We get Bluebonnet here, easily. Of course, you have to go to an actual feed store instead of Tractor Supply, but that’s not hard to do. Both the Intensify Omega and Horsemans Elite, are well tolerated and keep weight on a horse without making them fat, assuming you aren’t trying to correct for lack of calories due to low forage. intensify has a very low feeding rate, AND high fat, AND reasonably low (~15%) NSC. Ionisphere free mills, too.
I used it when we moved into a very high end barn, every horse was required to be on it because it was non-GMO… I wanted more info but the published information was relatively thin. Rep could not be bothered to call and talk to me. My horse was just “meh” on the taste and I could not see any difference between when he came and when he left that there was any change to his coat or condition. Though, every time the feeding manager came by she commented on how well the Crypto was doing for him…
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When I fed my 2 whole oats I saw no evidence of it in their manure. I clean up their dry lot every single day, so if they were just expelling whole oats I would know it.
The stable I worked at a few years ago fed whole oats exclusively and we never saw it when we cleaned stalls daily.
If that has been your experience a vet check and floating may be necessary.
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When I fed oat, I actually went "manure diving’ because I was curious. Every single “oat” I found was the hull. Empty inside. Just a shell of a thing, must have been really lonely :winkgrin:
Does that mean NO oat passes through intact? Of course not. I didn’t even mind it when some escaped, as it encouraged birds to pick through piles and scatter them.
But unless the horse has major dentition or mastication issues, the majority are chewed and digested.
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Are you saying that a horse on a diet of forage only ( grass & good hay) is slowly dying of malnutrition?
Might be fine, might not. Depends on where its grown, growing/soil conditions, how long it is stored etc. Most hay will be deficient in some vitamins and trace minerals. You can not assume those needs are met by forage alone unless you get each hay batch analyzed.
Have I seen horses die of TM deficiencies? Yes. Sad but it happens and is very easily prevented by just adding TM&V supplement or salt.
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@candyappy Both were checked twice this year so no need for any vet exam. If teeth aren’t good enough then nothing i can do. Vet i have is best i can get. The one gelding is 33 year plus ,missing teeth and needs good feed not cheap oats that get crapped out. Same for 5 year old.
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AS I understand, some vitamins such as A and E are lost when grass dries out and is made into hay.
And the mineral levels of grass and hay vary depending on what is in the soil where they are grown. In our rainy PNW climate the mineral levels are generally low in both local hay and pasture.
Likewise there are parts of the world where there are excess minerals such as iron in the forage, and that leads to imbalances with the other minerals.
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Vitamin E and A are lower in hay than in grass and will continue to lessen as the hay sits. It’s a good idea in areas that get cold enough to go brown to supplement vitamin E. Natural forms have a much higher bioavailability than synthetic. Vitamin A can be addressed in a forage situation by planting winter wheat for grazing.
The exception to this might be alfalfa hay if it’s shipped in from CA or New Mexico where it grows year round and can be obtained green and fresh.
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As am I. Digitalis, quinine, salicylic acid (is partially synthesized), belladonna, morphine , pilocarpine, even Taxol which we treat ovarian and some lung cancers with is plant derived. Less so today than 20 years ago but plants play a major roll in the development of meds for everything from a headache to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s treatment.
A surprisingly large number of essential medications are derived sirectly from flowering plants.
Former Clinical Research Associate National Cancer Institute
Yes, I feed it to my grand prix horse and have been feeding it for about 13 months. I switched from Progressive Nutrition ration balancer. Also, I was conditioned to feeding my horse no more than 3 pounds a day of concentrate, so it took me a while to get her up to the amount of grain she needs to support the heavy level of work she is doing. The reason that I switched is that I suspected a soy sensitivity and then I couldn’t find many choices that were completely soy free (now, there is Triple Crown Naturals and also I could get a Ranchway Organic No Corn No Soy Horse Feed and both of these choices are fortified with organic vitamin/minerals). On soy, my mare was: bloated, puffy, had no energy, had skin issues and scratches and thrush plus, she had no heat cycle. About three months into the Crypto Aero, she went into a full blown transitional heat like I’ve never experienced with her. So the soy was suppressing it? The skin issues went away and then came back until I increased her CA to 6-7 pounds a day. I fortify it with Omega Grande and alfalfa hay. Realize my horse has a heavy workload and needs the energy. It took a lot for me to give her that much at 28 NSC, but she needed it. She now is very very forward without being spooky and has great energy and power. Her muscles have developed beautiully and she has become ripped because she lost all the puffy water retention she had on soy. She consumes more than twice the amount of concentrates and 1/3 more hay than she had before and doesn’t gain weight on it, but uses it as fuel. She seems to stay supple and doesn’t get sore because the inflammation that I believe came from her prior diet has been reduced and she hasn’t needed hock injections, is sounder than ever at age 17.
