The best feeds for older horses are designed specifically to meet the nutritional needs of an ageing horse and deliver it in an easily digestible form. A good veteran feed will ensure your horse is receiving enough fibre, provide increased levels of protein to help maintain muscle mass, and deliver the nutrition required to support their vital organs and promote mobility.
Feeds designed for older horses are available in a variety of forms, and many are softer or soakable, which makes them easier to chew. This is important as chewing is the first stage of digestion, but a horse’s teeth wear down throughout his life and poor dentition is common in older horses.
No matter a horse’s age, he should be fed as an individual according to his condition. While weight loss is common in older horses, many horses that have been good-doers throughout their lives will remain so and, therefore, should receive an age appropriate low-calorie feed to prevent unwanted weight gain.
At what age does a horse need a veteran feed?
A horse is generally consider a veteran at the age of 15 – this is not to say they’re old, as many are still living active lives at this age, and with good management and veterinary care many go one to live into their thirties.
Like people, horses age at different rates – some require a veteran feed sooner than others, while many continue to thrive on their usual feed much longer. For example, if your horse is under the age of 15 but requires a joint supplement, it would be worth discussing with a nutritionist as to whether a veteran feed designed for older horses would cover the requirements.
What veteran feed is best for my horse?
Feeds come in different types, each with its own set of benefits. We’ve included all types within this guide and you can use the links to jump to the section you think most suits your horse below.
- Mixes are fairly traditional compound feeds and you can see the elements within them
- Cubes or pellets typically give the same nutrition as their equivalent mix, but can be soaked, which makes them easier to chew
- Mashes and soaked feeds are really easy to chew – some are optionally soakable, while others must be soaked to be safe to eat
- Chopped fibres are frequently used to bulk out feeds and deliver additional fibre, but they are also useful for carrying supplements for older horses and powder-form balancers
- Balancers provide everything your horse needs in a low-volume, low-energy way, which makes them particularly suited to good-doers
Best mixes for older horses
Spillers Senior Complete Care Mix
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £18.25 | Daily feeding rate: 3kg | Cost per day: £2.74 |
This mix is designed to provide complete nutritional care. It includes glucosamine and MSM to support joint health, as well as pre- and probiotics to help support gut health, together with an appetising herbal blend to encourage fussy eaters to tuck in.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Baileys No15 Senior Mix
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £17 | Daily feeding rate: 2½kg | Cost per day: £2.13 |
This mix is formulated to provide easy-to-digest, non-heating calories that will provide a little more condition than a high-fibre, low-energy feed, while also delivering the extra nutrients he needs to stay looking and feeling good.
With protein from alfalfa and soya, Baileys Senior Mix helps promote good muscle tone, while yeast culture and Digest Plus prebiotic support gut efficiency. It contains a full profile of vitamins and minerals that are important for maintaining health and wellbeing in the older horse.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Equerry Veteran Mix
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £18.25 | Daily feeding rate: 2½–3kg | Cost per day: £2.28 |
This mix is designed for elderly horses that need to gain weight and condition. It is formulated with high levels of protein to promote muscle tone and topline, oil and linseed to improve condition and ensure a shiny coat, and yeast for a healthy digestive system. The cereals are highly digestible so your horse gets maximum benefit and it includes raised levels of vitamin E, which is an important antioxidant.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Rowen Barbary Senior Support
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £18.60 | Daily Daily feeding rate: 2kg | Cost per day: £1.86 |
Senior Support is ideal for the older horse who would benefit from the added glucosamine, MSM and turmeric, which are added to help maintain healthy joints. It has high levels of oils, as well as digestive enhancers, vitamins and minerals, which all help to ensure excellent condition is maintained all year round.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Spillers Senior Conditioning Mix
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £19.25 | Daily feeding rate: 3kg | Cost per day: £2.89 |
This mix is designed for active older horses who have trouble keeping weight on. It contains a blend of steam flaked cereals and oil for condition, while the small-sized particles make for easier chewing. It includes glucosamine to help support joint health, live yeast to support digestive health, minerals to aid absorption and antioxidants to support the immune system.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Pure Veteran Mix
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £19.25 | Daily feeding rate: 2kg | Cost per day: £2.57 |
Pure Veteran Mix contains elevated levels of vitamins and minerals, with a soft chop for easy chewing. It also includes quality protein and extra slow-release calories to help senior horses who are still in regular work or require extra assistance maintaining condition.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Saracen Veteran Mix
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £20 | Daily feeding rate: 2kg | Cost per day: £2 |
This highly digestible mix is designed specifically to meet the nutritional needs of the older horse. Formulated with “super-fibre” sources and oil, the daily ration provides slow-release energy, which helps to avoid the fizz that can be associated with cereal-based diets. Veteran Mix is fully balanced with essential vitamins and minerals, as well as quality protein sources to support and maintain muscle tone and development, plus has the added benefit of live yeast to support gut health and fibre utilisation.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Baileys No8 Meadow Sweet with Turmeric
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £16 | Daily feeding rate: 2½kg | Cost per day: £2.67 |
