Please Body Condition Score my horse?

Question

Sorry for the poor quality pictures, they are the most recent ones I have of him.

http://mlewing08.googlepages.com/bodyscore

*Please do not BCS if you do not know what it is*

I just want a second opinion, I'm always worried about his weight, he got rather thin last winter (our first winter together) and I just want to stay ontop of his weight. I'm a little biased so I'd like all of your opinions :)

Info about him:

Barely 6 yrs old AQHA gelding, 16.1 hands

In full training as a hunter/jumper

Diet: One flake good quality Alfalfa AM

One flake good quality Oat/Forage mix Pm

Approx 2lbs (one scoop) Safe Choice after each work out session.

Any comments/suggestions welcome.

And I am a very experienced horse person so please, no rude /silly comments. Thank you :)

Oh please mention if you use the 0-5 scale or the 0-9 scale, thanks!

Answer 1

OK THE HORSE IS NICE BUT FROM THE PICS IT LOOKS AS IF HE LACKS PECTORAL MUSCLING AND HE LOOKS A LITTLE ON THE HEAVY SIDE BUT MAYBE THATS JUST WHAT I SEE FROM THE PICS SO ON A SCALE 1 - 10 1 BEING BAD HES ABOUT A 6 MAYBE A 7

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Answer 2

Using 0-9...I would say...between 6 and 7.

6. Moderately fleshy May have slight crease down back. Fat over ribs fleshy feels spongy. Fat around tailhead feels soft. Fat beginning to be deposited along the side of the withers, behind the shoulders and along the sides of the neck

7. Fleshy May have crease down back. Individual ribs can be felt, but noticeable filling between ribs with fat. Fat around tailhead is soft. Fat deposited along withers, behind shoulders and along the neck.

I can't really see his spine, but he looks really good for being worked all the time.

Answer 3

I'm not on a judging team or a show judge so I'll skip your scoring scale.

He looks like a horse of good weight, no ribs visible and no pot belly.

Looks to be in good shape.

Unless you just mean a general score, then I would say 7. He looks like he could use a little bit of toning up.

He is a nice horse.

Answer 4

dude he is in really good nik for a quarter horse, the mistake people make with qtr horses is they are carrying too much weight around the mid section. he looks real good. my scale is 9, keep up the good work.

Answer 5

i have never heard of the 0-9 scale....what the??

so in traditional terms of the 0-5 scaling, id say a healthy 3, which is moderate, but not fat. and it usually means that you can only just feel the end of his ribs...

Answer 6

i like him...good conformation from wat i can see and he looks clean and well taken 4 unlike most of the horses i see on here.. if i could afford it id deff try him out lolz i know im just saying if HE WAS for sale hehe =]]

Answer 7

I reakon he looks really good you cant see his ribs and he has a nice rump!! id say hes in great condition!! oh and heres a tip if he keeps loosing weight through winter try feeding him boiled barley before winter starts and then you can have a but of a head start it worked for a little old girl!! she looks like a lil thoroughbred lol!! Good Luck

Answer 8

I'd say he's at about a 5 or 6 (on the 1-10 scale of course).  Originally I was thinking a 6-7 but when I look closer, I think he just looks round because that's how his bone structure is.  He really doesn't look to have a lot of excess weight in the key areas, so I think he looks quite good.

I have a bit of a harder time with QHs because even when they are a normal/thin body condition, they still seem a bit fat to me because they are built so differently from TBs, which is more of what I'm used to.  I"m learning though!