Senior Supplements

Question
Hopefully, you can answer a question for me.  I have a 28 year old palomino
QH who is just an absolute dream.  He is my husbands primary trail mount
although he has cut back tremendously in the last couple of years his actual
trail time.  This horse is particularly prone to gas colic and has recently
recovered from a bout of Lyme disease.  My question is....is there a particular
senior supplement that you would recommend that would encompass all of
his needs?  I was going to put him on the SeniorFlex by MVP with a scoop of
Probios but I'm not sure if this is enough.  He has been on a basic 4 in 1 with
probiotics.  He is also a cribber and there is absolutely nothing short of a
grazing muzzle that has worked for that. Any info or just your opinion on
what to give the senior horse is greatly appreciated.  Thank you!  Take care!

Answer
Tara:

you have a 28 year old horse and that requires a different approach in managing him and his nutritional needs. People often reach for "supplements" to fix problems they are having but supplements are not the answer almost all the time. In a 28 year old horse, you need to supply and easily digestable feed. Horses are living so much longer now than they ever did and what this means is that when they get old enough, the have few if any tooth left to chew. They need to have a very palatable and very easily digested feed and those are ususally pelleted feeds- most senior feeds are pelleted. Some senior feeds are complete feeds and that means that they contain the dietary fiber in it too so that minimal or no hay is necessary- since they cant really chew it either. I stongly recommend a feed like this, with maybe some caloric supplementation using rice bran oil or good old corn oil. Increasing digestability may help reduce gas colic, as will regular deworming and good overall healthcare. Only high quality soft green hay if he can manage to chew it still and green soft grass as his fiber. I really dont think there has been any real evidence that cribbing has anything to do with colic, but I know that is a common perception. It is not mine. Ive owned several cribbers for years too. I think a digestive supplement is fine to consider. I wouldnt necessarily use probios, but maybe I'd try Succeed first. Remember though, the answer to all horse problems are not reached through adding another supplement. A good healthy and digestable diet is more likely to be of benefit. If you need to, one day you may want to begin to offer his pelleted feed as a slurry- soupy or oatmeal consistency- to facilitate digestablity without needing to do much chewing. I hope this helps some. Good luck to you.