! They like to go up to them and see what is going on .


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

No , he stays out on pasture ! I was thinking about getting something to where he couldn't eat so much , but he hasn't really been worked with or rode in like 4 years and I am hoping *crossing my fingers* , that by getting him out everyday and working on riding him that he will lose alot of that weight! Scooter is like 21 years old (but doesn't look it to me) and Cash is almost 12 ! I do worry about Cash's weight alot and don't want anything to happen to him. I have only had them since last Thurday and I am trying to get some more people out here to help me work with them because I never learned training or working with a horse. I have been around horses my whole life , but all I know how to do is ride and even at that I am a little rusty , I haven't rode in like 8 years. My mother was a big horse fanatic (that's where I get it from) and she used to barrel race and all that stuff and I never paid attention to the things she would try and teach me . I have been on here alot reading on stuff and trying to learn and I understand I don't have the training experience but I know that I love them and will care for them and know the basics of things! I am about to invest into some DVDs so maybe that will help also.


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## Hayleaoryan (May 21, 2012)

I think they're beautiful, the reddish one looks identical to a horse I love named Shelly.

I'm in a similar situation as you, I've ridden and taken some riding lessons but I just got 4 new pretty much untrained horses. But two are colts and easier to work with right now.


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

I love my Scooter to! Ya , it kinda sucks not really know how to do everything , but I am having fun learning and talking to new people! It's a learning progress I know , but now I am really worried about my Cash and his weight problem! I knew he was overweight but I didn't think it could cause so many problmes! Eeeek


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## calicokatt (Mar 5, 2012)

I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, but many people seem to think that being overweight is not an issue. Maybe look into a grazing muzzle? Somebody is bound to have some good advice on how long to leave it on/off to begin to effect weight loss without limiting forage too much.


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

I knew the weight was a problem but didn't really look into it cause I didn't figure it would cause that much damage! I am looking into it right now acutally , and it's ok that you scared me , I would rather know than be ill educated on the issue! By chance would you know how much a horse should weigh he is 12 yrs old and 15.2 hh , I can't find anything out on the internet really about it besides they can range in weight from 900-1200 lbs . I wonder how long it will take for him to shed lets say 300 lbs?


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## CLaPorte432 (Jan 3, 2012)

I agree that he's drastically overweight. :-( My vet scared me 2 years ago when she said she was concerned that my gelding was going to founder. So I got him a grazing muzzle and I highly recommend them. They can still graze and munch, but it will cut down on their grass intake by as much as 80% He's obviously ingesting more then he can work off so think a combination of a muzzle and exercise should have him down to a healthy weight. But it's going to take probably quite some time.


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## themacpack (Jul 16, 2009)

Calming Melody said:


> Ya I believe they both are


Since you don't seem 100% certain, I would suggest having your vet check that fact when you have him out to give them a health exam (always good when bringing new animals into the mix, especially as you have thrown them right in with the rest of your population :wink:
As for his goal weight - think of it as a target fitness/body condition level rather than a specific number on the scale. Familiarize yourself with the body condition scale for horses and set your goal to bring them both to optimum condition through nutrition and exercise.


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

How long do I keep the grazing muzzle on him and what kind of exercises should I be doing ? Keep in mind , I am not that experienced in training or working with a horse , so what would you recommend for someone who is new at it? I have been walking them just about everyday and brush them down and what not. How long do you think it could take and how much should he weigh?


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Ok , I just looking a body condition score and I am thinking he is a 7 out of 9 . Fleshly? Please correct me if I am wrong !


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## Hayleaoryan (May 21, 2012)

I also need to know exactly how much to feed my horses, I think I've been feeding my mare Montana too much all star, but I also think she's gaining weight because she may be pregnant. :0


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

I only let mine eat on pasture , but I know when we used to live in Texas we would feed out horses 2x a day , about a flake of hay each , and once a day a scoop of grain but that was just us. Since we have 22 acres of pasture I just let them eat that for right now , but once winter comes that will be different.


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## ThirteenAcres (Apr 27, 2012)

I know he's overweight, but I giggled at Cash. He's so chubby and cute. It will be cuter once he's down to proper weight and we are all just looking back on it giggling. 

Ahhh. 

I would start lunging them both. Lunging can be a great exercise both physically and really gets a horse paying attention to your cues and is awesome for building respect. I go back to ground work no matter what point my new horses are in training. It's an awesome thing to start your journey and will help him work off his extra pounds. 

