There are a number of ways to add calories to an older horse's diet to help him keep his weight up. | Photo: iStock

Q: I have a 25-year-old Thoroughbred gelding that had a stroke in March 2008. Following a year of rehabilitation after losing the use of his left side, he is living a normal life again and is able to walk, trot, canter, and play in the pasture with the other horses. He did lose his sight in his left eye, though, and the left side of his mouth droops. He has always been a “hard keeper.”

Currently I have him eating 4 3/4 pounds of senior feed morning and night (with about 10-12 hours between the feedings), a scoop of comprehensive wellness supplement twice a day in his feed, and all the timothy hay he wants to eat. When he is out in the pasture he has timothy hay available and some grass in the pasture, though when it’s wintertime and the grass is not great, we do put out fresh hay every day for him. His teeth are checked at least twice a year and he is up-to-date with deworming and his dental work. Ideally, he still needs to gain another 50-100 pounds. Do you have any recommendations?

I am in contact with my veterinarian, who saved Bert’s life when he had his stroke