Is there a way to order sample-sized feed to try?

[MorganMaresVT]

My senior mare (she turns 29 years old tomorrow!) is not eating very well this winter. For years she’s thrived on Poulin Low Carb Senior, but the last few weeks just isn’t that interested in her typical meal. She generally eats 4lbs, twice a day. But for a couple of weeks now, she’s barely getting through 2lbs, twice a day. I’ve tried coaxing her with exciting add-ins (apples/carrots), mixing it with warm SpeediBeet, soaked alfalfa cubes, etc.

Over the years she’s had a few molars extracted, so feed is soaked for her. Vet is very on top of the dental issues as well as the appetite/weight issues. Vet saw mare yesterday for annual Lyme vax and agreed that Izzy has dropped enough weight this winter it’s worth trying to switch things up a little and see if we can get her interested in eating again. Which brings me to my question: Is there a place where you can buy “sample sized” portions of feed? Mare will be served anything at all that she likes, so I don’t care about price, but I just don’t like the idea of wasting a 50lb bag of something that she hates after trying it a couple of days. A basic Google search hasn’t turned up anything obvious, so was wondering if anyone here had a suggestion.

When we boarded years ago, mare liked and did well on Cavalor, so I may just try a bag of that. I know people love Triple Crown Senior products, though I haven’t used them myself. Even though my very local feed store only carries Poulin, within a reasonable drive I can get pretty much any brand, so I’m open to suggestions of things to try. Mare has well managed Cushings/IR, so trying to find a balance of palatability without blowing starch/sugar out of the water. Of course as we get to this age, I am more willing to give her something she likes even if it’s not the ideal choice for a metabolic horse.

So- any suggestions for where to look for samples of something yummy for an old lady with questionable teeth and metabolic issues? Thanks in advance!

[Alibhai_s_Alibar]

I don’t know of a general place that sends out samples of different feeds, but most companies should send a sample if you directly request one. My 27yo PPID/IR guy happily ate Poulin Carb Safe (~5.4% NSC) for over a year. It soaks pretty well (gets slightly oily) if you need to feed it soupy and has sort of a banana flavored smell. Our local Poulin rep is very helpful.

We’re currently tweaking his Prascend dose because he got a little picky when the seasonal rise ended. We ever so slightly decreased his Prascend from 1 1/4 pills to 1 1/8 pills (after bloodwork) and he’s eating better. He’s eating Nuzu Stabul 1 (~10% NSC) at the moment- pina colada is his favorite flavor. They offer 4 flavors. The Stabul soaks well- it gets fluffy. You can order it from Chewy (as well as treats from the same company) and I believe the company offers samples. He didn’t care for Hygain Zero (~5.5% NSC) and it didn’t soak as well as the Carb Safe or the Stabul 1.

[MorganMaresVT]

Thank you for the suggestion @Alibhai_s_Alibar! She actually does like the Stabul Nuggets peppermint treats, I forgot about their Stabul 1 feed. Just filled out their form to request a sample.

[NaturallyHappy]

I was going to suggest them!

[SueNH]

I have 3 senior girls on Poulin’s low carb senior. One of mine periodically goes fussy on me and stops eating. When she does it I switch her feed out to their carb safe. No clue why she does it but it works. Mine doesn’t need the fat the low carb senior has but I had one that did and I’d add a bit of rice bran.

[MorganMaresVT]

Thank you @SueNH! Izzy has always been a “lick the pan clean” kind of eater, so this has thrown me for a loop. It’s good to know other older horses sometimes decide they need a change Hopefully I’ll find something she’s excited about. She barely ate anything tonight.

[ThatBayHorse]

Not really related, but my old gelding ate soaked alfalfa cubes for YEARS. One day decided he was done. Tried new bag, tried pellets, nope. Switched to timothy/alfalfa cubes and he ate them until he died. No rhyme or reason. Think they get pickier as they get older

[furlong47]

If you have a decent network of horsey folks around you, I’d start there. I could probably post a request like this on Facebook and get a number of friends willing to sell or give me a portion of what they use. (But I live in a big horse area and am fairly social. I know this might not work for everybody.)

