With more and more horses reaching geriatric status (over 20 years of age), it’s important to understand how their nutritional needs might change. Diets should be adjusted if necessary to help old-timers live long and healthy lives. David Pugh, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACT, Dipl. ACVN (nutrition), professor at Auburn University, presented “Feeding the Geriatric Horse” during the Current Concepts in Equine Nutrition session on Dec. 5.

Pugh began by saying that an older horse should have a complete physical exam, dental exam, and complete blood count and serum biochemistry panel to detect any problems. If an older horse has a medical problem, this information might affect the choice of diet.

If everything is normal, Pugh recommended that an older horse be given palatable, dust-free feedstuffs to minimize the risk of allergies and lung disease. These feedstuffs should be easy to chew and swallow to minimize the risk of choke. If an older horse is pastured with younger or more aggressive horses at feeding time, Pugh said it is helpful to feed the older horse separately to insure that he gets to eat properly.

A healthy older horse should be fed enough energy for the amount of calories he is burning–crude protein at 12-16%–and high-quality fiber for normal gut function, according to Pugh. It is important to make sure that the older horse is receiving enough vitamin C and vitamin B-complex and minerals to maintain nutritional health. He said that vitamin C levels tend to be lower in geriatrics. One study showed that in older horses with depressed immune systems, giving 10 grams of vitamin C twice a day might increase antibody response. Vitamin C is water soluable and thus is hard to detect a toxicity, so Pugh recommends not going above this level. He also reminded horse owners that they should always consult their veterinarians prior to feeding any supplement