Senior Slimming
Senior horses come in all shapes and sizes and some, just like their younger companions, are prone to piling on the pounds. While some owners have battled the bulge for their horse’s entire adult life, others find their senior needs fewer calories once they are retired or in less work. If this sounds all too familiar, we hope you find these tips on senior slimming helpful. Of course, there’s no one solution and the most suitable strategy will depend on your horse’s individual needs and your yard environment. For specific advice, reach out to our team of friendly nutrition advisors, all of whom have a soft spot for seniors.
Does excess weight gain really matter?
Some people become less diet conscious once they reach a certain age, taking a ‘what harm can it do now?’ approach. While it may be tempting to relax your horse’s management, there are many reasons why it pays to keep your super senior’s waistline in check as they age.
Obesity comes with a number of health and welfare risks for any horse but may have additional consequences for seniors including increased ‘inflamm-aging’ - a term used to describe age related declines in immune function. It also increases joint strain and may exacerbate the difficulties in regulating body temperature that can occur with ageing.
Monitoring
Regular monitoring is key to spotting gradual changes, making it easier to spot when changes in diet/ management may be needed and track your progress – it can help to keep you motivated too!
Ideally, monitor your horse’s weight weekly and body condition score (BCS) fortnightly. It can take several weeks (or longer) to achieve a change in body condition score, especially in very overweight horses and ponies, so try not to get too disheartened if progress seems slow initially as your horse may still be losing internal fat (like people, horses can be fat on the inside too!). Try monitoring belly girth and possibly heart girth in addition to BCS or consider using the new Body Condition Index.
Did you know? A loss of muscle tone or ‘softer’ muscle can sometimes be mistaken for excess fat.
Visit our Weight Management Tools page for more information.
It’s all about balance!
Cutting calories is essential for weight loss but shouldn’t come at the expense of a providing a balanced diet. While forage only diets can easily meet or exceed calorie requirements for some seniors, they may fall short of key nutrients including copper, zinc, selenium and lysine.
Balancers are ideal for good doers as they provide essential nutrients to balance forage, while adding minimal calories, starch and sugar to diet. Some, including SPILLERS Supple & Senior Balancer, also include added functional ingredients to support joint and digestive health, alongside higher levels of antioxidants such as vitamin E to support immune health. That said, if your senior slimmer is already on a balancer specifically designed to balance a weight loss diet e.g. SPILLERS Lite & Lean Balancer, this may continue to be a suitable option and if you feel it may be of benefit, additional joint support can be provided in the form of a supplement.
Treats & low-calorie bucket fillers
There’s so much emotion attached to eating and for many of us, food is a way we show our loved ones (two legged and four!) that we care. We all want our horses to enjoy their golden years and for some of us, restricting their diet can pull at the heart strings. The good news is that watching your horse’s waistline doesn’t have to mean all treats are off limits – one or two day is fine just don’t be tempted to feed the whole bag! Fed in moderation, carrots are a healthy treat for those without dental issues that can be used to add variety to the bucket and to help extend eating time while other horses on the yard may be munching through larger meals. Despite the bad press they sometimes receive, fresh carrots contain around 85% water which means each carrot contains little in the way of calories or sugar.
Feeding a balancer alongside a low calorie chaff or a small amount of low calorie mash helps to bulk out the bucket while adding limited calories to the total diet. Have you seen SPILLERS Fibre Lite Molasses Free and SPILLERS Speedy-Mash Fibre?
Forage
Remember, calories don’t just come in a bucket! Seniors prone to weight gain may need some form of forage restriction, especially at certain times of year, although some commonly recommended strategies may not be suitable. For example, arthritis in the neck may make pulling hay from a net uncomfortable and feeding straw as a partial forage replacer may not be suitable for those with dental issues. For specific advice, reach out to our nutrition team.
Timing
Avoiding long periods without forage is important for supporting digestive health and mental wellbeing so consider ways of extending eating time for those on restricted rations, especially during typical daylight hours.
Hay Soaking
Soaking hay helps to reduce the water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) or ‘sugar’ content and of course, less sugar means fewer calories! As a guide, soak for 1-3 hours in warm/ hot weather (ambient temperature 16°C and above) and 6-12 hours in cold weather.
Laminitis
If your horse/ pony is prone to laminitis, ideally have your forage analysed for WSC (using the wet chemistry method) and feed soaked hay as a back-up.
Feeding Straw
Straw may be suitable as partial forage replacer for some good doers (provided they don’t have dental issues). Contact a nutrition advisor for specific advice on feeding rates and ensuring the diet provides sufficient amounts quality protein.
Restricting Grass Intake
Consider strip grazing, using a grazing muzzle or non-grass turnout to provide gentle exercise while restricting grass intake.
Total Forage Intake
Total forage intake for most overweight horses and ponies should not be restricted to less than 1.5% of current of bodyweight per day on a dry matter basic. On an ‘as fed’ basic (the amount of forage you need to weigh out) this is equivalent to approximately 9kg of hay if it is to be fed dry or 11kg of hay if you intend to soak it before feeding.
Hay replacers
If appropriately managed, not all horses with dental issues are prone to weight loss, so remember to check the energy (calorie) content of any potential hay replacers - while some such as SPILLERS Speedy-Mash Fibre, SPILLERS HAPPY HOOF and SPILLERS HAPPY HOOF Molasses Free contain a similar energy level to average meadow hay (around 8 MJ DE/ kg), others are on a par with spring grass or a conditioning feed!
Laminitis
Achieving/ maintaining a healthy body condition and providing a diet low in starch and sugar is key to managing to those prone to laminitis. You can find more information in our nutrition library but for specific advice, reach out to one of our nutrition advisors, especially if your horse/ pony is severely insulin dysregulated.
Exercise
We’ve all heard the ‘eat less move more’ mantra and although exercise does burn calories, calorie restriction is the main requirement for weight loss. It’s also important to remember that exercise isn’t is appropriate for all seniors. However, where possible (seek advice from your vet if you have any concerns), even small amounts of exercise may help to support a healthy metabolism, even if it doesn’t result in additional weight loss.