Is it the CA? I don’t know. Whatever it is, she is so much healthier and super sound than on soy based feed, so I am continuing. She digests the oats. I like the ingredients and she loves the feed. To control some of the cost (I have to get it from Chewy and I am feeding about 4 quarts/6 pounds of CA), I give about 2 quarts of Triple Crown Naturals, with her 4 quarts per day of Crypto Aero, for a total of about 8 pounds and a half pound of Omega Grande.
I am not a scientist, so I haven’t analyzed it. I just like the ingredients and I experimented with the amount I fed (I started her on only two cups a day but didn’t see all symptoms dsappear until I had her up to 12 cups a day. I also really like Omega Grande. If you want to see a current picture of my horse, I am happy to send it. She just glows and has the most beautiful dark shiney coat. She had dull hair and bald patches on soy…Keep in mind she is a working grand prix horse and needs more fat, protein and starch than the average pleasure horse.
Just feeding oats and hay pellets is not going to replicate this feed. It has sunflower seeds and green and yellow peas fr protein, which is about 14% and also alfalfa pellets for protien. It has papaya for ulcers. It has spiralina and seaweed, and other things
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Different subject. I never denied applications in human models, because you are totally right. And am I up to date on human health applications and research? Nope. Never claimed to be. Not my field and not conducted in models that can be extrapolated to the species I work with.
But proof of these claims stated by the OP, especially at the mg/kg BW that most of these products added into feeds like CA, is widely lacking in the horse.
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Am I the only one who thinks their name is unfortunate? Sounds like a lung disease you get opening a sarcophagus. Other than that, I have no input. Have never fed it.
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Yep i thought same thing ,too funny!:lol:
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Crypto Aero was the racehorse after whom the product was named. But I agree, very odd name for an equine feed.
This is true, lots of medicines are derived from plants especially potentially toxic plants. But interestingly nobody seems to be recommending that you chew a willow twig instead of taking an aspirin, or eat fox glove for heart problems, or steal the opium poppy out of the botanical garden for pain control.
That’s because for these real actual plant derived medicine the refined product is more effective and at a more regulated, safer. dose than the whole plant.
When I say herbs, I’m thinking of the wide variety of common or culinary or kitchen or pot herbs that do not seem toxic at any known dose, yet are said to have “healing properties.” Of course some times they are said to fix things that aren’t medically recognized ailments, like “detoxify the bladder.”
And sometimes like rosehips they can be a good source of vitamin C except that most horses don’t need Vitamin C as they make their own, as do most animals other than humans.
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Hello OP,
I might be the only person here representing what you actually asked for. I am someone who feeds Crypto Aero.
Thoughts on the feed? ITS AMAZING.
My sweet, playful 13 yo Ottb was moody and spooky all the time. Anhydrosis, head shaking, weirdness in back… I did everyyythimg I could think of to find out why. I mean EVERYTHING. I started reading about soy for horses specifically thoroughbreds when I found out about CA. I read all the smack talk on this forum, and I researched the benefits of each ingredient as well as reviews. I trekked to the closest feed store that had it.
He was previously on Safe Choice Maint/Fuel. Almost 6lbs a day.
I started mixing it in literally by handful to give him time to adjust to the oats. He has free choice Himalayan salt and Seminole HORSE minerals in his stall. I upped his forage by supplementing alfalfa/Timothy pellets with the feed and giving him about a lb or less of fresh alfalfa, in addition to his normal hay ration (around 12lbs. Day).
two weeks and he’s a different horse. He sweat through the summer. The weirdness in the back is gone, his head shaking is a lot better and he has the extra “umphf” under saddle as he did when he was younger, He loves the feed, his poops are consistent and he’s much more comfortable in his skin. I can groom him now as he stands quietly. He gets 1.5qt CA/.5qt tim/all pellets am/pm presently. From 6lbs of feed to 3 a day. I did not take him off the Assure products when I started feeding it though, so he gets those too.
With the exception of the Assure, I don’t give him any addition vitamin or mineral supplement I didn’t think I needed to until I read all these opinions! Geeze, I wonder how many people buy organic groceries but feed their horses a bunch of chemicals??? It’s unreal.
He’s been on Crypto Aero since Feb. of this year. A lot of people are posting before and after with the change in their coats but since mine was on Source previously it wasn’t his coat that I noticed the most, it’s his disposition and movement. He is a giant teddy bear again, playful and is going under saddle very willing and well. His head shaking is pretty much gone. The owner of CA is very nice and will respond to ANY questions you might have. She’s a much better source of information than all these people that want to throw shady opinions around. She sends me shipments after the feed store stopped carrying it bc of Florida summer heat, and not enough people feeding it around here. It’s going very well.
Im ok with the cost as I only have one horse. My friend just tried it for her competition horses and decided after three weeks to put all 9 of hers on it. Another friend with a ottb just got a few bags from me also… Can I mix it myself, absolutely. BUT Since I can, I choose to support CA and her business growth. She has been very professional and knowledgeable with me.
