# Feed for older horse?



## whitewolf (Nov 9, 2003)

I have a 28 year old stud. I buy Golden Years senior feed for him and feed him approx. 3#'s twice a day...grass and hay is available at all times. He eats good but is getting really skinny. Is there something else i could add to his diet? I realize that its because he is getting old,but want to do all I can for him...he is oir baby. Thanks.


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## JPiantedosi (Apr 23, 2012)

How are his teeth? we currently have a 27yo gelding that due to being an old Halter horse we have a hard time keeping weight on him. We have more or less quit feeding him straight hay, and he is now on a coffee can of dumor senior feed and a coffee can of standlee alfalfa pellets. He does have hay available, but we make sure he gets the feed and the alfalfa pellets twice a day and he is starting to put some weight on. Seems like It is easier for him to eat the pellets than the straight hay.

Jim


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## Susan Mary (May 8, 2004)

I to have an old guy who I struggle to keep wait on.

What I have been doing currently and it does seem to be help.

Tractor Supply has a beef pulp pellet. I take out a have half scoop and file my bucket with water. It then soaks up the water and become very mushy. This amount will double if not more in size.

Letting that soak, I take a scoop of M-G 12-8 pellets and a scoop of One and Only. The One and Only is a complete feed but that's how I use it.

So now I have two scoops of feed and one swelled up scoop of beef pulp (noted the beef pulp is very chopped about 1/2 inch long). I then top dress with about 1/3 cup of corn oil.

Mixed the about all together and add more water. Due to his age and teeth I feed him three times a day and also has hay or grass. He likes hanging out with my dogs rather than the other horses. He thinks he is top dog in the pack because of size.

One other thing I don't care what you read beef pulp always needs to be soaked including the pellets.

Good luck!


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## Barn Yarns (Oct 7, 2012)

veggie or soy oil. stay away from corn. Horses do very well on a high fat, low carb diet. slowly work him up to a cup a day. beet pulp is good too... just remember to let it soak. when i feed it, I would put pulp in a bucket and add water for the next feeding so it had about 12 hrs to soak. 

I also agree about teeth if you havent already made sure they are OK, and I would also do a fecal to make sure you are getting all worms. Tape worm is hard to get rid of if you dont know its there.


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## fols (Nov 5, 2008)

I agree with the beet pulp pellets. I also use Standlee Tim/Alf cubes and soak those with the beet pellets. Once soaked, it's about 2/3 of a 5 gallon bucket 2X a day. My guy is 31 and is missing many molars. He can't eat hay or grass since it just wads up and falls out of his mouth.
I love my old guy!


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## TroutRiver (Nov 26, 2010)

We have several horses in their late 20s here, and one morgan mare that just turned 35! We keep them all fat with beet pulp, hay stretcher, a little bit of Sentinel Senior feed and all the hay they will eat (which isn't much for the oldies who have lost molars). 

The hay stretcher pellets really help put the fat on them. We also use hay stretcher whenever we get a new horse in that is underweight. It's safer and cheaper than feeding a ton of grain, and I think it does a better job putting weight on the horses. The beet pulp adds fiber and serves as an additional forage. 

If you use the beet pulp pellets, they need to soak for a full 12 hours. The shreds don't need to soak for quite as long, a couple hours I think, or until they are soft.


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## TroutRiver (Nov 26, 2010)

We have several horses in their late 20s here, and one morgan mare that just turned 35! We keep them all fat with beet pulp, hay stretcher, a little bit of Sentinel Senior feed and all the hay they will eat (which isn't much for the oldies who have lost molars). 

The hay stretcher pellets really help put the fat on them. We also use hay stretcher whenever we get a new horse in that is underweight. It's safer and cheaper than feeding a ton of grain, and I think it does a better job putting weight on the horses. The beet pulp adds fiber and serves as an additional forage. 

If you use the beet pulp pellets, they need to soak for a full 12 hours. The shreds don't need to soak for quite as long, a couple hours I think, or until they are soft.


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## AugustRED (Apr 18, 2010)

Second the others on checking teeth - at the very least it's nice to know what they have left & potentail issues that are arising from dental issues.

My brother's senior held weight okay until about mid September this year then all of a sudden started dropping weight & pretty much quit eating hay. Had her floated beginning of Oct but she's only just now starting to eat hay again. In the meantime I put her on 2lbs HealthyGLO (rice bran/flaxseed fat supplement) & Standlee Alfalfa pellets - both of which I sprinkle with water to soften. She's had founder issues in the past so wanted to avoid feeds that contain molasses & such. Otherwise she's very healthy, she gets GrowStrong minerals + MSM & Remission. Molly's putting on weight nicely & back to acting perky! Nice thing about the alfalfa pellets is they can be soaked to create a mash if needed & they're actaul hay - I personally prefer grass hay but with a slow/picky eater one must make the most of every mouthfull! Plus they're cheaper here than the beep pulp (or even alfalfa/timothy pellets)...


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## akane (Jul 19, 2011)

If his teeth are good black oil sunflower seeds have the highest kcals of any feed but they have to be able to chew. Otherwise replacing hay with soaked beet pulp to soften it and soy oil are good options for those with bad teeth.


