Grazing muzzles are a useful tool that can allow a horse or pony to receive the benefits associated with turnout while at the same time limiting the potential for undesirable weight gain. | Photo: iStock

Q: My horse is an easy keeper and tends toward the heavy side, and I am concerned about him being overweight. He’s stalled overnight and receives grass hay and a low-starch ration balancer. During the day, he’s on pasture with other horses. We don’t have a dirt turnout available, and I like the fact that he’s out during the day and able to socialize with other horses. Is using a grazing muzzle on my horse a good idea? If so, how do I introduce it?

A: Kudos to you for being proactive about your horse’s weight. Certainly it sounds as though the unlimited grazing availability most of the day could result in undesirable weight gain, and grazing muzzles can be very useful in these situations. When fitted correctly, a grazing muzzle helps restrict grass intake but does not completely prevent the horse from eating.

Pasture turnout offers horses many benefits, but it also come with drawbacks. Turnout allows for increased movement. This is important not only for gastrointestinal health, but also helps maintain low-level fitness and increases calorie utilization, an important consideration for the overweight individual. Group turnout allows for social interactions between horses that’s not possible in most stall environments. However, turnout in pasture can result in large and typically uncontrolled intakes of forage, leading to weight gain and its associated health risks of equine metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and laminitis in some individuals