The most accurate way to measure your horse’s weight is on a scale, but because that is not accessible to many horse owners, weight tapes or body condition scoring your horse might be the best way to assess his condition. In this excerpt from Ask TheHorse Live, Patty Graham-Thiers, PhD, of Emory and Henry University in Emory, Virginia, explains how to accurately measure your horse’s body condition score and determine what a healthy weight is for him.

This podcast is an excerpt of our Ask TheHorse Live Q&A, "Managing Your Horse’s Weight Through Thick and Thin." Listen to the full recording here.

About the Expert:

Patty Graham-Thiers, PhD, has 30 years of experience in higher education equine studies programs. She grew up in Massachusetts and received her BS in animal science from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She then earned her MS in equine nutrition from the University of Florida and PhD from Virginia Tech in equine nutrition and exercise physiology. She taught at Virginia Intermont College and currently teaches at Emory & Henry University in their Equine Studies Program. Her research focuses on protein and amino acid nutrition of exercising horses, and she also served on the National Academy of Science committee that published the 2007 Nutrient Requirements of Horses 6th edition.