b'is something youll want your veterinar- more mature stage, you might want to ian to check out.forego increasing hay intake and move to Pain is another possible cause ofone of the following options: weight loss, especially in older horsesIf alfalfa is available and your horse with mild osteoarthritis. This can makecan eat it safely (hes not obese and getting around harder for a horse. Theydoesnt have the genetic muscle disease become less motivated to go to feedinghyperkalemic periodic paralysis), areas to eat, and even pain-related stressconsider switching about 25% of his itself can result in weight loss.daily hay intake to alfalfa. Alfalfa Check for hay changes Is the barnprovides more calories per pound and feeding a new load of hay? If so, havehas higher levels of lysine (an essential the flakes gotten lighter? Is it possibleamino acid) than grass hay, so it might hes being fed the same number of flakes,help with weight gain and muscle but they weigh less? This would result indevelopment.lower calorie intake and weight loss. The Consider feeding some of your horses new hay might also have a lower caloriehay ration as pellets.ISTOCK.COMlevel per pound. Similarly, if the new hayIf you do not start to see some im-is more mature and stemmy, it mightprovement in body condition score not be as digestible. Also find out if yourIf you board your horse, watch for hay changeswithin a couple of weeks of implementing horse has started leaving hay behind thatsuch as lower-calorie or less-digestible forage. these changes, move on to more aggres-you might not observe if its removedsive measures. Because youre feeding a when the stall gets mucked.quality appears good (plenty of leaf andfortified ration balancer, consider adding Increase calorie consumption Weightnot too much stem), Id see if you canunfortified sources of calories such as loss is a sign that calorie intake is lowerincrease his hay intake. My preference isunmolassed beet pulp and rice bran. than calorie usage. If you believe yourto increase forage before increasing grain.Again, beet pulp is a great source of horse is eating the hay provided and theIf the hay appears to have been cut at areadily fermentable fiber and provides The feeling you getwatching your best friend age gracefully.Challenge: Loss of muscle mass Solution: ElevateNatural Vitamin E Supports healthy muscle and nerve functionsReduces risk of equine motorneuron diseaseSustains a healthy immune systemDeveloped by:Available only through your veterinarian. KPPvet.com, 859-873-2974TH 2019-10aTheHorse.com | The HorseOctober 201929'