Sho-Glo Supplement/Supplements in General

[TooMuchRebel]

I recently bought my mare a small thing of Sho-Glo to try out, it was on sale and I had a coupon for $10 so I said why not. She only gets 2c of Tribute Ultra-Kalm daily (just enough to get her some vitamins as the vet said) and soaked bermuda/alfalfa cubes just to get her through winter. It has some good reviews, but I only found two before and after pics. Anybody have any pics or anything to know about? I also saw they had Sho-Hoof and Sho-Flex, are those good to feed her too? Or only if they need it?

On the same supplement topic, is there anything I can give her that’s not like a pre-made supplement? I heard things like vegetable oil (?) and flax or something help to bring out the best in their coats and stuff. I’m really only supplementing to keep her looking good and to help with muscle buildup, and I’ve also never fed supplements before because I never saw a need. But what things similar to the flax or oil will help bring out the best in her?

[hunterjumper98]

We once had a boarder at a farm I used to board at that had her horse on Sho-Glo and Sho-Flex. I personally never noticed a difference in the horse when using the supplement. However, that isn’t to say that your mare may not benefit. Supplements can be hit or miss depending on each individual horse. When choosing a supplement for your horse, you have to pay attention to how much of each vitamin and mineral your horse is getting as well as consider their workload. Also, it wouldn’t make much sense to supplement a horse for something that it doesn’t need - it would just be a waste of money, The motto is: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

If you are looking for a good coat supplement, Omega Horseshine is wonderful. I have seen a huge improvement in the coats of horses who eat it. You just have to watch the calories it adds.

To answer your other question, yes, flax and oil can be added to their feed to improve coat quality, but it also adds calories. The last thing you want to do is add calories to an easy keeper’s diet - that can cause all kinds of issues down the line if they are too chunky. I know plenty of people who feed flax to their horses to improve their coat. It seems to work well. I have never personally tried it as SmartPaks are just so darn convenient haha!

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[candyappy]

I don’t normally feed supplements but my mare had some strange bumps on her when late summer came so I thought maybe she was missing something.

I fed Sho Glo for the past year and the horses had improvements in their coats.

Because I was having a hard time with my feed store keeping it available, I went back to feeding whole flax this past November ( i had done that a long time ago) which is great for coat condition and I can get 50 pounds for $20 making it more cost effective.

[Scribbler]

Impossible to answer without knowing what you now feed and what is in the various supplements.

If you feed the recommended amount of a fortified feed or a good ration balancer you should have your bases covered. If you don’t you should feed a vitamin mineral supplement.

I am frankly a little baffled as to why someone would want a supplement for coat quality when coat quality is the external marker of excellent health. Achieve optimum nutrition and cost and feet will be at their best for this horse.

Flax is the standard for adding oil and omega 3 to the diet. A cup of flax a day is good for both health and coat and is less expensive than the products.