Do’s

and

Have your horse's teeth checked at least once a year.
Have your roughage tested.
Feed high-energy roughage with a high protein content.
Place the roughage in large piles on the ground so the horse can easily reach it.
Have your horse's blood checked.

In wet and cold weather, give your horse a nice warm blanket. That way he doesn't lose energy on staying warm.
Let your horse run outside as much as possible.
As long as your horse can chew; let him walk in the pasture as much as possible.
Feed a horse with reduced dental function short-stalked roughage.
Feed a horse without dental function a nice "soup" of roughage substitutes.

Soak the concentrate feed of a horse without dental function.
Feed a neutral salt licking stone.
Is your oldie not getting a concentrate feed? Then see if another supplement is needed to the roughage.
Provide soft ground cover for lying down.
Give the horse plenty of free exercise in the pasture and/or paddock.
Do carrot stretches: ask for longitudinal bending to the left, right or down with an apple or carrot.

Practice with ground work. This is ideal as a warm-up, cool-down or when you can no longer ride the horse.
Do not ride too long. Rather, ride short and regularly.
In winter, use a riding blanket during the warm-up.
Stimulate the muscles of your horse with strength training.
Keep your training varied.
Make sure you have a good cool down.

Do not feed roughage with a high sugar content. Do you decide to do so anyway? Then let the roughage soak for half an hour.
Do not feed the roughage in slow feeders, your old horse should be able to reach it easily.
Do not put the roughage in a hay net or rack, where the horse has to reach high to eat. Old horses can also suffer from osteoarthritis in the neck, and eating can be painful.
Do not feed the same concentrate feed as when your horse was younger. It is important to match the feed to your aging horse.

Don't put a horse without teeth in a pasture, but in a paddock.
It is a bad idea to stop offering hay at all to a horse with reduced dental function. Horses still get a lot of satisfaction from nibbling on the hay.
Do not put the roughage for horses in a pasture or paddock in one place, but spread it over several places. This way you encourage horses to keep walking. If you make sure that there is always 1 feeding spot more than the number of horses, then there is always a quiet place for each animal to eat.

Do not feed roughage substitutes in large portions at once, rather divide them over several smaller portions per day. That way your horse has something to eat throughout the day.
Do not soak your ordinary concentrate, but use a concentrate feed which is suitable for this. For example Pavo 18plus.
Keeping the old horse in the stable too much.
Free movement is important, but don't put the older horse in a meadow that is too rich.

Training without a warm-up. This is very bad for the muscles and joints.
Riding a lame horse. Call in the vet to have the horse checked.
Going on a long outdoor ride without training.
Skip the cooldown? No, don't! Especially not with an older horse.
Being too careful with the horse. Even if your senior is a day older, he can still be trained. It will only keep him fit longer.

“If you match your management well with your old horse, your horse will have a happy old age”

Pleun Broeren, nutritionist

07/03/2024 23:25:52