Retired senior horse and fitness

[SugarCubes]

I have a 24 year old gelding who has been mostly retired for the past 3ish years since I had a baby and just haven’t had the time to keep him in consistent work.

He’s sound, fat, and happy and used to be a blast to ride (he’s my old hunter) and I’d love to get him back in shape and fit again but feel a little conflicted and wonder if I should just let him enjoy being totally retired…but on the other hand I want him to be as healthy as he can be and feel like getting him fit could be beneficial to his wellbeing.

I was thinking just hacking out and trail riding a few times a week could be a good happy medium?

Anyone else with senior horses in a similar situation? What do you do with your older horses? Advice for bringing a horse his age back into work?

[SMF11]

If you can turn him out 24/7, with buddies, in big fields that will go a long way to keeping him in good shape as he ages. I can’t speak to the legging up, as I only have retirees on my farm.

[blondewithchrome]

My vet had a very thought provoking comment for me when I asked about rehabbing my 20 year old from an injury and asked about “enjoyment” of being retired - he said something along the lines of horses not placing emotional value on “retirement” versus being ridden like we as humans do, and sometimes keeping an older horse in light work actually does them favors because it keeps their body moving and eases aches and pains in joints - just like older humans staying active to ease the pains of aging!

With this senior horse my rehab plan will be slow flat work over a longggg period. Likely tack walking only for a while. He may never see a jump again. I think taking an incredibly conservative approach will always help you, but you are lucky to be starting from a place where he’s sound and (assuming he’s been turned out), somewhat fit from movement in a field vs. coming out of the stall for 6mo that is more typical!

[clanter]

we used to compete in competitive trail distance rides that were 50 to 60 miles over a weekend. There were many rides were we competed against Elmer Bandit. He was 38 when he competed in his last ride, he recorded 20,780 lifetime trail miles in judged miles during his lifetime

A necropsy was performed at Kansas State University, and revealed the gelding’s body was in surprisingly good shape, displayed few signs of his advanced age, and had very little evidence of arthritis.

Competitive Trail Horse Elmer Bandit Passes Away - EasyCare Hoof Boot News

[Foxglove]

Due to an injury, I couldn’t ride my “young” horse (10) and had already signed up for a local show --so I dusted off my 28 year old and entered him in two classes. I rode him daily for about 4-5 weeks before the show --was he fit? Probably not, but he could do two 5 min classes . . .he doesn’t need any warm up before a class --just a slow walk will do. Both classes were flat classes, w/t with one 1/2 cantered circle. I don’t think he even sweated.

[Tanabanana]

I’m there too! But not because of a baby, just new farm-old house- busy job stuff.

I have a 24 year old who I haven’t done much with aside from the occasional bareback meander around the property. He was really grumpy the last time I did that, and I had a million other priorities, so I decided he can just be a pasture puff for awhile. He’s a draft cross and a big dude so I assumed maybe arthritis. He had been a lesson horse as a young man and that would track.

This summer I had my vet check him out and she said he’s sound. She’s also a chiro so she did some adjustments. Now I know he’s good for…something…and I’m not sure what I’m going to actually do!

Might end up being nothing but I’m satisfied that I know he’s extra happy wandering around and eating:)

[OzarksRider]

@SugarCubes

I was thinking just hacking out and trail riding a few times a week could be a good happy medium?

I think that would be perfect, especially if the terrain is hilly. My horse is 21 and I’m 74. Neither of us is as spry or as ambitious as we were ten years ago, but we still go out 1-2 hours two or three times a week when the weather is decent. The hills are a good workout for my horse, and on the flat stretches we can do a long working trot or practice transitions, leg yields, side passes, serpentines, backing up, and figure eights. Or sometimes, like this morning, we just mosey along and enjoy the scenery and cool breeze.

[Demerara_Stables]

Personally I don’t believe in strict “retirement” with no work at all. If a horse is pasture sound, it’s likely they’re sound to be ridden at the walk, or at least hand walked/walked on the longe. Even if out 24/7, forced exercise (even if only walking) is very good for them. I also think it’s easy to miss things if you’re not getting them out and grooming and working with them regularly.

I would start with 20-30 minutes of brisk hand walking or walking on the longe (putzing along isn’t helpful ) 3-4x a week, and increase by 5 minutes per week until you reach 50 min to an hour. If you want to start riding, then you can make one of those weekly sessions a 20 minute walk under saddle and increase frequency or duration under saddle each week. Be sure to monitor your horse’s tolerance (is their respiration increased and not returning to baseline within a few minutes, do they need to stop for breaks) as well as their fitness (are they muscle sore for days after the workout, or do they feel good in their body and seem to be having an easier time each week) and adjust the workouts as needed.

