Quality Grain Program for Medium Keeper/Performance Horses

[joiedevie99]

We’ve got 3 horses with seemingly similar needs eating 3 very different diets, and all a tiny bit ribby right now. Having less than 6 kinds of grain for these 3 horses alone would be great, so rather than just upping amounts, we’re re-evaluating. I’ve got all the nutrition information (except the kcal/lb for Poulin which I can’t find, but would love to know?). We have others that need a balancer, so we’ll still have one of those in the barn - but not both. We can get pretty much any brand.

1. Ultium
2. Poulin E-Tec One and Poulin E-Tec Balancer
3. ProElite Performance and ProElite Grass Balancer and ProElite Omega Advantage

What would you all recommend to simplify this situation? Does one of these brands have a better reputation? I’ve also considered moving all three to Poulin Fibre-Max. Is there something else high quality that I should be considering? I’ve never fed corn, so haven’t paid much attention to Cavalor, but I’m willing to if its a better product in some other way. One has had ulcer issues in the past. Price is less important than quality.

Thanks in advance for any help/insight you are able to provide!

[fizzyfuzzybuzzy]

Not one of the options you are already using, but I’ve been really happy with Triple Crown Balancer Gold. It’s not high in protein like other balancers, so I add Tri-Amino to it. My medium keeper (I’m totally stealing that term for my guy! :lol: ) in full training can get a little spicy with lots of grain, so I make up the calories in other ways. He gets Renew Gold (2 cups per day) plus SmartOmega 3s and Es and alfalfa cubes. My guy seems to do better on low/no soy, so that’s why I picked TC Balancer Gold. I also love that it has some tummy helpers in it, so I could reduce the Purina Outlast I was giving with every meal to just before work. He’s doing great with not a rib in sight!

[TheMoo]

I feed my medium keeper TC 30 and orchard pellets. One pound of orchard pellets in the summer and I up it to two in the winter as she tends to lose weight fast without the grass.

[joiedevie99]

Thanks! I’ll check out both of those options!

[Simkie]

It seems like you’d be able to cover all with either a good balancer +/- alfalfa pellets for more calories or with a good balancer +/- a good senior feed for more calories. Another option would be a senior feed fed at less than the minimum (assuming these horses all get fat with that much feed?) and a vit-min supplement to make up any shortfall. ProElite is certainly well regarded.

It might help to review as they are now–what you’re feeding and what you don’t like about their condition–are they thin, or are they just lacking in muscle?

[fordtraktor]

How many pounds a day are you hoping to feed? I personally keep it pretty simple here – Tribute Essential K, Tribute Senior Sport, and K Finish. some combination of these feeds is appropriate for pretty much the whole barn.

If you are falling in between recommended amounts of a ration balancer and a traditional concentrate, maybe look at Triple Crown Lite. It’s made for just the kind of horse that needs more than a plain ration balancer and less than the 6-8 lbs of a concentrate.

[Well_Worn_Bridle]

I can also get just about anything, and have first hand experience with Poulin, McCauleys, Triple Crown, Pro Elite, Purina, Nutrena, Cavalor, and Tribute. I love the Poulin feeds- I think they are well formulated, and really appreciate the inclusion of natural vitamin e (d-alpha tocopherol), which has significantly better bioavailabity than the synthetic counterpart. The lowest recommended feeding rate is .5 lb (that’s half a pound, not five pounds!) per 100 lbs, making it not AS economical as a ration balancer, but almost double the value of most performance or senior type feeds.

McCauley’s Alam would be my second choice for the situation you have described, but you didn’t mention if McCauley’s is available to you, and I know their market is somewhat more limited.

I top my one pony’s mush with Cavalor, truly for no other reason than it makes me feel good to add something so marvelously textured and fresh looking to her otherwise bland, smooth mush. It would be awfully expensive for me to feed (even two ponies!) exclusively, and after doing a lot of homework on the brand’s offerings I concluded they really a lot of appeal to me, aside from the puffed textures.

Also maybe worth a look for you is Triple Crown’s new Gold line. I switched mine to the TC Gold Senior from Fibretec because my feed store was struggling to get Poulin orders in (an internal issue, I am certain, and not a reflection on Poulin!). I have been really impressed. I think the gut health package is great, and I like that it’s grain free, 11.4% NSC, and it soaks well. The TC Gold Balancer is great too- again, with an excellent gut health package, and no soy or molasses.