Hi, thanks for offering this great forum!

So I am new to the equine nutrition thing, as in the past I have only done very basic supplementing. After doing some research, I really feel my past supplement program was holding my horse's back, as well as potentially causing some of their problems. So, I've made up this new feed schedule, but I'm afraid I might be going too far with it and over supplementing or getting some ratios wrong (omega 3 to 6, calcium to phosphorous, etc). Any advice you have in adding, removing, or changing quantities would be appreciated! Also, if you really feel I'm going overboard, please let me know. I'm away on vacation, and all I can do is think about my horses, so in my bored time I've been doing nutrition research. I've been wanting to improve my nutrition program for quite some time, and now I've finally had the time to do the research and educate myself a bit.

So, here it is:


Whole Flax Seed - 1/2-1cup per day
Rice Bran Feed - 1 cup per day
Corn Oil - 1 cup per day
Apple Cider Vinegar - 1/4 cup per day
Beet Pulp Pellets- 1-3 cups
Nu Image coat supplement- recommended scoop
Horse Guard Trifecta 3-1 - recommended scoop
MSM - recommended scoop


Nu Image Nutrition Info: http://www.selectthebest.com/NuImage.pdf
Horse Guard Trifect 3-1 nutrition info: http://www.horseguard.com/pdfs/tri-ga.pdf


Reasons for choosing above supplements, after internet research:
Flax Seed - high in Omega 3s
Rice Bran feed- muscle building, stamina building, high vitamin e. Bad: High phosphorous, high fat.
Beet Pulp: Nice mix feed for other stuff, high in calcium. I heard it can aid in reducing ulcers.
Apple Cider Vinegar: I read this forum and it sure sounds good:http://www.horsegroomingsupplies.com/horse-forums/apple-cider-vinegar-for-horses-must-read-138665.html
MSM: methylsulfonylmethane, a natural sulfur nutrient that aids in joint health.
Corn Oil: I read it aids in reducing and preventing ulcers in horses. Negative: pure omega 6.
Nu-Image coat supplement: I'd like to get some nice long and thick show manes, and a healthy coat.
Horse Guard Tri-Fecta: We don't like this, it is too expensive, and we would like to change. Also, we ran a blood test and our mare came back too high in selenium.


ABOUT MY HORSES:
They are fed as much grass hay as they can eat, and an alfalfa flake once a day, pending they don't get too energetic from it. First sign of energy and the alfalfa is cut. They also have access to mineral salt blocks as well.

Goals:
Supplements for high performance, overall health and condition of coat, all without making a horse nervous or high energy. Stamina is good, but not energy.


Horse personalities, all QH's:
1) Zoe, 2 year old, very nervous, edgy, and sensitive. A little higher energy. Just got her, so I'm hoping her nervousness will calm with more handling.
2) Trinity, 2 year old, super quiet and non-reactive, small bursts of energy with really low stamina.
3)Rebel, 9 year old hopefully pregnant, very mellow but with decent stamina, but stresses A LOT in non-excitable ways, tends to be cranky, moody, and marish. She has been this way all her life, but it seems lately her stress level has increased. Recently, with trying to get her bred and having difficulties, she has not been on a regular exercise and training schedule, and she has became noticeably more testing, cranky, and stressed out. Possibly ulcers?


Two of the horses are young, so will only be in light work until later in the year. The third mare, the hopefully pregnant one, will be in full time work until she starts getting too heavy in foal, and then will be reduced accordingly. All reiners. The work can be high stress to their bodies and joints, so I want a feed supplement that will help with the stresses of a performance horse.


None of the horse's have problems keeping weight on. Rebel, the 9 year old, tends to be TOO heavy and we have to cut her back. Particularly right now, since she has not been on a regular training schedule with trying to get her in foal. However, in the middle of May (4wks) when I get back from my trip, all of them will be entering full time training (light riding for the 2yr olds) and starting their new feed schedules.

They will be stalled, but worked or turned out daily.

Where are you from? Southern Oregon

How did you locate this forum? Recommended by another user

Also, I'm not familiar with the numbers, but someone recommended Platinum Performance to me. It seems like it has a lot of the same nutrients that I am trying to accomplish by buying multiple feeds, but it also seems REALLY expensive for how long it should last... just 1 scoop per horse would only last a little over a month between my four horses (I have one yearling as well), and that's $125. Ouch! But, the Horse Guard Tri-fecta runs about the same rate or more at the local feedstore, so I guess there isn't much of a difference... we had been on Horse Guard Mega Dose, which is a little cheaper, and we could switch back to it, but again it contains the same levels of selenium. I think it would be cheaper for me to buy all of the individual products and spend the time mixing, unless you know of a product.

Where are you from? Southern Oregon

How did you locate this forum? Recommended by another user

Okay, I've done a bit more research today, so here is a bit more of the knowledge I've gained. It has narrowed down my questions a bit I think... although I would still like to find a vitamin supplement other than horseguard that is more economically priced and will still cover all the nutritional bases.


The nu-image is advertised as being okay to be fed alongside other supplements, as well as the MSM, as you can't overdose on MSM, so I'm not worried about those throwing off the supplement levels. The Apple Cider Vinegar is nutrition-less I believe, and cannot be overdosed either, so I don't have many concerns with that. The only thing I know is the nu-image is high in Omega 6's, so I would like to find an additional source of Omega 3s to counteract that, such as through flax seed.


Beet pulp I believe is fairly nutrition-less as well, with it's most significant thing being that it is a high fiber feed that is higher in calcium; gives a slow release of energy and and practically sugar free. Can be used as a grass hay replacement. Recommended to be fed with other vitamin sources, and as a good offset to feed programs that feed rice bran (which is high in phosphorous).


So basically, it's down to whether adding flax seed, rice bran, and corn oil to the food is okay (or even needed). I would like to add flax seed because of it's high omega 3s, but I know it does contain other other vitamins and nutrition. Corn Oil I read can help prevent ulcers because it contains prostaglandins. I read an article that says, "corn oil and rice bran oil that have a high omega 6 fatty acid content have been shown to increase prostaglandin E secretion and decrease acid production in the stomach. This makes these oil sources the preferred option for horses with gastric ulcers.". So this leaves me a bit confused, Omega 6s decrease change of ulcers, but at the same time are inflammatory, so you have to counteract them with omega 3s. That's all good, but what kind of levels of Omegas are acceptable? Can I just up the flax seed to make up for the high Omega 6's in the diet? And rice bran would be the last question of whether to add or not. I'm not sure if it has any nutritional properties to add that the horse's aren't receiving with the other things, except maybe the theory that it has steroidal properties. Who doesn't like a muscley horse? :)

Where are you from? Southern Oregon

How did you locate this forum? Recommended by another user

Re: Ultimate performance horse diet, or over supplementing?

Hello Tamra,

Thank you for writing about your horses. I must say, the amount of information you provided is somewhat beyond the scope of this forum for me to give you a helpful response. I basically help folks with specific questions that can be easily answered in this format. So, I could better assist you by setting up a phone consultation, so I could take the time to thoroughly review your materials, go over each horse's situation, and customize a feeding plan for them that fits their needs and improves their overall health.

So, please let me know if I can assist you further.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO