I need something tasty to help entice my old mare(s) to eat (finish really) their meals of Coolstance, Beet pulp, and vitamin mineral supplements. Any recommendations on feeds that horses can’t seem to say no to?
Both horses have had their teeth done, nothing has changed in their feed, everything else has been checked. They both just occasionally (one more so now that she’s on Prascend) decide they don’t want to finish it all.
A little bit of Triple Crown Senior would be my first option. Arguably, a small quantity (a handful or two) of any bagged feed will render the NSC content pretty negligible. To be on the safe side though if Cushings or IR is a concern, I’d try lower NSC options first. TCS is one of the lowest NSC commercial options at 11.7, and it’s pretty widely available. Horses also tend to eat it really well.
My pony that gets Prascend can be picky on feed - but if you give him a handful of Standlee alfalfa pellets he is all over it. So I soak some timothy/alfalfa pellets to slightly mushy and mix it with his ration balancer. He has never turned that down.
I’ve had good luck with TC Senior, or generally any Senior feed. A handful or two, plus some alfalfa pellets (and wetting the whole thing down) seems to work. Best pulp was NOT as exciting as alfalfa or Timothy pellets, for whatever reason.
Another option is the TC chopped forage, either the Stress Free or their low carb one. It can be wetted or fed dry, and it’s a HIT around here. We feed it as a tacking up snack for tummy comfort, but I wouldn’t hesitate to throw some supps in there and call it a meal. They all vacuum that stuff up.
I can say that my pony does not find alfalfa pellets to be enough to entice her to eat things she does not really want to eat (aka her supplements).
I add a sugar free apple flavoring and cinnamon to get my pony to eat. He also likes a handful of Outlast.
If he gets really picky a handful of Ultium Gastric care is like candy but is way higher in sugar than I prefer to give. But he will eat anything mixed with it.
He won’t eat TC Senior.
My senior mare vastly prefers Nutrena Safe Choice Senior to Triple Crown. The TC looks so yummy but apparently is not compared to Nutrena.
She’s a TB so NSC isn’t my main concern; I know TC is lower but I need her to eat it all. I will say that she’s a “hard no” on alfalfa in any format other than hay, and a “hell no” to any fat supplement (Cool Calories was a total bust). Beet pulp is ok but added supplements are a no.
Good luck! My pony on Prascend was super picky about everything other than hay.
TC Senior
Purina Ultium Gastric Care
Sugar free peppermint syrup (like for flavoring coffee)
Giving APF -a liquid adaptenogenic helps with appetite issues from Prascend …tasty feed carriers are Triple Crown Senior, Tribute Seniority LOW NSC, Nuzu Stabul One, Cavalor Fiberforce or something like a handful of Triple Crowns Stress Free Forage
I have an older horse who needs a bit of weight coming into the winter, and I am giving him Buckeye Cadence Ultra. It smells so good, I might have it for a snack! He gets that, and a bit of beet pulp, along with his ground flax seed. He licks the bowl!
My first thought was TC Senior. It’s always been a hit with any horse I’ve owned, but they’ve always been good eaters as well.
My other thought was to add oil. I fed CocoSun oil from Uckele and my horse loved it. It’s so expensive though. CocoSoya oil is less expensive and supposed to be very palatable. Maybe a little of that added to the mix?
Oh, and the old standby: Calf-Manna. I’ve never met a horse that didn’t love Calf-Manna. It might not be appropriate for a PPID horse though? (Not sure.)
I have not met a horse that really likes Coolstance, even mixed with tasty things.
How do you feed the Prascend? My mare was very finicky about her feed until I gave up putting the pill in her feed. Now I dissolve it in a syringe in some water and dose her directly in her mouth right before feeding her. She’s been eating consistently since I switched to this approach.
I’m currently dissolving the pink pill in a bit of water in a small syringe also. It doesn’t take much water, and it dissolves pdq. I set that up, and the 13 SMZs the same horse is also getting twice a day right now (just shoot me), in their respective syringes, and by the time I finish fixing 3 meals, it’s long-dissolved.
My vet did list several things her clients have successfully used for Prascend, all of which I’ve heard except this one - mini marshmallow! So when I get a chance to get a small bag I’ll give that a try.
Back in the day we used to give all the seniors “all in one”, a chopped alfalfa with molasses. I don’t know if it’s still sold or if anyone would use it now with all the increased options and knowledge available but it helped horses with trouble chewing or that needed meds🤷♀️
Also I will add it looked like manure but smelled delicious 
Marshmallows, that’s brilliant! I never even thought of that. I’m not currently giving my guy anything but something to try for possible future use. The danger is that I LOVE marshmallows so I likely will scoff down the bulk of them 
It’s almost tempting to just get and keep bags of the small ones as a daily treat for everyone, just in case they need 1 or a few daily pills!
And that’s about the biggest reason I haven’t bought a bag yet lmao!
Ultium. Every horse loves Ultium. Well I’m sure there’s an exception but I have yet to find one.
@kaya842 On the occasions I or others I know have fed Purina Equine Senior the horses eat it pretty enthusiastically. My local TSC ( formerly Orschelns) now carries it. My local Purina dealer does not- but of course would order it.
The Prascend is fed separate from meals in a cookie (which we will see if it continues to work, she is currently very unenthusiastic about it).
The Coolstance + beet pulp isn’t overly appealing lol but it is good for them. I feed Contribute fish oil which is very strong smelling (smells like bubble gum - it’s not new to them) which I think helps.
TBH this seems to be a seasonal thing - the one horse I’ve only had for a year but the other I’ve had forever and she seems to go slightly off her feed (eats some but doesn’t finish, still seems excited to eat at meal time though) in the spring and fall when the seasons change.
I’m stuck between TC Senior, Ultium GC, and Renew Gold. I only add the RG as it’s soy free which is part of why they get the Coolstance but I don’t know if feeding a small amount of a soy feed (small as in 1cup per meal which is usually less than 1lb/day) would be enough to cause issues.
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