Megan posted an interesting Blog Hop recently, and it revolves around something that has always been really interesting to me; Equine Nutrition. I'm always curious to know what people feed their horses, and why. As someone who seems to have tried nearly every feed available in my location(s), I have settled on some products I absolutely love, steered clear of ones I absolutely dislike, and continue to try new things because, like Megan, I seem to enjoy throwing money into the manure pile!
So, Kidd and Nikki get fat on air (seriously, I wish I was kidding) so I will focus on Kai, my Bubble Wrap Problem Child.
On top of being essentially free-fed Grass Mix hay, she also gets extruded feed morning and night. This is a relatively 'new' feeding regime and I will likely continue to tweak it if i'm not satisfied after 3 months, but for now this is where we're at..
Buckeye Grow N' Win
For the past 3 months I had Kai on 3.5 lbs of Grow N Win daily but I am adding Cadence Ultra as of tomorrow, and as such I am backing her down to 1 lb of Grow N Win. Either way, I have been satisfied with the product. It's pricey, roughly $55 in my area per bag, but she did gain some weight while on it at 3.5 lbs. However, our supplier would still like to see 'more results' from it, so we are switching it up.
Buckeye Cadence Ultra
As part of our new regime, we are backing off the Grow N Win and adding Cadence Ultra. She hasn't started on it yet, so I can't say much at this point. It is around $40/bag.
Magnesium
Both Kidd and Kai are on Magnesium as it is a mineral very low in our area, and is a mineral that is typically lacking in most horses diets. Plus, it helps Kidd from getting too 'cresty', and seems to have a bit of a calming effect. I personally use Pureform as I can buy it semi-locally, and it's really inexpensive, at roughly $12/1 KG, which lasts almost forever.
Canpressco
Canpressco (Camelina Oil) is my go-to oil/fat supplement for any and all horses. I love the product so much and I can't say enough good about it. It's made an incredible difference in my horses both inside and out, and I can't imagine not feeding it! It helps i'm an ambassador, but regular it is around $65/4L. I haven't noticed extreme weight gain like some have reported, but Kidd is naturally obese and Kai isn't an overly easy keeper, so perhaps they aren't good examples as I have heard some report their horses gained too much weight on the oil. Though, for comparison, Kidd gets 1/2 Pump and Kai gets 2 Full Pumps daily.
Aloe Vera Juice
I started adding Aloe Vera juice to Kai's diet about 3 months ago. Now, I have heard some really mixed reviews but so far I have been happy with the product and has found it made her significantly less ulcer-ish. Many of you may remember going through a phase where she was *incredibly grumpy*, any time someone was near her she would pin her ears and just be a total piss-head in general, but after about 2 weeks of being on Aloe Vera juice it really changed. I can't say if it's related, but that behavior is gone. I know there are better options out there, but I buy the one pictured above at Walmart for about $10, and feed about 1/2 Cup per day (shoot me, I just eyeball it *bad horse mom alert*), so it lasts a really long time.
In addition, she also gets Beet Pulp and Chlorella Powder. I have been considering bringing in some Healthy Horse for both Kidd and Kai, but I am currently house-broke so I can only afford to throw away so much money for a horse who's constantly hurt, and one that I have no time to ride.. Oh, horses!
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