Feeding the Kooky Old Horse

[spurofthemoment]

Does anyone else have an old weirdo? Who has a happy, bright personality but a questionable body condition? I do. And I’m at a bit of a loss to ensure he gets enough feed.

He’s been wormed. Last time vet was out, we decided against a blood test (time of year) for Cushings. I’ll request a panel when vet is out again to do dental on my young, fat horse. Kooky Old Man’s teeth are good.

He’s currently on 8 lbs of Pro Force Senior, 2 lbs of alfalfa pellets, and is turned out 24/7 unless weather is bad. He is 23, weighs 1150 (17h Oldenburg) and is probably a 3/4 on the BCS scale. His bony hips are the most concerning. He’s had a previous injury but moves around fine. He could do a light under saddle job if he had proper muscling. Barn provides high quality hay, dropped in pasture daily or in feeder in paddocks (no round bales). The Kooky Old Man loves the hay, doesn’t have any herd pecking order issues (he is at the top/the top dog), yet I will watch him go socialize with the mares over the fence, stand at the gate to beg for attention whenever someone is at the barn, or otherwise spend his time not eating. He acts like he could take eating or leave it.

Any tips on getting more forage in him? Should I up him to 2, 5lb feedings of the senior feed and offer free choice chopped forage (thinking about offering Triple Crown stress free OR safe starch) for him to munch on while he waits to get turned back out? Should I offer him a couple pounds of extra grain OR forage whenever I can?

He doesn’t like to be stalled unless everyone else is. Truthfully, I like that he lives out, as I think it’s good for his body. Any tips on ensuring enough is being fed to a horse that lives out?

Edited to add: Age, height, capabilities

[2DogsFarm]

You don’t say how old Kooky is.
The hipbones may just be his OldGuy Bod if he’s late 20s. Even if “just” late teens.
I’d hold off adding more grain. Maybe add pelleted/cubed forage instead.

I have the opposite problem
23yo Hackney Pony who’s an insult to his breed bodywise.
Horsewise friend meeting him for the first time:
“Is she in foal?”
He’s out 24/7/365 by choice with my other 2 - TWH & mini. Free access to stalls & pasture.
All get hay 3X daily, fed by Eyeballed & Guesstimated Weight of flakes.

[spurofthemoment]

He’s 23 like your pony! I edited my post to add that info. He gets alfalfa pellets on top of his grain (1 lb AM/PM). The chopped forage is attractive to me because it can be left out and left behind without any worry of spoiling. And it’s easy.

[Texarkana]

Don’t be afraid to increase his senior feed if it’s a complete feed.

Also don’t be afraid to give him as big of meals as he will eat. Ideally multiple small meals are best, but most people can’t feed 3-4x a day or more, especially not when boarding. So you do what you have to do.

I had an old toothless TB who was getting 7-8lbs of Senior feed 2x a day because he needed it; multiple smaller meals were not an option.

[spurofthemoment]

I’ve been told that most horses are fine eating up to a certain percent of their body weight in a meal - he could eat a 6 lb meal if it came down to it.

I go to the barn at least 5 days a week. Would it do more harm than good to offer him extra only the days I can be there? I can provide all my own grain and forage, so no worry with the barn owner in that department.

[JB]

@spurofthemoment

Last time vet was out, we decided against a blood test (time of year) for Cushings.

This is the start of the perfect time for the TRH Stim test. Or, you can assume PPID based on some symptoms, start (wean onto) Prascend, and see how that helps. My 33yo was “diagnosed” about 2 months ago, based off his coat, started Prascend, and despite not eating any more, and the grass declining, he’s actually gained some weight.

If you can get Triple Crown Sr Gold, that’s 1800 cal/lb, so a boost in calories without more pounds. If not, you can try adding some oil

Is the 1lb alf pellets to get him to eat the 4lb of Sr? If not, I’d drop the alf and feed 5lb meals of Sr instead of 4lb meals, you’ll get a calorie boost with that replacement

.5% of ideal body weight is about the max of a meal you want, so 1200lb gets you 6lb per meal. You can push it a bit if it’s a forage-based feed and/or some of the pounds are forage (like alf pellets), but I wouldn’t push more than maybe .7%, if that.

If he’s standing around his stall waiting for others to finish, definitely make sure he’s got hay to eat at will, doesn’t have to be chopped forage.

[spurofthemoment]

Thanks for all this!!

There was a period of time where we had a hard time getting him to eat all his grain without the alfalfa. Granted, this was also the period when he was adjusting to his new retirement home. He’s VERY confident and secure now. I’m not sure if he’ll eat it without now - I definitely would rather get more calories in one sitting. I add MannaPro Senior Weight Accelerator once per day (I don’t think it’s dining much, which is why I didn’t mention it in my original post) and I’m fairly certain he wouldn’t eat it if he didn’t have the alfalfa pellets. I’m all for trying the PF Senior at 5 lbs 2x per day instead of 4 + 1 lb of Alfalfa 2x per day.