Don’t listen to these people. TRY IT. see how it does for your horse.
now when hen people ask me “what does your horse eat, oats?”
I can say “yep!”
After all of my efforts and vet bills, I don’t need percentages and daily ration macro analyzations to know it’s working for my guy.
That’s fine but some of us are in fact up to date on current best practices in horse nutrition.
I actually don’t have a problem with the main ingredients of CA. That’s what I feed my horse, whole oats and alfalfa cubes, plus some extras. I do believe that a horse might show an improvement switching to this diet from corn and soy extruded feed.
However the issue I raised which is also echoed by the other folks who also feel confident enough to mix their own mash from basic whole foods, is that the markup on CA is insanefor what’s in it.
Any knowledgeable horse person could mix a duplicate for a fraction of the price, including rosehips which are unnecessary for horses anyhow.
The other issue is that CA is not fortified so you could still have big gaps in minerals.
That’s why I said they market to the innocent or ignorant because it’s a huge markup on basic ingredients.
Anyhow hsving made the effort to educate myself on current best practices in horse nutrition, and having learned to mix my own mashes that are similar to CA at a fraction if the cost, I am not particularly impressed.
I fully expect that any horse that switched from a low quality extruded feed to my.home made oats alfalfa beet pulp flax and supplements mash would be a lot healthier too.
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So you made all those changes, yet you narrow in on the CA as being the cause of his improvement?
It couldn’t possibly taking him off 6lb of feed with soy? Or giving him more hay? How much does he weigh that he ws getting 6lb of feed but only 12lb of hay?
With the exception of the Assure, I don’t give him any addition vitamin or mineral supplement I didn’t think I needed to until I read all these opinions!
The need for supplementation isn’t opinion. It is entirely based on whatever gaps your forage leaves. I don’t think there’s a forage in the US that meets either all the nutrient requirements, or all in a close enough ratio, to not require some level of supplementation if the horse is doing any real work.
Geeze, I wonder how many people buy organic groceries but feed their horses a bunch of chemicals??? It’s unreal.
Pretty irrelevant, since CA isn’t organic.
He’s been on Crypto Aero since Feb. of this year. A lot of people are posting before and after with the change in their coats but since mine was on Source previously it wasn’t his coat that I noticed the most, it’s his disposition and movement. He is a giant teddy bear again, playful and is going under saddle very willing and well. His head shaking is pretty much gone.
But not remotely the soy which you removed after reading how (apparently) bad it is?
The owner of CA is very nice and will respond to ANY questions you might have.
Oh, she responded here alright 
She’s a much better source of information than all these people that want to throw shady opinions around
Her “science” is so bad it’s laughable. Her information is pretty much all in direct contradiction to what’s been known and proven over decades of research
After all of my efforts and vet bills, I don’t need percentages and daily ration macro analyzations to know it’s working for my guy.
Good for you. Really. I’ve run out of hands to count the people who have claimed how amazing their horses did on CA…until they didn’t, and had to switch them off it, or add some real fortification. And that includes someone who is, last I checked, still on the testimonial page. It didn’t take her for 3-4 months for her horses to go from greatly improved, to looking terrible.
If you hadn’t noticed, nobody actually has a problem with the feed for what it is. But it’s not a feed that is fortified, that is balanced, that is safe to feed a truly metabolic horses in anything but a handful (contrary to her claims).
If it works for you, it works. It is not the 2nd coming through, contrary to what the devout followers try to tell everyone. No feed is.
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I do get what you’re saying but keep in mind that eastern medicine still relies heavily on HERBAL medicine in certain areas and it’s not uncommon in other cultures in remote regions. and one of the reasons we discovered the healing properties in these plants to begin with was because they WORKED for the native peoples using them. And then there’s medical marijuana. The drug marinol was not nearly as effective at nausea prevention as the real stuff which is why it was prescribed for AZT nausea to begin with. But that is probably the one exception to the rule.
I actually did use willow bark tea for a fever once just to do it and it worked as well anything else would have. I was honestly surprised.
Some of these models vary vary less than you might expect from their natural state. What pharmacology brings to the mix are safety tests and correct dosages and those are ofc extremely important. We all know horses are huge and many benefits from these herbs added into feed are likely going to be minimal but you can no more quantify a statement that in some quantities they wouldn’t be useful anymore than CA can qualify the benefits in the feed.
We do have good anecdotal evidence for the efficacy of some holistic remedies in horses. I can say without doubt that some of the plant derived anti inflammatories worked well for my old boy with ringbone. Soy certainly produces enough estrogen to make people not want to feed it and that’s not apples to oranges. We know that rose hips have great anti inflammatory properties. Research is being done in that area. Around 70,000 plant species have been tested for medicinal use. Of course we refine them and try to concentrate it and make it fit into a pill. But that in no way should be taken to mean that naturally sourced, it would have zero level of efficacy. In the amounts in a scoop of feed that’s 9/10 oats, no. There isn’t enough. But that is not enough to disprove efficacy.
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