[MorganMaresVT]

This is a good suggestion, thanks! Lots of horsey folks around, though all my friends also have air fern Morgans and feed mostly forage diets

[stb]

My horses have been on Triple Crown balancer with a bit of Senior added. Lately they are both losing their enthusiasm for it - although they do end up eating it. I was just thinking how nice it would be to have samples of feed to try instead of buying 50 pounds of something they might not like.

I will add that when one of my horses came to me and needed some extra weight I put him on Ultium Competition feed and he absolutely loved that feed and never left a crumb. Just FYI.

[clanter]

Purina uses digital coupons for sample feed trials. The coupon is sent by email and must be used within 14 days of printing by purchasing the desired feed at a local feed store

Purina’s Horse Feed Trial

others may have a similar trial method

[MorganMaresVT]

Thanks @clanter! I can poke around some manufacturer sites to look.

I think I have some time tomorrow to drive to a feed store that has TC Senior and Senior Gold. They sometimes have samples and promo size products, but if not I’ll grab a bag and see what happens - and if she doesn’t like it I can probably give it away. Or feed it to the wild turkeys who are traipsing through the latest 12-15 inches of snow and starting to look hungry

[clanter]

the feed store we use as our primary after all these years the manager and staff pretty much know what we use, a few months ago the manger handed me ten coupons each for a free bag of Teff pellets (worth about $220) , she said you are only person who buys this from me so here use these.

As for actual feed, when trying to introduce a new feed they will have test bags opened that a person can take an actual trial sample. We are fortunate in that Purina’s horse specific feed mill is just four miles away, they also bag Triple Crown there so it is not hard for us to get an actual production sample.

(as for adding apples/carrots… we have two Morgans who evidently think we attempting to kill them if we give then an apple or carrot, the looks they give is one of discuss as surely You Do Not what ME to eat THAT, pretty funny but with the cost of apples these days once again underlines the frugalness of a Morgan)

[MorganMaresVT]

A small update- and I hope I don’t jinx myself!

I remembered that I had some Outlast left from last year’s endurance season with one of my other horses. To test the theory that anything new added might make Izzy’s feed more enticing, I threw in a couple of handfuls of Outlast into her regular senior and soaked SpeediBeet.

Not only did it interest her, she has licked the pan clean the last couple of days, which is how she has always eaten her feed. I’m hoping she’ll stay interested, but it’s also good to know that even a little bit of something different gets her attention. At least for now!

[MorganMaresVT]

Update #2- The Stabul 1 samples arrived by mail on Saturday. They are so pleasantly fragrant- my whole car smelled sweet on the drive home from the post office. The company sent me a sample of all 6 of their flavors in individual bags- enough for just a little handful.

So far pina colada and banana flavors were a big hit. I have even been able to slightly increase the senior feed so we’re closer to the ideal amount (we’re aiming for feeding 4lbs per meal, and we’ve gotten down to as low as 1.5lbs before she wouldn’t eat any more- right now we are up to 2.5 lbs and still slowly increasing).

The only problem is that I’m seeing a little bit of fecal water showing up again This has been another ongoing problem over the winter, but I’ve held it at bay the past 2 months by using daily Fiberpsyll (with our vet’s blessing, since it’s not really how it’s intended to be fed). Aren’t old horses fun?!

I don’t want to keep changing things on her, so I think I will probably stick with the Outlast added for now since she seemed to like that just as well as the Stabul 1, and it didn’t seem to lead to fecal water. But I did want to post about Stabul 1 in case anyone else has a picky eater, as it seems very palatable, even in just a small amount if you want to stick with your regular feed but add in a handful of something to create interest. And I really appreciate that the company even offers samples, and sends them out so quickly.

[Pico_Banana]

Just some other thoughts on things to try – since your local store carries Poulin, have you tried Fibre-Max? I don’t know what the Low Carb Senior is like, but the Fibre-Max seems to be very palatable. I think it’s somewhat similar to Triple Crown Senior, which is a big hit with my super senior (29 next month).

Also, my senior has expressed a preference for timothy/alfalfa cubes as opposed to straight alfalfa cubes.

You could also try sprinkling onto her existing food some fenugreek powder.

Good luck! I am lucky in that my girl is a dedicated fan of Triple Crown Senior. I feed her about 7 lbs spread over three meals, soaked to an absolute mush in hot water. She whinnies for it each meal. In fact, it’s how I get enough water in her. She’s not a great drinker, so she gets about 3 gallons of water mixed with the TCS at each meal.