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Feeding the underweight horse
AUTUMN 2013 ISSUE
EQUINE MATTERS
14
OLD FR I ENDS
Weight control
Being overweight is one of the
most serious problems an older
horse can have.
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soaking hay for 12 hours to reduce the
calorific content;
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using a muzzle when grazing to reduce
intake of calories;
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reducing quality and quantity of grass
available;
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mixing hay with oat or barley straw if
your horse’s teeth can manage it;
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a good vitamin and mineral supplement
to ensure that your horse does not
become malnourished if on limited
feeding.
Nutrition
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steaming hay to soften stems;
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soft meadow haylage;
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grazing young grass;
Include a variety of the following:
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high fibre nuts (softened);
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sugar beet (soaked);
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alfalfa chaff or pre-packed dried grass;
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molassed chaff;
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grass nuts (soaked);
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a mineral and vitamin supplement.
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‘forage replacer’: this replaces the
hay/haylage component of the diet
with short-chop fibre. Large quantities
are required (feed a total amount of 2%
of your horse’s weight daily) so split the
feeds into portions throughout the day.
Introduce slowly, building up to the
required amount over 14 days.
As equine teeth wear down with age, they become less efficient at grinding
forage. It is important to maintain fibre intake, so you may need to consider:
Short chopped fibre can be used in place of hay or haylage for horses with worn down
teeth that are less efficient at grinding fibre
Weight gain occurs if a horse’s nutritional
intake is greater than the physical energy
demand. A balanced approach to
exercise and diet is essential.
The primary aim is to ensure optimum
nutrition without overdoing calorific
content. Weight control can be difficult
if exercise levels have reduced - try to
ensure a suitable level of regular exercise
even if your horse has retired. It can be
helpful to use a weight tape and body
condition score chart, recording
measurements regularly.
All equines should be fed a minimum of
1.5% of their bodyweight daily to avoid
hyperlipaemia developing (fatty liver
disease), which can be fatal.
Consider:
Many equines lose weight as they get
older, especially large horses. It is
essential to address the underlying
causes, such as dental disease, worms,
Cushing’s disease (PPID), liver disease
or other medical conditions.
Once these have been identified
and treated appropriately, consider
changes in the diet:
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access to good quality grass for as
much of the year as possible;
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feeding an age-specific conditioning
mix with high protein content;
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add in oil (up to 1ml/kg bodyweight
daily);
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try haylage rather than hay as higher
calorific content;
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use rugs so that less calories are
expended keeping warm.
Feeding an age-specific conditioning
mix with high protein content can help to
maintain weight in older horses prone to
weight loss
And finally...
if you are worried about your
horse’s health please contact your local
XLVets Equine practice for further advice.
XLVets Equine would like to thank Teresa Hollands, Dodson and
Horell for her support with this article.