[juliesowner]

I am trying to put weight on my 19 year old TB and right now I feed him Strategy and rice bran but I was wondering if it would be better to switch to Equine Senior. Any thoughts?

Here is the Equine Senior info.
Crude Protein, % not less than 14%

Fat, % not less than 4.0%

Fiber, % not more than 16%

Calcium, minimum % not less than .6%

Calcium, maximum % not more than .9%

Phosphorus, minimum % not less than .40%

Copper, ppm not less than 55

Zinc, ppm not less than 220

Vit. A, IU/lb not less than 3000

Selenium, ppm not less than .3

And the Startegy info.
Crude Protein, % not less than 14%

Fat, % not less than 6.0%

Fiber, % not more than 8%

Calcium, minimum % not less than .6%

Calcium, maximum % not more than .9%

Phosphorus, minimum % not less than .60%

Copper, ppm not less than 55

Zinc, ppm not less than 220

Vit. A, IU/lb not less than 3000

Selenium, ppm not less than .6

And the rice bran info.
Crude Protein, min
12.00%

Crude Fat, min
20.00%

Crude Fiber, max
10.00%

[buggywhipp]

Equine Sr. is a get feed for older horses or horses that have a hard time keeping weight on. When I first got my 14 yr old tb mare she was under weight and she is a hard keeper. I put her on a Senior feed and it did wonders for her.

[juliesowner]

OK. Thanks. Anyone else have thoughts. Buggywhipp how much Equine Senior did you feed?

[Paints4me]

I feed Equine Senior to my 25 year old pony! I love it!

[Top Dun]

I'd perfer the senior feed as it s more formulated to help older horses. Of you need something else after that then you can add that in as well. But usually many older horses do well on the senior feed.

[SirCharles]

I would switch to senior because it is easier for them at that age to digest. I also have a 17 year old TB but I feed corn oil and beet pulp in pelet form. Beet pulp is great for putting on weight. I mix two scoops stratagy with i/2 scoop beet pulp (dry) then about 1 1/2 cups of corn oil. My TB looks great.

If you do a search under beet pulp on the forum I posted some info that is great reading from a vet who recommends beet pulp. As far a feeding it dry I have for over a year to all 4 of my horses and never had any problems. Good luck

[buggywhipp]

I didn't feed the Equine Sr. My feed store had a little tift with the Purina company so he stopped carring Purina feeds. This is what I fed http://www.kentfeeds.com/senoirpride.htm

I found this to be a wonderful feed. It is a pelleted feed and it has beet pulp in it. It is also cheaper in cost than the Equine Sr. which was nice.

If that link don't work you can try www.kentfeeds.com

[wyldterv]

I like the Strategy and Rice Bran combo for putting weight on a horse, any age.. and find that the Strat is easy to soak into a softer feed if your senior horse has a more difficult time chewing well.

[buggywhipp]

Originally Posted by wyldterv

I like the Strategy and Rice Bran combo for putting weight on a horse, any age.. and find that the Strat is easy to soak into a softer feed if your senior horse has a more difficult time chewing well.

What about mixing in beet pulp? Do you think it is just as good as the rice bran?

[wyldterv]

Originally Posted by buggywhipp

What about mixing in beet pulp? Do you think it is just as good as the rice bran?

The two are very different... Beet pulp mixed in is not a bad idea as it's got a great fiber content, butfor the ability to put weight on safely and relatively quickly, I have never been happier then the rice bran! IT really REALLY works well in my experiences, especially when combined with a good hay and if needed grain. Poncho gets rice bran and hay only... Everything else grainwise I've tried on him has caused him to get HOT in a VERY short amount of time. Lexi gets Rice bran and pasture when she's not working but when working she gets Strat and Ricebran and hay along with pasture... She's not a hard keeper at all, but when I work my horses I WORK them, so I like to make sure she has all she needs.

My old gelding lived on soaked Strat and Ricebran in conjunction with Alfalfa/grass mix hay and beet pulp soaked for the last 10 yrs of his life.