I got a two-month supply of the Pro Force in a Black Friday deal - if it doesn’t work (that’ll mark 3 months of being on PF senior), then I’ll try TC Senior gold. It was my next move regardless!

[JB]

you could definitely go 5 + 1 for now, and see if he’ll do that

If he doesn’t have PPID or EMS, then TC Complete is another to try, at 1700 cal/lb. That was one my got-picky 33yo decided was the best (still not great, but better than the others) for the longest. I suspect it was the oats that he liked. But he’s off that now, and currently eating the ProForce Sr the best. Yes, my guy is very likely a PPID horse, but at this point I feed him what he’ll eat, and we’ve done ALL the things available at TSC and SS

Oh, he also ate PF Fuel XF (Xtra Fiber, important for my guy, not as big a deal for yours) pretty well for a while too, something else to try.

[RedHorses]

@spurofthemoment

I go to the barn at least 5 days a week. Would it do more harm than good to offer him extra only the days I can be there?

No. Anything you can get him to eat outside of his regular feeding time will help as long as it is his usual food items. Something very different could throw off the balance of bacteria types in his gut, but the usual foods are just more of what his gut bacteria is accustomed to.

My 25 year old isn’t kooky, but he is particular about eating and has had some weight challenges. I give him a couple of pounds of alfalfa cubes to munch while I’m grooming and tacking up (or messing with his injured leg), and another pound or two of his hard feed afterwards. The amount I offer varies depending on his current weight and willingness to eat. Cubes anywhere from 1-5lbs, hard feed anywhere from 1/2lb to 2.5lbs.

I do feed his cubes dry, or with a very specific level of wet. Which is more about how he feels about eating than it is about choke. Younger horse got wet cubes for choking risk reasons.

[Pico_Banana]

Definitely trying increasing his grain. I upped my 29 year old mare from 9 lbs to 12 lbs a day at JB’s advice, as well as my 22 year old gelding from 6 to 9 lbs. This is Triple Crown Senior (regular not gold). They have both gained weight nicely, despite the cooler temps. I have them at home so can break into three meals.

[Bonnie2]

I am a huge fan of TC Safe Starch. It is hideously expensive but unlike hay they eat every bit. I keep a separate tub and refill whenever it’s empty. Great for my old guy and OTTs that need weight. You don’t mention blankets or weather, but I keep more blanket on the old ones than the others so they don’t spend calories keeping warm.

[Huntin_Pony]

In addition to others’ suggestions on feed, I have had some luck by adding Purina Super Sport (or equivalent amino acid supplement) for the old horses. My 32 year-old mare was looking a little bony last year and I think her musculature has poofed up a little since adding the SS. Just a thought.

[spurofthemoment]

This was something I was considering! Just kind of offering him the chopped forage free choice when he’s in his stall and whenever I’m around.

I purchased some Standlee Chopped alfalfa to try for now since it’s a little cheaper. I want to see how he does on the PF Senior. If no improvement, I’ll switch to TC Senior gold. If no improvement, I’ll add the safe starch forage instead of the chopped alfalfa.

I noticed he doesn’t have quite the bite strength any more when I feed him carrots, so maybe something softer is in order instead of the dry pellets. He hates soaked feed - he thinks it’s been tampered with.

[victoriakent]

Huge fan of adding ProElite Omega Advantage to add some fluff to older horses. In addition to the calories, the added omega’s are good for their coat and joints.

[RedHorses]

@spurofthemoment

He hates soaked feed - he thinks it’s been tampered with.

Two things to try -

Add a very small amount of water to his feed and immediately shake it up so that all the pellets are lightly wet on the outside. If that sits overnight, the pellets absorb the moisture and become crumbly in the horse’s mouth while still retaining the pellet shape in the feed tub. You will have to experiment with your feed. I used about 25-30cc of water in 2lbs of pellets.

Alternatively use a very little more water (shake well!) and feed it immediately, or shortly after. I do that with my senior soaked-food-is-inedible horse and he happily eats. I mostly do it to get his powder supplements to stick to the feed.

[cilla1]

My 31 yo is on the same page, bright and happy as can be but I can’t keep the weight on him. I’m waiting for the vet to run a full blood panel and to test for Cushing (I’m pretty sure that he’ll test positive). Adding chopped forage is what helped him most, his teeth are quite useless according to the dentist and he has trouble too eating carrots, I have to cut them in small pieces.
He’s a small guy and eats 9 pounds a day of chopped forage, another 10 pounds of regular hay, 5,5 pounds of senior food, flax oil and joint supplements. I hope he’ll improve treating him for Cushing