Question
My 12-year-old Quarter Horse gelding (15 hands, 1,080 lb or 490 kg) is in good weight. I provide him one bale of mixed grass hay daily in a drylot. The hay is composed of many grasses (timothy/orchardgrass/bromegrass/canarygrass). I give him 1 lb (0.45 kg) of ration balancer and 1 lb (0.45 kg) of senior feed daily. I also give him quite a few alfalfa pellets as training treats throughout the course of a week. While his weight is fine, he is losing muscle tone. He he has shown no blatant signs of tying-up like sudden lameness, but I’ve observed exercise intolerance and muscle soreness. The muscle soreness is so bad at times he cringes to the touch. Any advice?
Answer
Consultation with your veterinarian is recommended to diagnose any potential muscle disease. Importantly, accurate diagnosis will help determine the best nutritional strategy. It is also important to rule out other potential problems that may be affecting your horse’s health and performance.
A quick assessment of the diet does not highlight any obvious areas that require modification, which suggests the hay should be evaluated more closely. You noted that one bale of hay is provided per day, but do you have a sense of how much hay the gelding voluntarily consumes each day? I would estimate that a horse his size would consume about 22 lb (10 kg) of hay daily, but this amount can be affected by the nutritional composition of the hay. Some horses, for example, may eat less hay if they find it unpalatable for some reason (weedy, dusty, stalky, off-putting smell, etc.). Do you have a consistent hay supply? If so, samples could be taken and sent off for nutrient analysis.
Analyzing hay for sugar content is recommended when considering potential muscle problems related to nonstructural carbohydrate (NSC) sensitivity. Mature grass hay can be low in crude protein, leading to deficiencies in essential amino acids, which may be a factor in your horse’s poor muscle tone. The combination of ration balancer and senior feed is appropriate but, depending on the nutritional value of the hay, the amount of balancer may need to be increased to supply adequate levels of amino acids.
Horses maintained on drylots are candidates for vitamin E and potentially omega-3 supplementation. This is of greater importance when feeding a mature hay or hay that has been stored for long periods of time. Two products developed by Kentucky Equine Research would be appropriate for this situation: Nano-E , a natural-source vitamin E supplement with superior bioavailability, and EO-3, a source of the marine-derived long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids EPA and DHA. Both research-proven products target muscle health and support overall wellness.
Some horses that are sensitive to being touched and groomed are thought to have digestive discomfort. Kentucky Equine Research offers several scientifically formulated digestive health products designed to support and protect the stomach and hindgut.