Is he on pasture only or grain as well? What is his total diet?


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## themacpack (Jul 16, 2009)

Hayleaoryan said:


> I also need to know exactly how much to feed my horses, I think I've been feeding my mare Montana too much all star, but I also think she's gaining weight because she may be pregnant. :0


It would be best to start your own thread so as to allow both yourself and the OP to receive information specific to your situations/horses and to allow those responding to be able to direct responses to each situation/horse.


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

No he is not on grain , only on pasture ! I figured the grain wouldn't be good for him and as far as lunging , I tried to do it with the other horse Scooter yesterday and it didn't go so well . I believe I may have been confusing the horse because I was trying to do something I had never done before so I quite after 5 minutes of trying . I didn't want to get myself or the horse hurt because of my lack of experience. I am going to look up a video tonight and see if I can learn how to do it ! I know they have both been trained , their previous owner shows horses, but they haven't been worked with in a while !


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## arrowsaway (Aug 31, 2011)

First things I do when I get a new horse:
-vaccinate
-deworm
-set up a diet regimen
A vet can help with all three, so I'd recommend having one out as soon as possible. Just to be on the safe side!  Good on you for taking them in. Sounds like you are trying your hardest to give them a good life, even with your limited knowledge. And your willingness to learn is commendable! With your enthusiasm, I'm sure you'll get there in no time.

I also let them settle in a bit before I start working them. I give them a week to adjust to their new surroundings. 
I'd start with ground work first, make sure they're leading and tying and backing and yielding to pressure is up to snuff. Then we can try some lunging. 
The suggestion of a grazing muzzle was a good one. They really do help! 

Good luck with your new endeavor! And welcome to the world of Walkers - they are wonderful to work with, ride, and just be around. Please update frequently!


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

I was wondering myself if I should have let the get a little more adjusted and used to the place before I tried to do any work with them! I see I should have went with my gut and gave them some time ! I have always had a thing for horses and I really love these guys! They do really well on the lead and being tied up so I can groom them! The only problems I am trying to correct right now is Scooter likes to try and nibble on me and my shirt , not so bad now because I have been getting onto him ! Than Cash will see the halter and will start to turn and walk away from me , but he is also getting better on that ! I have been trying to look up videos of horse trainers and see how they do it and ready about everything that I can ! I am pretty confident that I can do this , I understand that they are big animals and can kill or hurt me or themselves , but I am not scared around them and if I have a feeling that what I am doing is going to get one of us hurt or them confused I just stop doing it ! Hence the reason why my first lunging lesson only lasted like 5 minutes ....It was sorta funny actually ! But I wll def keep on posting updates ! I just can't wait to ride them !!!!


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

I agree that a vet checkup for both of them might be a good idea. The reason I asked if Cash was gelded is that I'm seeing a significant amount of 'skin' in the Cash's testicle area, and it seems to form the general shape of testes rather than just loose flaps- so he appears to be a stallion in that picture. Ofcourse, he could just be one of those geldings that tend to have a little more 'meat' there (so sorry for the graphic descriptions of these things, but I'm trying to explain the best way possible xD) than others, and if thats the case, its no big deal. If he IS a stallion though, it would be a very, very good idea to get him gelded ASAP as that it will help with behavioral problems due to hormones, make him safer, and very possibly keep him healthier longer. I'd even go as far as saying it might help him loose a little weight.

I'm not familiar with Tenessee. Do you have any hills in your area? If so, you could take him for walks (and if you feel comfortable, trotting in hand) up and down hills to help him loose some weight and build muscle tone until you have someone teach you to lunge!


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## Calming Melody (May 20, 2012)

Ya , we have a lot of hills around here and on our place. I know for sure that Cash is a gelding , Scooter on the other hand just not quite sure . She got Cash gelded about a year ago. I had a black stallion when I was 11 and we lived in Tx and I got scars on my arm where he threw me off into a bed of barbed cactus and it broke my arm and I have to have the cactus needles cut out of me ! Thankfully that is the only time I have been thrown from a horse ! I loved your idea about working him up and down the hill , that's a very good idea and I will try that out in the next few weeks ! I am going to let them get a little more adjusted to the place before I start working them like that , and hopefully can have someone out here with me when I do it! I haven't even had them a week , but they are my babies and I love them dearly already !


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