Senior Horse Nutrition

 Do you own a senior horse? Are you concerned about their health? If you answered yes to either of these questions, feeding your horse senior feed may be a good option for you. Aging is unavoidable, but with proper nutrition you can help your horse to age better and live a longer and healthier life. As horses age, it makes it harder for them to chew and digest hay and grain and their digestive systems become less efficient. This makes it difficult for a senior horse to maintain a healthy weight. Many senior feeds are known as complete feeds, which allows a horse to get all their dietary fiber via feed rather than through forages.

When looking for a senior feed, keep these things in mind:

1. Feed must be palatable. This will be better for an older horse and will allow them to chew and digest it much easier than a traditional feed.
2. Feed should be based on digestible fiber instead of grain. Fiber is extremely important for an older horse. This will allow them to get their fiber via feed rather than from forages.
3. Feed is low in sugars and starches. Sugar and starch will NOT help your horse gain weight. Try to find a senior feed that is low in both sugar and starch.
4. Feed is high in protein and fat. These fat calories are important because the fat adds calories to promote weight gain. The higher fat and protein formulas also provide a boost of energy that an older horse may need.

5. Clean and dust-free to prevent or lessen the impact of allergies or lung disease.
6. Provide essential minerals, including calcium and phosphorus in the proper ratio.
7. Include all essential vitamins, especially vitamin C and B-complex vitamins.

It is always important to always have routine dental care to keep the teeth and mouth in good working order; at least once per year is recommended. A horse that can chew its feed properly will waste less of it, get more nutrient value from it and be less likely to choke or colic.