Maintaining stallions that are beyond middle age oftentimes requires adjustments to prolong longevity and fertility. Horses, like people, show a great deal of individual variation in the aging process-the mechanisms controlled in large part by genetics and influenced by environment. Even though we cannot control the genes, we can sway them somewhat through manipulation of the environment. Stress reduction can be accomplished through identification of factors that seem to cause discomfort to specific stallions. Heat, cold, too much rain, or too little rain are simple stressful situations that can be modified through the use of fans, heaters, blankets, and stalls.

Advancing age also affects nutritional factors in a variety of ways that contribute to common geriatric conditions. For example, constipation is a familiar problem in human aging, but in the horse, it can lead to major colic problems that may result in surgery or even death. As with humans, fiber in the diet is one of the more common preventative measures. A 20 percent bran ration or feeding hot bran mashes helps to improve movement in the gastrointestinal tract.

Coupled with constipation is the inability to chew coarse feeds. A stallion in his declining years (somewhere between eighteen and twenty-eight) will often develop gaps between his molars. Add to this the worn-down surfaces of very short teeth and the older horse has trouble chewing and swallowing those feeds usually given him. These problems can be overcome by either feeding a pelleted ration or soaking the grain ration in water. Pelleted feeds require very little chewing and soaked whole grains are also easier to swallow-both factors that will ultimately increase the available nutrients for the older horse.

Although little is understood about the maintenance of epithelial tissue, it is another area of geriatric concern. Skin and the reproductive tract are both made of epithelial tissue. The same minerals, vitamins, and proteins that make vivacious, healthy-looking skin contribute to maintaining a productive reproductive tissue. Both vitamins A and E have long been known to be important biological catalysts in this process. Normally, the horse's body makes vitamin A from a closely related precursor, carotene. However, in some older animals, the ability to either make or use this vitamin becomes somewhat impaired. Vitamin injections or oral supplementation ( e.g., cod liver oil and wheat germ oil) may offset this problem.

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Excerpt from The Stallion: A Guide for Breeders and Handlers by Dr. Jim McCall.  Read the entire chapter on Stallion Nutrition in the Members Section.