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## crazy4equines (Apr 15, 2012)

Check his teeth, maybe due a fecal just to make sure he doesn't have a worm load. Also you can add weight builder made by farnam. You can add everything that everyone else has suggested, My gelding who lived to be 35 we had him on Strategy, Equine Senior feed he was getting about 6 pounds of the grain mixture 2x's a day, and the grain was topped with a couple cups of Rice bran, He had free choice of hay and that was mainly grass with about 25% alfalfa, I also kept a blanket on him during the winter months as up here it gets below 0 quite often. He kept his weight on pretty good, I made sure he ate his grain and not any of the other horses too. Good luck


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## WhiteStar Acres (Oct 11, 2012)

Triple crown senior feed is the best you can buy. It's expensive but it'll make an old horse very healthy. Agway sells it. TSC sells something similar but triple crown's mix for me worked far better.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

I just changed Stjarna to Triple Crown Senior Feed... and I also find it is the best quality out there. (has beet pulp and rice bran/oil in it already) She won't eat beet pulp any other way....
She is also fed Chop as part of her hay... it is much easier for older horse's to digest.

I have her teeth done every year, this way I don't have to worry about her wasting her feed.


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## offthegrid (Aug 11, 2009)

bergere said:


> I just changed Stjarna to Triple Crown Senior Feed... and I also find it is the best quality out there. (has beet pulp and rice bran/oil in it already) She won't eat beet pulp any other way....
> She is also fed Chop as part of her hay... it is much easier for older horse's to digest.
> 
> I have her teeth done every year, this way I don't have to worry about her wasting her feed.


I agree that TC Senior is a terrific feed. And I find that if you would like to add beet pulp to your horse's diet it is easy to incorporate even more into a ration of the TC Senior because the texture is so similar (obviously, because it has beet pulp in it). So, for example, you could add 1# (dry weight) beet pulp (soaked) to your TC Senior and mix it together. Most horses will eat extra beet pulp that way.

When I fed beet pulp, I soaked them in lukewarm water for about 30 minutes (shreds) or 60+ minutes (pellets). I never would think that soaking for 12 hours was necessary (or desirable).


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## WhiteStar Acres (Oct 11, 2012)

When I emailed the triple crown makers about the % of beet pulp they told me that the senior feed was 40% beet pulp.

So, keep that in mind when you go blending more in.
They also say don't feed it as a sole ration but I did for years, he picked up some grassy hay and grass but usually balled it up and spit it out so I figure he at TCS as a sole ration for many yrs with no problem.

Once he foundered on it, because he got carb sensitive, I switched him to standlee timothy hay pellets soaked, as a sole ration (w/rice bran added) which standlee says not to feed it as sole ration also but... several more yrs, eating that and nothing else, and he had excellent bloodwork and muscle. His droppings were perfectly normal also on it.

He lost condition on the grass pellets but, that was to be expected switching from a rich food like TCS. But he had to have feed low in sugar and low in non-structured carbohydrates as possible and standlee was it.

but TSC told me their feed is 40% beat pulp.


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## offthegrid (Aug 11, 2009)

WhiteStar Acres said:


> When I emailed the triple crown makers about the % of beet pulp they told me that the senior feed was 40% beet pulp.
> 
> So, keep that in mind when you go blending more in.
> They also say don't feed it as a sole ration but I did for years, he picked up some grassy hay and grass but usually balled it up and spit it out so I figure he at TCS as a sole ration for many yrs with no problem.
> ...


Triple Crown Senior can be fed as a sole feed - From their website: "Has enough bulk fiber to be used as the sole ration for horses unable to eat hay or pasture. It can also be used with good quality hay. Available in 50 lb. bags."

Obviously, if a horse CAN eat grass or hay, they should be fed as much as they will eat because I am sure it is better for their digestion.

I'm not sure there is a danger to feeding "too much" beet pulp? Is there a specific problem to avoid?


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## loli (Aug 14, 2011)

I had my old mare who was 36 put down when I couldn't keep the weight on her. She had no grinders to eat hay and stuff with and I decided that I wasn't doing her any favors. That being said, I always mix senior feed and beet pulp 50/50. I have also had senior horses in the 20's not look as good as my oldest mare was. Some age better than others.


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## DamnearaFarm (Sep 27, 2007)

offthegrid said:


> I agree that TC Senior is a terrific feed. And I find that if you would like to add beet pulp to your horse's diet it is easy to incorporate even more into a ration of the TC Senior because the texture is so similar (obviously, because it has beet pulp in it). So, for example, you could add 1# (dry weight) beet pulp (soaked) to your TC Senior and mix it together. Most horses will eat extra beet pulp that way.
> 
> *When I fed beet pulp, I soaked them in lukewarm water for about 30 minutes (shreds) or 60+ minutes (pellets). I never would think that soaking for 12 hours was necessary (or desirable*).


When I had an oldster (or rescue) and fed bp I always soaked the pellets in hot water for an hour or so before feeding. I would think the 12 hr thing would ferment the feed.


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## yoopermom (Feb 9, 2009)

I had a fussy old rescue TB who lived the last 10 of his 30+ years on soaked beet pulp, hay cubes, senior feed, and oil. He liked it a VERY specific temperature, I made it with hot water, and it soaked only maybe 1/2 hour at most, because he would NOT eat it if it was cooler than "warm". Our son used to say that we put more effort into the horse's dinner than his .

Terri


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## melwynnd (Dec 25, 2004)

You might want to try Fodder. It's highly digestible, very nutritious, and easy to eat for an older horse with worn teeth. 

It costs me about $64 a ton to produce.

Sherry
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