4,777 answers about horses & farm animals
Horses and farm animals run on routine — feeding schedules, hoof and health care, safe fencing and calm handling, in all weather. This page gathers the horse and farm animal library of KinsLe Answers in one place, organized by topic from daily care to travel and senior animals. Every answer is original, written by KinsLe, and tied to a real KinsLe feature.
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409 answers in Senior Pets — page 15 of 18
A stiff, elderly goat does best when he no longer has to reach up into a hay net or stretch down a deep bucket: put hay in a low pile or low rack on a clean mat, hard feed in a shallow, wide bowl that will not tip, and drinking water in a stable bucket at ground level close to his shelter. Feed him where herdmates…
A very old pony who dislikes being caught usually expects catching to mean work or discomfort, so the routine has to rewrite that prediction: arrive at the same time, approach in a slow arc to his shoulder, speak before you touch him, scratch his withers, and only then slip the headcollar on quietly. Build trust by…
As a goat ages and wanders less, his hooves stop wearing down at the rate they grow, so toes lengthen, walls fold under and his stance shifts onto sore angles. Senior goats need their feet picked up and inspected more often than the younger herd, with small trims little and often, checks between the toes for packed…
Healthy aging in a backyard flock looks gradual rather than dramatic: hens lay fewer eggs as the seasons pass, grow back feathers more slowly after each moult, and spend more time resting in the sun — yet they still come forward eagerly when feed appears and hold a bright eye and steady comb colour. Keep a simple note…
The most reliable comfort for a widowed senior donkey or horse is another equine — ideally a calm, similarly aged pony, horse or donkey whose size and energy match, because only a horse-shaped companion shares his language of grazing, dozing and mutual grooming. Introduce them across a fence for days before they share…
Comfort in a horse's final months is mostly about removing effort: ground soft enough that lying down and rising never hurt, feed and water she can reach without walking far or stretching, her familiar companion close, and a routine that asks nothing new of her. Work with your vet early on keeping her comfortable and…
Use autumn as his winter service: book the dental check while he is still eating well, score his condition and aim for him to meet the cold carrying a little spare, test every rug for fit on the body he has now, and walk his field for the shelter, drainage and fencing faults that winter will punish. Secure your forage…
Old age arrives gradually on a horse's outside: grey hairs gathering round the eyes and muzzle, hollows deepening above the eyes, a back that dips as topline muscle melts, and ribs that show more easily even on the same feed. Inside, the matching signs are worn teeth and slower chewing, stiffer movement on cold…
The realistic menu runs from keeping him at home on grass with a companion and daily hands-on care, through dedicated retirement or grass livery where experienced staff watch a herd of old horses, to staying on part or full livery at a working yard, or a companion loan where he babysits youngsters in exchange for his…
Do not trust the fleece: score her by hand, feeling along the spine and ribs and over the hips, because a full coat can hide a painfully thin alpaca until she is in real trouble. If her frame feels sharper than her herdmates', feed her separately so faster animals cannot shoulder her off the hay, offer the…
Build the pen around three movements: rising, turning and lying down. Give her a deep bed of straw over a dry, non-slip base so her knees and hocks can grip when she pushes up, enough width to turn in one comfortable arc rather than shuffling round, and a sturdy wall or rail on her rising side to lean against. Remove…
Work on the route he walks, not just the fence line: widen gateways so he can pass straight through without sidling, open gates right back so nobody squeezes him through a gap, level and drain the poached ground at gates, and remove tight corners and dead ends where a companion can trap or hurry him. Make every fence…
Plan on a dental examination at least once a year for a senior horse, and twice a year once his teeth are significantly worn, uneven or missing — old mouths develop sharp points, gaps that trap food and loose teeth far faster than young ones, and small problems become eating problems quickly. Match that with a general…
A genuinely healthy senior horse can usually keep doing the work he has always enjoyed — steady hacking, light schooling, gentle hill work — provided he is fit for it rather than brought back suddenly, and provided his recovery, not his age, sets the dose. Give him a longer warm-up than a young horse, favour good…
There is no universally right answer: field retirement suits an aging horse who is stiff, social and an easy keeper, because constant gentle movement and herd company protect his joints and his mood, while stable retirement suits a hard keeper who needs individual feeding, rug changes and closer watching than a field…
A retired broodmare keeps condition best when you judge her by hand rather than by eye: run your palms over her ribs, hips and topline every week, because muscle quietly melts off an old mare's back long before she looks thin. Feed for the teeth she has now, not the ones she had at ten — soaked, easy-chew forage…
Retire him gradually rather than stopping everything at once: ease the ridden work down over a few weeks, keep his turnout, companions and feeding routine steady, and let a vet confirm that rest — not treatment — is the right call. Then rebuild his week around what he still enjoys: grooming, hand-walks, grazing in…
The purchase price is the smallest part of owning a horse: a youngster bought today may spend many of his later years retired, eating, rugged and vet-checked but not ridden, so retirement needs a funding plan from the very beginning. Build the habit early — a separate savings pot fed monthly, honest budgeting for the…
Healthy old horses lie down in short, relaxed stretches — often flat out in the sun after eating — and the reassuring sign is how he gets up: a horse who rises smoothly, shakes and grazes is resting. Worry when lying stretches far beyond his normal pattern, when he struggles or gives up trying to rise, or when lying…
Winter weight loss in a senior horse is usually several small leaks at once: forage he can no longer chew properly, cold burning calories, and field mates eating faster than him. Start with generous amounts of good forage in a form his teeth can manage, condition-score him by hand every week under the rug, and add…
A retired horse stays interested in life through the things that always structured his day: companions, turnout, grooming, small jobs and your company — retirement should end ridden work, not his whole routine. Replace the ride with hand-walks, grazing in new corners of the field, a thorough groom in his favourite…
Keep it simple enough to do every day: a short daily note on how he ate, how easily he got up and lay down, how he moved, and how bright he seemed — many owners use a simple good, middling or bad mark with one line of detail. Patterns appear within weeks: bad days clustering after cold nights, stiffness easing once a…
An old horse who loses the companion he has lived beside for years may call, pace the fence line and go off his grazing for a while, so keep everything else in his life exactly the same while he adjusts — same field, same routine, same handling. Let him spend time near the body if possible, and start looking for a…
Donkeys bond more deeply than almost any farm animal, so let your elderly donkey see and stand with his companion's body for a while if you can — it helps him understand the loss rather than search for a partner who has vanished. Then watch his appetite closely: a donkey who stops eating after bereavement can become…
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