I’ve got 3 horses over 20 in my care - two are 22, and one is 29. They all are worked 3-4x a week, including w/t/c under saddle. They are all sound love their work!

[Scribbler]

I moved barns this summer. Now my 21 year old mare has pasture turnout every day until winter. I have been riding less as I’m also fixing up my own new home. She is much more fit. When I have her out for a ride she is very forward and has lost no fitness in terms of cardio on hills or sweating. Indeed I think she’s fitter. And very very interested in getting off the property and exploring.

[Renn_aissance]

My horse is 30. He “retired” from doing any exercise in a ring at 27 and trail rode from then until 29. He did the steering, I was just up there. So some days we walked the perimeter and checked troughs and came in in 15 minutes later, and some days he wanted to go trot up the mountain bike trails and I wished I’d put a saddle on him. Now he hand walks. Same idea- we leave the barn and most of the time he just wants to graze, but some days he crosses the road and visits the neighbors. I’m not in charge, I’m just attached. He’s probably not getting huge fitness benefits out of this- he’s out on 10 rolling acres with a congenial herd, so a 15-30 minute walk is not adding meaningfully to his life. But the intellectual stimulation from changing environments and keeping his world bigger than stall, field, barn aisle is worth plenty for his quality of life.

Go trail ride.

[SugarCubes]

He’s at our farm and is out 24/7 in a 5 acre pasture with his BFF - and they do get the zoomies and tear around at least once a day

Thanks all, it sounds like hacking out and some longing sessions are in our future. I’m a very goal oriented person and love a good routine so you’ve given me good some idea for a plan I can follow to get him going again!

[SBrentnall]

Wish I could do that with my 25-year old. But he’s still a total idiot, prone to wild spooks and bad behavior, even in his pasture. He’s the redhead running around like an idiot while the other retirees watch him with complete disdain

After surviving his spookiness for 10 years, I was perfectly happy to retire him completely!

[Demerara_Stables]

Well yes, if you don’t enjoy riding them then no reason to put yourself in danger

I actually get excited when Dora gets wild again, shows me that she’s feeling good lol

[Libby2563]

@SugarCubes

I’m a very goal oriented person and love a good routine so you’ve given me good some idea for a plan I can follow to get him going again!

In that case, maybe consider some PT-type exercises as well? Jec Ballou’s books have a good variety of exercises and the newest one has specific programs to follow. You could also work your way through one of the 101 __ Exercises books, tailored to his fitness.

This is making me feel bad for letting my 29-year-old be a saggy blob. He’s not sound enough for riding, but I do often think I should really make time to do stretches and core exercises with him.

[Critter]

My soon to be 21 yo gelding is semi-retired. We do short (20-25 min) rides…mostly just basic w/t/c with big circles. During the heat of summer and the really cold part of winter he is off and we don’t ride (he has anhidrosis in summer so not risking it). When the weather is nice, I ride him…not every day, but maybe 4 days a week. In his case it helps keep his stifles from getting too sticky and he just loves the attention! I probably could do more with him, but he’s happy with this level of work. He’s had his share of wear and tear/injuries so this is enough to keep him moving but he’s sound without any significant maintenance. If I wanted to do more, I do worry he wouldn’t hold up and that wouldn’t be fair to him. But he’s also too social to not do any work…I can tell when he has had a week without any work that he wants a bit more interaction.

[OverandOnward]

@SugarCubes

but on the other hand I want him to be as healthy as he can be and feel like getting him fit could be beneficial to his wellbeing.

I was thinking just hacking out and trail riding a few times a week could be a good happy medium?

Absolutely. As long as he’s comfortable doing it, his retirement years will be more comfortable for him if he has some ongoing fitness. Plus, a horse that is accustomed to riding benefits from the mental (and emotional) stimulation.

Otherwise they just kind of start melting down into the grass. All the infirmities are being carried by an unfit body.

This has proven for humans as well. Taking as much fitness as they comfortably can into their final years keeps aging humans far more comfortable for those years.

[JumpWithPanache]

My 23 year old stepped down from the 3’ Adults at the end of the 2021 season and was leased to a short stirrup kid. He foundered in the Fall of '22 and came home to rehab with me. I am incredibly blessed that he pulled through (it was pretty touch and go for a while) and came back pasture sound. Fast forward to now, he does some flatwork and goes to the local hunter shows for the Pleasure division. He is sooooo happy to get picked to ride and is so much happier than when he was only on 24x7 turnout and grooming. If they’re sound and healthy, I think most horses much prefer still having a job to being fully retired, especially those that were kept super fit and/or shown.