Why does he look like this? Need answers!

Okay so my horse is Arabian and Saddle bred. I've seen plenty of other horses the same breed as him and they don't seem to look like him at. My farrier said he is at a good healthy weight. He eats all his food and we give his supplements as well and he finishes those too. He has a bump on his butt but I know that will stay there because the way he is built but to me it looks like his hip bones stick out too much and his backbone looks high too. I've even looked up horses that are Arabian and Saddle bred and they don't look like this at all. Can I give him something that will fill in his butt a little more and help his back so it the bone doesn't stick up so high and so his hips won't stick out as much??

It frustrates me because he looks a little unhealthy to me but he is fed properly and I ride him almost everyday, he gets plenty of water and I just don't know what else to do. I was going to give the vet a call to come out and just give him a check up to see if there's something wrong that i'm not aware of or is that just unnecessary? I know because of his breed, that he will not have a lot of muscle no matter how much I ride him but I just don't know why he looks so hippy to me. My mom also thinks the same thing but then again, she is used to her quarter horse which is bulky and thick.


This is kind of a funny angle but to me his hip bones stick out a lot more than they should and his back bone is so high. I don't know if that is because he has high withers or what. I just don't want people thinking I don't take good care of my horse when I really do. It seriously bugs me a lot.

This is the only semi good picture I have of him that shows his hips and back. I'll try to take a few more tomorrow and post them since this one isn't very good and since it's at a funny angle. Also, sorry the picture is so big I just wanted it to be big enough so People could see easier.

How old is he?

Oh yeah, I should have said that in my post. He is 12 years old.

Pic isn't coming up for me.

Check your saddle fit. Many times restricted development of the back muscles causes a strange shape under the saddle as seen here. I see this most often with air saddles or people using too much sheepskin or "air cell" padding or the saddle is ill fitting.

Remember also that correct riding builds correct muscles. If his topline isn't building correctly with well fitted tack then look into getting lessons with a good Dressage instructor to address some possible holes in the training. Good luck!
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As a keeper of ASB's & Arabians I will give you my opinion. He looks like a fit SB to me. He could use a little over his top line & that would be done with a fat supplement or high quality alfalfa but also at the risk of him getting too fat.
His ribs are not showing so that tells me he is not under nourished. Most Saddlebreds, though tall, are kind of narrow through the body with comparatively wider hips so many think they are underweight while they are not.
You know how the ASB show horses look all round & picture perfect? Most get that way from eating high grain diets & standing in stalls 23 hours a day & only getting out for power workouts. They look great but are lacking endurance. They are usually dripping sweat after one 10 minute class at a show. Now before I get jumped on I know that when they show they are working very hard.
Your horse looks like he could go all day. He's very handsome.

Subbing, my healthy 5 year old Racking horse has the same spine and hip bone thing going on, even when she's fat on summer pasture! Interested to see what people say.

I just got a new saddle that fits him so good everywhere. I'm hoping that will help.

He pretty much can go all day. I don't want to risk him getting too fat and I have to be really careful with how much protein he gets because it messes up his hoofs so I guess I shouldn't worry about it too much since he is a a good weight. Thank you he is handsome

Slowly condition with climbing mountain's... build a nice rear

Do you deworm him regularly? Has he always looked like this or does it seem that he ahs been getting worse. Is he out to pasture a lot. Is he put out to pasture with other animals / goats etc?

There are certain parasites that the dewormers don't usually aid in managing the count - such as the ones that may cause Coccidiosis.

I don't want to alarm you so I wont but I would suggest your vert does a fecal test and if you do not deworm then you shoudl start. If he always looked as he did then it should not be something I would worry aabout at all sometimes horses are just built that way.