It can be hard to know if your horse is getting the right amount of calories from his diet, but the best way to tell is by looking at him. Checking and monitoring his bodyweight and condition regularly is an essential part of keeping his weight in check, so you can adjust his feed accordingly if necessary.
Fat scoring, also known as condition scoring is an objective way to determine the level of fat cover your horse has. You can do this by assessing his body condition against a set criteria such as the one below and giving him a score from one to five - one being very poor and five being obese.
You can also get a rough idea of his weight by using a weigh tape and plotting the results on a graph. Getting into the habit of doing this fortnightly will help determine if he's an appropriate weight, and whether you need to make any adjustments to his calorie intake. It'll also enable you to act sooner if you horse starts losing or gaining significant amounts of weight before it becomes a major problem.
