What is good to feed an old horse to keep it weight on?

Question

I have an older arabian with good teeth that I would like to add some weight too. He get's good hay and senior feed or wet cob. Should I add corn or oats to his feed?

Answer 1

beet pulp is great

Answer 2

Beet Pulp is well recommended for the older horses

Answer 3

We used to feed whole corn to our thinner horses to fatten them up but now I have been told that feed makers are starting to cut corn out because it contributes to gas build up in the rear gut and can be one factor to colic. As for oats if you use them, make sure they are crimped because whole oats will pass right through and grown in your pasture and unless you want to plant your pasture it is a total waste of money. I have a mare that is having trouble gaining weight after foaling and we have been giving her calf manna and wheat germ oil and so far it seems to be helping. My mother owns a feed store and that is what the rep from Nutrena told her to try.

Answer 4

senior is the best feed for old horses and give him some corn oil IT REALLY MAKES THEM GAIN HEALTHY WEIGHT :) I think it is like a cap full each feeding...maybe more depending on the horse. I would ask your vet on how much, or what else you can do.

I also have an elderly grey Arabian :) he does well on Senior alone :D but the vet said he would rather see him a LITTLE thin than over weight (you can see the outline of his ribs when he turns) but corn oil really helps (my old trainer used to use it on her older horses and the vet also said if we wanted him to gain a littel weight to use it :D)

**EDIT**

don't use sweet feed...it is horrible for there stomachs and is the most likely to carry salminela(sp?) it also rots quickly especially if you live in the south with humidity.

Answer 5

Beet Pulp just add water the day before you feed.

Answer 6

A high end horse feed like m.f.a. e.t.c. works.  Just stay away from home remedies and discount store stuff....

Answer 7

This question is on here so much that I've noticed other people besides me have started just cutting and pasting their answers :)

Try rice bran. It has a higher fat content than any other feed, and you can feed it to them in bulk without having to worry about colic. It is about the only thing I've found that can put and keep weight on my 18 year old TB mare. For weight gain, I have to feed 6lbs of it a day mixed with 6lbs of Senior.

A lot of people like to feed beet pulp. It helps too but it's main function is as a source of digestible fiber. So it's almost like giving them more forage, like grass hay, it's just more digestible. But it's not necessarily that high in fat. Beet pulp can actually be used as a source of fiber/roughage when no hay or grass is available.

Rice bran, on the other hand, contains a lot of calories from fat to put the weight on a horse. It has 1/3 more calories than beet pulp, by weight. (i.e. you'd have to feed 1.3 pounds of beet pulp to get the same calories as you'd get from 1 pound of rice bran). This is a big reason why I prefer it...it's more cost effective. However, rice bran can have a mineral imbalance, so if you feed more than about 2 pounds of it, you should make sure a horse's diet is supplemented with a mineral block and/or a complete feed (hence why I feed Senior as well.

Don't feed sweet feed. It's not a lasting source of energy. It's like eating a bunch of sugar...it will just make your horse hot, not necessarily make him gain weight. Any feed with high amounts of corn or molasses will do that.

Answer 8

Omegatin(dont know if thats spelled right), its what I use for my 28 yo who gets ribby in the winter and it always puts the weight back on quickly.

Answer 9

Have you tried stabilized rice bran?  Some of the brand names I'm familiar with are Natural Glo, Moorglo, Maxiglo.  My vet calls it basically a powdered fat supplement.  You would want to start slow and work the amount up, because it can give them the scoots if you're not careful.  I worked my mare up to a pound and a half a day, but had to drop her back to a pound because at a pound and a half, she wasn't exactly scooty....but she had cow pies instead of horse biscuits.  But it put such a shine on her, and she really bloomed out on it.

Answer 10

I'm in California and if I have a horse who's starting to look a bit "ribby" or I've purchased some rack of bones,  I go out and buy a 50LB sack of A&M (Ground alfafa and molasses) (In the mid west they use beet pulp BUT I've been informed that you HAVE to add water to it or it will swell in a horse's belly causing colic), dump it into a tub or feeder in the horse's stall, then top it with some rolled barley corn that is mixed with corn oil and apple cider vinegar. (I feed a 3LB coffee can of the barley corn mixture once a day.) The horse will normally devour the first couple of bags of A&M, but then they will slack off as they get used to it (Never had an issue with colic or founder)...

I haven't fed oats or any mixed feed in decades, basically because I've had running horses and TBs I'm trying to keep quiet, so I feed the rolled barley corn mixture to them for weight, NOT heat.

I also give my horses a hot bran mash twice a week with the vinegar and corn oil (I can mix the barleycorn into it.).  I feed 1/2 a 3 LB coffee can of red wheat flakey bran and add enough water to it so that it looks like oatmeal in consistancy.

I make sure that they get 2 flakes of alfafa hay per feeding.

Answer 11

Soaked sugar beet is always good for weight.

Answer 12

hmmm have u tried weight builder?  Maybe try sweet feed it may help add weight hope this helps

Answer 13

Alfalfa, bran mash, a complete pellet, flaxseed oil, these all will help on keep weight on your horse. Or a senior feed will help, also.