Keeping Older Horses Healthy Over Winter

Keeping older horses healthy over Winter

Owning an older horse or pony can be very rewarding! They are usually (but not always!) more sensible, have seen life, and if still actively working or competing, they know their job, and get on with it!

Traditionally, a horse or pony was recognized as a veteran at just 15 years of age, but these days, many horses do not reach their competitive peak until their mid-teens, and countless horses and ponies are still active well into their twenties and even thirties!

So age really is just a number, and its important to assess the individual horse when deciding whether getting older means a change in management and feeding is required to keep your veteran horse or pony happy and healthy.

Challenges faced by aging horses and ponies can include one or more of the issues below:

Weight loss

Poor dentition affecting the ability to chew effectively and possibly leading to discomfort

Weight gain (through decreased activity and more time at pasture)

Decreased mobility (joint and/or muscle stiffness)

Compromised immune system  (they don’t heal from wounds or fight infection as well as they used to).

Recognizing any of these issues in your older horse or pony may need a change in management, or additional support from feed to help overcome these challenges.

Weight loss

A small amount of weight loss over the winter months may be acceptable, but its important to avoid a significant loss in an older horse, whatever the cause. Weekly use of a weigh tape can help provide an objective assessment, but do remember to remove rugs daily, and check body condition. Extra calories and a small amount of extra protein may be required. If teeth are still in good condition, extra forage and extra oil, such as Equine America Supreme Omega Oil  is often the best way to provide additional calories, especially in horses and ponies where diets must be kept low in starch and sugar. Unmolassed sugar beet and low sugar chaffs can be used as well as good quality hay or haylage. A small amount of cooked linseed will provide extra protein, and some veteran cubes or mixes are also low in sugar and starch, with extra protein already added.

Ensure adequate minerals and vitamins are provided, to help maintain health and wellbeing, and if not provided in a fortified feed, add Equine America Everyday Vitamins and Minerals  to support general health.

If required, appropriate rugging can help maintain body temperature, but do remove and replace at least daily.

The fermentation of forage in the horse’s gut is the best way for him to produce heat – from the inside out, so ensure plenty of good quality forage is available.

Even with adequate forage, older horses and ponies may struggle to maintain their body temperature, so ensure suitable shelter is provided, and if necessary suitable rugs.

Check that the older horse or pony is not being bullied by field companions, and perhaps not receiving their fair share of forage, feeds or even water in the paddock.

Poor Dentition

Teeth problems can result in significant weight loss as well as major discomfort and pain – either because the horse cannot grasp his forage effectively, or cannot chew properly, meaning the feed is not digested effectively, and weight loss ensues. Losing teeth can result in gaps appearing, which can trap food and become infected. If horses are struggling to chew long fibre such as hay or haylage, it may be necessary to source hay replacers, such as soaked high fibre nuts or specialist chaffs and mashes. Dental inspections, either by a qualified and register equine dentist, or a vet, may need to become more frequent for older horses, to ensure comfort and efficiency in this vital first stage of digestion.

Weight Gain

Being overweight is also undesirable for an older horse, and may occur as a result of reduced activity, perhaps because of an old injury, or a younger horse is taking more of the owner’s time. Weigh forage, and restrict if necessary, but never below 1.5% of bodyweight unless under veterinary or nutritionist’s supervision. Reduce calories from other feeds and replace with lower calorie versions. Re-balance to ensure mineral and vitamins are supplied if required, using Everyday Vitamins and Minerals.

Decreased mobility and stiffness

Wear and tear and inflammation in joints and muscles from years of work, or perhaps previous injuries, can take their toll on older horses, resulting in stiffness, and sometimes even pain and lameness.

Natural, plant-based jointcare products such as the Buteless Range will provide support and relief to horses and ponies. Those with higher levels of wear and tear, or those still in work may benefit from Buteless Super Strength Powder  or the highly potent EA Nutra Buteless High Strength Liquid.  Those in lighter work may find that Buteless Original Powder  will be sufficient.

Where cartilage wear and tear have occurred, consider providing the nutritional building blocks to support repair from Cortaflex Super Fenn or Cortaflex Regular, both available in powder or liquid form.

If you know that glucosamine-based supplements work for your horse or pony, Glucosamine HCl 12,000 may be the product for you! It not only contains a full 12,000mg glucosamine, but also 10,000mg MSM,  Hyaluronic acid, and Green Lipped Mussel, a natural source of chondroitin.

Turmeric provides many benefits for older horses, containing powerful antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory compounds. Turmeric Xtra  provides high quality turmeric, on a palatable linseed base, which also provides vital omega 3 fatty acids.

Do remember that wear and tear can occur in the joints of the head and neck as well as the limbs and back, which can make eating from the ground or even pulling from a hay net painful. If this is the case, try raising the feed bucket slightly or using a manger, and try to find ways to feed forage at a comfortable height – perhaps using safely secured larger buckets.

Compromised Immune System

Older horses and ponies may not be able to fight infections or heal as efficiently as they did in their youth and may benefit from supplemental levels of key antioxidants vitamin C and vitamin E to support the immune system.  Vitamin C 2000  and Vitamin E and Selenium  are both designed to be safely fed with most typical fortified feed regimes, to provide extra support for the immune system.

In addition, a course of natural, plant-based support from Emune Liquid   with Echinacea will help older horses and ponies to maintain a healthy immune system.

Increased time in the stable over the Winter months can also present respiratory challenges to the older horse or pony, as they are subjected to higher levels of dust and spores from bedding and hay. Coff-Less Powder   and Airways Powder or Liquid  will provide natural support from Eucalyptus, Menthol, and other plant extracts, to help keep lungs and airways clear. 

Not all older horses and ponies will require management or feeding changes, but careful assessment of each individual older horse or pony is important, to decide where additional nutritional support may be beneficial, to enable them to continue to enjoy a long, happy, comfortable and active life.