This low-starch, high-fibre mix is formulated to help maintain condition, while encouraging a calm temperament. It’s the first fully balanced feed to include TurmerAid complete turmeric supplement, which contains ingredients to support healthy joints and the immune system, making it particularly suited to the older horse. The mix is molasses-free and contains no whole cereals, so with a starch level of just 7.5% it is ideal for older horses who have moderate energy requirements but need to control their starch intake.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Best soakable pellets and mashes for older horses
Keyflow Golden Oldies
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £47.50 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.58 |
Golden Oldies is a balancer that is formulated to be soaked into a soft palatable mash for older horses, offering an all-in-one solution. It’s designed with the specific needs of older horses in mind, and is molasses and cereal free. It has exceptionally low levels of sugar and starch and is considered suitable for horses with concerns of PPID (Cushing’s) or laminitis, as well as those with gastric ulcers. Prebiotics and probiotics are included to support gut health and efficiency, as well as omega-3, which supports joint health, skin, coat and hooves, and turmeric.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Spillers Senior Super-Mash
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £16.90 | Daily feeding rate: 3kg | Cost per day: £2.56 |
Targetting condition and gut health, this mash is ideal for older horses with dental issues – it soaks in less than two minutes. It’s high in fibre and molasses free, plus also contains live yeast alongside prebiotics to support digestive health. It can be added to existing feed or fed at 3kg/day if used as a replacement for compound feed.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Pure Veteran Pellets
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £19.25 | Daily feeding rate: 2kg | Cost per day: £2.57 |
Pure Veteran Pellets is a complete feed that is designed for older horses who require a mash due to poor dentition. It contains elevated levels of vitamins and minerals, slow-release calories and good quality proteins, which all help older horses who require extra assistance maintaining condition or are still in regular work.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Saracen Horse Feeds Veteran Cubes
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £20 | Daily feeding rate: 2kg | Cost per day: £2 |
These highly digestible mint-flavoured cubes are made to be softer than other traditional cubes, which ensures they can be easily soaked into a soft palatable mash for horses with poor dentition. The cubes are rich in essential antioxidants, such as vitamin E, to support and maintain muscle function, while the live yeast supports optimum digestion and fibre utilisation. They offer a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, which promote good coat condition, joint health, and mobility.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Dengie Alfa-Beet
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £15.95 | Daily feeding rate: 1½–2½kg | Cost per day: From £1.27 |
This soaked, high-fibre, low-sugar and -starch feed is ideal for older horses who struggle to chew. The combination of nutrient-rich alfalfa and unmolassed sugar beet pulp help to promote weight gain and condition in the form of highly digestible fibre. It is free from molasses and contains just 2% starch and 5% naturally occurring sugar, and soaks in 15 mins (hot water or two hours cold water) to help aid hydration.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Pure Meadow Mash
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £15.25 | Daily feeding rate: Up to 5kg | Cost per day: Up to £5.08 |
Pure Meadow Mash is a high-fibre, low-sugar and low-starch hay replacer. The quick-soaking pellets form an easy to chew mash, which is perfect for older horses and those with poor dentition. It contains seven different herbs for improved palatability to help tempt even the fussiest of eaters.
Best chopped fibres for older horses
Dengie Hi-Fi Senior
Bag weight: 20kg | RRP: £16.89 | Daily feeding rate: 1½–2½kg | Cost per day: From £1.27 |
This highly digestible fibre feed blends soft grass and nutrient-rich alfalfa with a light molasses and rapeseed oil coating. It is ideal for veterans and those with poor dentition because the soft, short chop makes it easier to chew, while the alfalfa supplies good quality protein to help maintain condition and topline. Hi-Fi Senior can be used as part of the bucket feed or as a total or partial hay replacer.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Dengie Meadow Grass With Herbs And Oil
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £15.95 | Daily feeding rate: 1½–2½kg | Cost per day: From £1.59 |
This 100% natural, British-grown blend of chopped and pelleted grasses is rich in highly digestible fibre, naturally sweet, soft and easy to chew making it ideal for veterans or those with poor teeth. It has a rapeseed oil coating that promotes condition and coat shine, while the blend of herbs – liquorice root, fennel, mint, chamomile and aniseed – help tempt fussy feeders. It is free from molasses, artificial flavours, preservatives and straw.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Dengie Pure Grass
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £17.95 |
This is a natural blend of British-grown grasses that are soft and easy to chew, making it ideal for veterans. Naturally sweet and rich in highly digestible fibre, Pure Grass can supply additional calories for poor doers; it can be included in the bucket feed, used as a forage replacer or supplementing limited grazing. It is free from molasses, artificial flavours, preservatives and straw. We’ve not calculated a cost per day for this feed as it can be fed in any quantity from a handful to hold a supplement to ad-lib as a complete hay replacement.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Best balancers for older horses
TopSpec Senior Feed Balancer
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £44.95 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.50 |
TopSpec Senior Feed Balancer is designed to help maintain muscle development, topline and condition, which often starts to decline with age. It combines the benefits of a feed balancer and a joint supplement, in a highly cost-effective way. It is made without cereal grains and is low in sugar and starch.
