Feeding Older Horses with Missing Teeth

As horses age their diets need to be adjusted to accommodate many of the changes that occur. It can especially be challenging to feed those horses that are missing a tooth or even several teeth. Having dealt with several of these horses, and a pony that is currently missing at least four teeth, here's a basic diet that I've found that works well.

First off, even if they have lost teeth, feed them a grass hay suc as Bermuda free choice, or at least several times a day. While hay may no longer be their main source of nutrition, chewing time is still very important even as they age. Many older horses are often taken off hay all together and just fed a grain or pellets. (If your vet has recommended taking your horse off hay, please follow their instructions.) While grains or pellets may provide the nutrition a horse needs it usually fails to completely satisfy their need to chew.

Depending on the horse's teeth, if they are all still there or are missing some, he may chew the hay into a soggy wad and spit it out. If this isn't normal, make sure to have his teeth checked as it could be a sign of teeth problems. If his teeth are fine, but just may be missing some, this is quite common. Given access to grass they will often do the same thing.

From there they are fed timothy pellets. I prefer the Mountain Sunrise brand of pellets that have no binders, fillers, or additives in them. This makes the pellets much easier to break down. Most of the time I feed the pellets dry. Again because these pellets have no binders, even the horses missing teeth can gum these into mush quite easily. Don't be surprised if they slobber all over in the process of eating them! The pellets can also be soaked and fed as a mash.

If they are still in need of weight they are then fed rice bran or beet pulp without molasses. In general I do not like to feed horses molasses, and especially do not feel it is healthy for older horses. If I cannot get the beet pulp without molasses, then I buy the shreds and before feeding rinse them with hot water until the water runs clear.

Remember, this is not a complete diet, but a basic starting point. Each horse must be treated as an individual and the time taken to tailor a diet to each horse. Depending on his or her needs they may also need probiotics, flax, herbs, other supplements, or medications. Consult with your vet if you feel that your horse may be lacking something in his diet.