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 4 of 18
An elderly Wyandotte benefits from lower heights, warmer rest and feed she can reach without a contest. Drop her roost to a low, wide perch with a ramp, give her a floor-level nest box with deep bedding, and keep feed and water inside her sheltered area on cold days so this heavily feathered hen does not have to cross…
An elderly Toulouse goose carries a lot of weight on ageing legs and feet, so home should remove steps, slopes and slippery ground from his day. Give him a ground-level shelter he can walk straight into, deep dry bedding for resting his breast and feet, and water he can reach without climbing into a tall tub, plus…
An elderly Silkie needs a home arranged around poor flight, a vision-blocking crest and feathers that soak rather than shed water. Let her sleep on a deep, dry ground bed or a very low wide platform instead of a perch, trim the fluff around her eyes so she can find feed and water, and keep every route under cover so…
An elderly Rhode Island Red does best when roosting, laying and feeding no longer involve height or competition. Lower her roost to a wide, low perch she can step onto, move a nest box to floor level with deep soft bedding, and keep feed and water on the ground where the younger, heavier hens cannot guard them from…
An elderly Pygmy goat copes best when nothing essential requires climbing, jumping or competing. Bring hay, water and minerals down to ground level, replace tall play platforms with a low, wide step or a gentle earth ramp, and lay deep, dry bedding where stiff joints rest more easily. Move her shelter spot out of wind…
An elderly Plymouth Rock chicken needs her coop heights halved and her footing made dependable: a mid-low roost reached by a solid ramp, nest boxes lowered to a step-in height, and a level, dry run where she is not jostled by quicker birds at the feeder. Plymouth Rocks are solid dual-purpose hens, heavier than layers…
An elderly Pekin duck needs the softest, flattest home of any duck on this list: step-free housing on deep bedding, bathing water with a ground-level wading entry, and short routes over grass or matting instead of concrete and gravel. Pekins were bred to grow fast and heavy, and that weight bears down on legs and feet…
An elderly Orpington chicken needs her coop lowered to match a heavy body under a deep coat of feathers: a low, wide roost she steps onto rather than flies to, a ramp with gentle spacing, and nest boxes at floor level with roomy entrances. Orpingtons are big, placid birds whose weight strains legs and feet, and an old…
An elderly Nubian goat needs space and softness scaled to her larger, heavier frame: a wide, step-free shelter entrance, deep bedding she can kneel and rise from without scraping, and lowered platforms with a proper ramp rather than the jumps of her youth. Nubians are big, vocal dairy goats who feel the cold and the…
An elderly Nigerian Dwarf goat needs her playground lowered and her essentials brought within a short, sure-footed walk: replace tall climbing platforms with low steps and a cleated ramp, set feeders and water where she reaches them standing on the ground, and give her a draught-free, deeply bedded corner at floor…
An elderly Mustang does best on flat, forgiving ground with everything he needs inside one calm area: level turnout without steep banks or deep mud gateways, a deeply bedded stall or shelter with cushioned flooring, and hay and water placed where he can eat slowly without being pushed off by younger horses. Mustangs…
An elderly Muscovy duck needs her home brought down to the ground she now prefers: a floor-level nest and sleeping spot, wide ramps with real grip instead of any perch, and bathing water with a broad, shallow entry her heavy body can manage. Muscovies are unusual ducks who roost and grip with clawed feet when young,…
An elderly Leghorn chicken needs her love of height managed for her: lower the roost she insists on using, add a cleated ramp up to it, and bring nest boxes down so she is not dropping to the floor from a perch each morning. Leghorns are light, flighty birds, and an old hen still launches herself, but stiff legs…
An elderly Kunekune pig lives more comfortably when his pasture stops testing his short legs and stiffening joints: a step-free shelter with a deep straw bed, a wallow he can walk into and out of on a gentle slope, and feed served in a low, wide pan on firm ground. Kunekunes are grazing pigs who gain weight easily, so…
An elderly Khaki Campbell duck needs her busy foraging life scaled down kindly: shorter distances between shelter, feed and water, low nest and feed stations she reaches without hopping, and soft, dry ground that is easy on ageing feet. This small, active layer often keeps laying late in life, so give her a…
An elderly Indian Runner duck needs level, grippy ground above almost everything else, because that upright, bowling-pin stance that made her a keen walker becomes wobbly when her legs and balance age. Give her a step-free night house, a shallow bathing tub she can walk into rather than hop over, and a short,…
An elderly Embden goose does best when nothing in her yard forces a climb, a jump or a slippery scramble: give her a ground-level shelter, a wide shallow ramp into her bathing water, and deep dry straw where she settles for the night. Because an Embden is a heavy bird, sore legs show up as long rests and reluctance to…
An elderly Dorper sheep does best when her paddock stops requiring athleticism: low troughs she can eat and drink from without stretching, dry raised ground to lie on, and handling lanes wide enough that she is never pushed, turned sharply or lifted. Dorpers are heavy, fast-growing hair sheep, and an old ewe carries…
An elderly Boer goat carries one of the heaviest frames of any goat breed on joints that were loaded hard all his life, so his home setup should quietly remove height, tight turns and feed competition. Replace tall climbing platforms with low, broad ones, widen the gate he uses daily, and give him bunk space where his…
An elderly Berkshire pig is a very heavy animal moving on aging joints, so the adjustments that help him most are about ground: non-slip flooring where he walks, a shelter entrance he can step into without climbing, deep dry bedding he can nest into, and shade with a wallow he can lower himself into safely. Berkshires…
An elderly Angora goat needs a home setup built around two facts of her breed: her valuable mohair coat leaves her chilled and vulnerable right after shearing, and a lifetime of carrying fleece on a relatively fine frame leaves her joints and stamina less forgiving than a meat goat's. Reliable windproof shelter she…
An elderly Alpine goat stays capable longest when her pen stops asking her to climb, leap and compete like the tall, athletic dairy goat she used to be. Lower the milking stand or give her a long, cleated ramp to it, widen the shelter doorway, and put deep, dry bedding where she can rise without her knees skating on…
An aging Wyandotte hen commonly keeps a robust appetite deeper into old age than lighter breeds, staying active through cold weather that sends other hens into a sulk, while her weight tends to creep upward as laying declines and her dense, laced plumage hides the gain. She was bred as a hardy dual-purpose bird with a…
An aging Toulouse goose commonly grazes in a slower, more deliberate rhythm, spends longer resting between bouts on the grass, and holds or gains weight easily because this is one of the heaviest domestic goose breeds and his appetite for pasture usually outlasts his need for it. Seasonal swings grow larger with age:…
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