Dr Jazmin Markey – PhD, PAS
There is no single age at which a broodmare suddenly becomes a ‘senior’. Some mares maintain excellent body condition, muscle mass, dental function and overall health well into their later years, while others begin experiencing age-related changes much sooner.
For the older broodmare, there is an additional consideration: she is being asked to support not only herself, but the demands of reproduction as well. Neither ageing nor pregnancy automatically creates a nutritional problem, but changes associated with age can influence how easily the mare meets the demands placed upon her.
This makes feeding the senior broodmare less about age itself and more about recognising when a mare who has successfully raised foals for years begins to need something different.
A mare’s nutritional needs do not necessarily change simply because another year has passed. What matters is whether something about the mare herself has changed. Is she maintaining the same body condition as in previous years? Has she lost muscle across her topline? Is she taking longer to eat? Has the amount of forage she actually consumes declined? Does she still maintain herself on the diet that once worked well?
These changes may be subtle. A mare can maintain adequate body fat while losing muscle, for example, making body condition only one part of the picture. Similarly, offering a full feed bucket or haynet does not guarantee that the entire meal is consumed.
For an experienced broodmare, comparison with her own ‘normal’ can be particularly useful. A gradual change from previous breeding seasons may tell us more than age alone.
Forage should remain the foundation of the broodmare’s diet, but adequate forage intake can become more difficult for some mares as they age. Changes in dental function may reduce the ability to effectively chew long-stem forage, resulting in quidding, dropped feed, prolonged eating times or declining intake overall. An older mare may also simply require more time to finish her meals, which can become particularly relevant when horses are fed in groups.
This creates an important distinction between the diet formulated on paper and the diet the mare actually consumes. Nutrient requirements can only be met by feed that makes it into the horse.
If and when long-stem forage becomes difficult to consume adequately, appropriate alternative sources of digestible fibre can help maintain fibre and calorie intake. Likewise, the physical form and meal size of the remainder of the diet may deserve consideration if consuming enough to meet her requirements becomes increasingly difficult.
For the senior broodmare, how effectively the diet can be consumed may eventually become just as important as what the diet contains.
Early gestation does not dramatically increase calorie requirements above maintenance, but that should not be interpreted to mean that nutritional adequacy is less important. The mare still requires an appropriately formulated diet supplying the protein, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients needed to support herself and her pregnancy.
As gestation advances, fetal growth accelerates and nutrient requirements increase. Lactation then places considerable additional demand on the mare following parturition.
For a younger mare maintaining herself easily, those changing requirements may be relatively straightforward to accommodate. For an older mare already beginning to lose condition, consume less forage or struggle to maintain adequate muscle mass, the same increase in reproductive demand can be considerably more challenging.
The important difference is not necessarily the requirements of pregnancy themselves. It is the condition in which the senior mare arrives at each stage and her ability to meet what comes next.
Maintaining appropriate body weight is important in the older broodmare, but body weight alone does not provide a complete picture of her nutritional status. Loss of muscle can occur even when body condition remains acceptable.
This is particularly relevant across the topline, where changes may be mistakenly interpreted as a need for additional calories. Increasing calorie intake may be appropriate when overall condition is declining, but calories alone do not address muscle maintenance.
Quality protein and an appropriate supply of essential amino acids remain important for maintaining body tissues, while adequate calorie intake helps ensure protein is available for its intended functions.
Evaluating body condition and muscle mass separately therefore provides a better indication of how well the older mare is maintaining herself than either measure alone.
When feeding the senior broodmare:
Use the mare’s previous condition, muscle mass, appetite and intake as useful points of comparison rather than relying on age alone.
Evaluate body condition and muscle mass separately throughout the breeding cycle.
Pay attention to eating time, quidding, dropped forage and other indications that dental function may be affecting actual intake.
Consider not only what feed and forage are offered, but how much the mare consistently consumes.
Maintain adequate fibre intake and consider appropriate alternative fibre sources when long-stem forage becomes difficult to consume.
Evaluate protein quality and essential amino acid supply when muscle or topline begins to decline, rather than responding with additional calories alone.
Remember that relatively modest calorie requirements during early gestation do not eliminate the need for a nutritionally adequate diet.
Involve a veterinarian and equine nutritionist when health, dental or reproductive concerns complicate nutritional management.
Feeding an older broodmare may eventually require more than simply changing how much of her existing diet she receives. Changes in chewing ability, forage intake, body condition or muscle mass can influence which type of feeding programme is most appropriate as she continues through successive breeding seasons.
Within the Keyflow® range, an appropriate balancer can provide quality protein, essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals when additional calories are not required. When maintaining intake or condition becomes more difficult, highly digestible comprehensive feeds and alternative fibre and calorie sources provide additional options for adapting the ration without relying solely on larger quantities of the same feed.
A senior broodmare may have years of experience behind her, but that does not mean each breeding season will ask the same thing of her nutritionally. The value of knowing the mare well is recognising when what has always worked is no longer what works best.
The Keyflow Range
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