When this balancer is mixed with TopSpec FibrePlus Cubes it makes a complete feed, which can be used to replace all forage if necessary due to poor dentition. It includes the scientifically recommended rate of glucosamine to help maintain mobility (when fed at the recommended rate). It is a palatable “non-heating” feed that contains several supplements that provide the necessary levels of micronutrients and digestive aids, so there is no need to add further supplements.
View now at amazon.co.uk or viovet.co.uk
Blue Chip Senior Super Concentrated Feed Balancer
Sizes: 3kg | RRP: £26.45 | Daily feeding rate: 100g | Cost per day: 88p |
Formulated for horses over the age of 14, this balancer contains the correct levels of vitamins, minerals and nutrients in the diet, along with additional supplements to ease the ageing process. It includes a combination of chaste tree berry, antioxidants and omega oils, a complete joint supplement and is completely molasses free. Available in a rodent-proof and waterproof recyclable tub.
View now at amazon.co.uk, viovet.co.uk or gsequestrian.co.uk
Keyflow Golden Oldies
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £47.50 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.58 |
Also featuring in the mash section of this guide, Golden Oldies is a balancer that is formulated to be soaked into a soft palatable mash for older horses, offering an all-in-one solution. It’s designed with the specific needs of older horses in mind, and is molasses and cereal free. It has exceptionally low levels of sugar and starch and is considered suitable for horses with concerns of PPID (Cushing’s) or laminitis, as well as those with gastric ulcers. Prebiotics and probiotics are included to support gut health and efficiency, as well as omega-3, which supports joint health, skin, coat and hooves, and turmeric.
View now at amazon.co.uk
Dodson & Horrell Senior Support balancer
Sizes: 15kg | RRP: £33.43 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.11 |
Designed for older horses who are actively competing or in light work, this balancer provides quality protein and all the vitamins and minerals a veteran requires in a low-volume, low-calorie way, which is ideal for horses that hold their weight well and don’t need a lot of compound feed.
View now at amazon.co.uk
NAF In The Pink Senior
Sizes: 900g, 1.8kg, 3.6kg | RRP: £26.25 for 900g | Daily feeding rate: 30g | Cost per day: £0.87 |
Formulated to meet all the nutritional requirements of the older horse and give him all the support he needs to stay active and feeling young, this balancer supports the digestive system, which helps your horse maximise the value of his feed intake.
View now at viovet.co.uk, amazon.co.uk or gsequestrian.co.uk
Science Supplements WellHorse Veteran
Bag weight 1.6kg | RRP: £39.99 | Daily feeding rate: 54g | Cost per day: £1.35 |
Formulated to meet the demands of the older horse, this balancer contains every important nutrient your veteran requires and meets the NRC (National Research Council) and BASF (Animal Nutrition) recommendations for vitamins, microminerals and macrominerals. It also supports joint, hoof and gut health as well as the immune system.
View now at amazon.co.uk, viovet.co.uk or gsequestrian.co.uk
Spillers Supple & Senior Balancer
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £37.29 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.24 |
This balancer is designed for older horses that maintain condition well on forage alone. It contains glucosamine, MSM and omega-3 for joint support, quality protein to support muscle and topline, and pre- and probiotics to support digestive health. It provides a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals and is high in antioxidants to support immune health. With a low starch and sugar content, it is suitable for those prone to laminitis.
View now at amazon.co.uk
TopSpec Senior Lite feed balancer
Bag weight: 15kg | RRP: £44.95 | Daily feeding rate: 500g | Cost per day: £1.50 |
Designed for elderly horses that are prone to weight gain, this balancer combines the benefits of a low-calorie feed balancer and a joint supplement in a cost-effective way. It’s formulated without cereal grains and provides only low levels of sugar and starch, which helps to maintain healthy hindgut function and avoid loose droppings.
View at amazon.co.uk or viovet.co.uk
You might also be interested in:
Veteran supplements: what’s on the market?
Feed balancers: what’s on the market?
Supplements to help joints keep working at their best: what’s on the market?
11 feeds formulated to help your horse gain weight and condition
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