Would like some great suggestions on how to put weight on my 20 year old thoroughbred please !!?

Question

Would like some great suggestions on how to put weight on my 20 year old thoroughbred please !!?

Answer 1

Turn the horse out for a few weeks and feed him some oats.

Answer 2

senior horse feed and nutrena 12 protein 22 fat it works great

Answer 3

Thing one, if you haven't had his teeth checked, have that done ASAP.  He might have developed rough spots or points on his cheek teeth (the teeth he chews with) that keep him from adequately chewing his feed.  The older a horse gets, the more frequently he needs his teeth seen to.  When my Arab was in his 20's, I had his teeth checked twice a year.

Thing two, have your vet come out to check your horse's metabolism.  Development of Cushing's Disease or Syndrome http://cvm.msu.edu/news/press/0302b.htm.  This can be a problem in older horses, and it needs specific diagnosis and treatment to help the horses that have it.

Thing three, you might want to grind the feed your horse receives.  Older horses have more problems with digestion than younger horses, and sometimes grinding their feed can help them to digest it more easily.

Thing four:  just like people, horses all age differently.  Some still look youthful and sleek at 20, others are visibly aged.  You have to expect that as your horse ages, you will see some of the obvious signs of aging, including loss of muscle mass and thinness, although at what age you will start to see these is a function of the individual horse.  I've personally known horses in their mid-twenties that received good care that nobody would guess was old as they were, and I've also known horses that at 19 or 20 started to look old even though they got good care.  It just depends.

Answer 4

By the expensive weight gain pellets, found at most Farm stores that sell feed. It has alot of nutrients and tastes good to the horses. Feed him scraps such as Carrots and apples. Use alfalfa  instead of grass hay.

Let him graze during the day in a grass field and also feed him about 3-4 flakes morning and night  of the supplemental feed.

Answer 5

three steps I usually use with horses that get to my farm and need to put weight on, aside from checking the teeth (as mentioned above).

1) 4 days of Panacur to knock out anything that may be hanging around inside him.  (obviously you know his worming schedule, so he probably doesn't need this, but it's the first thing I do to any rough looking horse that gets to my place).

2) use a formulated top dressing or rice bran oil with his feed to add some fat.  (I usually use corn oil since it is almost as effective and a h**l of a lot cheaper than rice bran oil).

3) if he still isn't putting on the pounds add a third feeding to his diet, around 5 hours after his evening feeding, but not too late (sometime around 10-11).

Hope this helps, I've never gotten further than these without seeing any results