Rachael’s Corner: Overweight Rider Survey Results!

In the Tictac Equestrian office today, we have been chatting about the recent survey that has been published in some major newspapers such as The Daily Mail about how only one in twenty riders are within the optimum weight for their horse! Wow!

The survey assessed 152 adults and their horses from the Devon and Cornwall area. Vet guidelines state that a rider should weigh under 10% of their horse’s weight to avoid injury to the horse. A study by Duchy College in Cornwall showed that only five per cent of the people surveyed fell within this bracket. Pretty scary! Thirty two per cent weighed more than fifteen per cent of their horse’s weight and the remaining sixty three per cent fell within the ten – fifteen per cent bracket. Vets state that if you weight anymore than fifteen per cent of your horse’s weight then you are putting your horse at high risk of injury or developing bad behaviour due to pain or discomfort.

A lot of people are under the misconception that “horses are big animals and should be able to carry large weights,” - However, this is not always the case. Some people do not take into consideration the age or breed of the horse, and do not realise that the standard of riding can largely contribute to this issue. Our horses are all suffering from the soaring rate of obesity in the United Kingdom and we have to do something about it.

Keith Chandler, president of the British Equine Veterinary Association, stated that last year they saw an increase in lameness and back problems in horses caused by “the wrong riders on the wrong horses.” Pretty frightening really!

If you have any worries about being too heavy for your horse, we recommend that you contact your vet to give you some information on the matter. At Tictac Equestrian, we would love to hear any stories or advice you might have for our team and our customers. Contact us through Facebook or Twitter J