First let me start of with, “I am a fan of Purina horse foods.” With that being said I have a yearling that I have been regularly feeding Omolene 300 for 4 months, with excellent results. Because of supply issues my TSC store hasn’t had any for about a month, so, I followed Purina guidelines which stated that Strategy would be a good substitute for Omolene 300. I bought 2-3 bags and she is on her third bag. This girlie is getting hot, hot, hot and testy. Her personality has changed a bit from tender and curious (but quick and sensitive) to a yearling who is is flighty and kicking (nothing major, just something she has never done, or been like.) Has anyone used Strategy and what were your experiences? it seems more like a feed for highly active horses, as the bag stated and not so much for a youngster. I regularly use Purina Senior with Amplify for my older guy and Safe Choice for my minis and both are excellent products, but I think Strategy is a bit too much for my yearling, so, I went way out of town to purchase the 300 again. Hopefully, soon, we will have her disposition back!
Omolene 300 is sky high in NSC, which is linked to DOD issues.
Strategy would be a big improvement in that area. That said, it’s also not truly designed for that life stage of growth.
Ultium Growth would be a better feed for a yearling, much better than Omolene 300.
Strategy is a feed that has different formulas depending on what part of the country you’re in, and horses tend to either do really well, or not well at all on it.
Yes, I tried Strategy long ago for my horse. It made him ludicrously hot (nothing else had changed, it was clearly diet). Took him off it & he immediately went back to his normal, sensible self. I gave the remainder of the feed to someone else ,whose horse did fine on it. So it is my observation that yes, Strategy CAN light up some horses (but not all). My horse has now done wonderfully for years on TC Complete.
I have been feeding my 3 year old Strategy Healthy Edge for 2 years now ( off and on). I take him off and just feed a RB when the grass is going strong and add a couple pounds to to his RB Fall- Early Spring.
He has done fantastic on it and he isn’t hot on it like he was on the Impact Mare & Foal I had him on as a yearling.
I’ve been a breeder for over 40 years on a small scale and have had the great fortune to have a Purina nutritionist as our sales rep. She and I are great friends and she has been an amazing resource for deciding the best feeds for different ages or issues. I’ve used Strategy forever without any issues - Thoroughbreds and Warmbloods. I can’t imagine any horse becoming hot or anxious from being on it! However, I also agree that Ultium Growth is the way to go for weanlings up to 3+ or better - if they are working. I use Senior on my elderly ones and have had great luck with all of them as far as their condition being on these feeds. I’m in Alabama.
This is true for any feed or even hay you feed. You just never know until you try it. That is what makes it so hard to know where to start sometimes…
I was at a barn that fed Strategy for YEARS.
When I purchased my own farm I switched from Strategy to Impact Performance. I noticed an immediate difference in how hot and reactive my hot horse was. Impact Performance was fairly new at the time but now my feed store stocks it regularly as many people are switching to it from Strategy. It has controlled starch and sugar and no corn and I have really been happy with it.
I’ve used it twice over the years. In both cases i felt it not optimal. Most recently was about 6 or 7 years ago when i adopted this poor beast. They told me to go by the feed store and pickup a bag for him, which i did, but only to transition him over to my own way of feeding: Really good pasture and freechoice hay. To me, alfalfa hay is the best way to put on weight in the winter.
I don’t think you’re going to see any results off 1 singular bag of grain.
was not expecting to.
Also, not all horses can survive on pasture/hay alone. I’m not sure how that is helpful for someone who’s asking questions about grain.
Ok. My opinion is different. I do believe that good pasture and as natural a form of forage is the best way to feed. Normally i don’t chime in on grain/additive/pelletized feed threads. But i DO have experience, twice, with this particular product: Strategy. And if you’re dead-set-solid on feeding packaged food, there are probably much better foods than Strategy.
I transported three horses from California to Missouri. Forage here abundant and they came from drylot/stall situation. After slowly transitioning to pasture and having a really great summer …Fall came. My highstrung gelding went NUTZ!!! The leaves falling were something he had no familiarity with…and ran around trying to eat every leaf that fell. I moved him into a barn with shed and little access to falling leaves except occasional blow ins. He was still unhappy. I fed good hay and added alfalfa but thought i should maybe do more. The vet i was using at the time recommended Strategy (back in 1994, there were a lot fewer choices then) And so I added Strategy for an evening meal and he soon spent much of the day trotting around in his area (indoor barn 72x90)…lost weight. He was in there about 2 months and came back onto pasture with the two mares about 50 pounds lighter.
Next time i used the product was when i adopted that boney horse and they told me to pick up Strategy. Even having had a not-so-good experience with the product, i got him a bag JUST to add to his hay and help transition him over to pasture. FWIW: All of my horses are all on only pasture and only hay. 19 of them survive excellently on pasture and hay alone.
I’m glad that works for you, but it doesn’t work for everyone.
If everyone had ample great pasture it would work a lot better for them.
Sadly everyone doesn’t have ample , great pasture and then you have( in most places)at least 5+ months were there is no pasture and some horses need more than hay will provide. 2 of my horses need zero feed year round to stay round .
My young gelding is a different story and he just needs something besides my hay ( which is excellent quality) and fed in abundance. I have had excellent results with Strategy Healthy Edge on him and just plain old Strategy back in 2000 in a 21 year old TB broodmare rescue.
You can’t knock a feed because it didn’t work for you, when it works well for others.
Well sure i can! My opinion and my experiences ‘count’. Especially since this question is imbedded in the Original Post:
But you’ve used it twice for extremely brief periods, and you don’t even believe in feeding grain. That’s not exactly the experience the OP is looking for.
Not everyone has access to abundant quality pasture, not all horses are ok on pasture alone, and some horses would founder on that much pasture.
I fed Strategy for years but I noticed a significant different in my mare when I switched her from Strategy to Impact Performance. She was always very reactive to corn so I think that really helped.
annnnnd, i get to give my opinion. Whether you like it or not.
Then my question would be did you feed it as instructed? Did you feed it long enough to form an accurate opinion?
You can give the OP your opinion based on your experience but I don’t feel you can find it lacking when you never gave it a chance to work ( this goes for any feed no matter who mills it).
Do you have an " after" picture of your palomino after being out on grass? I know it works wonders as I have experienced it myself on an older rescue. Would love to see how he turned out.
