Laminitis specialist Robert Eustace, BVSc, Cert EO, Cert. EP, MRCVS, director of The Laminitis Clinic in Wiltshire, England, wants horse obesity to be declared a welfare concern. In a campaign launched at the annual meeting of the International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH) at the end of 2002, Eustace directed sharp words at the horse show judging system, which rewards round, plump horses in the show ring. The ILPH recognized the severity of the problem in the show ring, and it has responded publicly by educating horse owners about how serious obesity can be.

“Fat is a good color for a horse,” is an old adage in horse management. According to Eustace, overweight horses should be cause for alarm, not reward, since they are at a very real risk of developing laminitis. He showed slides of obese horses sent to his clinic for laminitis treatment, accompanied by slides of the same horses after weight reduction. Recovered horses which were not allowed to regain weight remained at low risk for recurrence of laminitis, he reported