TC Senior Cal. p/lbs?

[reithme2]

Trying to put weight on my ulcer prone OTTB who is currently being treated for hind gut ulcers with succeed. Current barn only offers SafeChoice Original and we’ve been supplementing with Beet Pulp, Alfafa pellets and oil but horse would much prefer grain. Would love to switch him over to a higher quality feed with more protein/fat and hopefully cut out extras (beet pulp, alfafa pellets, oil).

Considering switching to TC Senior based on what I’ve read in this forum but Vet recommended Purina Ultium based on past success and high calories per lbs. She is open to TC Senior based on what I told her but wants to know the Calories per lbs. since Ultium is so high (1900 cal/lbs).

Also would love to know if anyone has any experience with horse preferring one grain to another. This horse usually loves grain but since TC Senior is beet pulp based and textured (not pelleted?) I’m wondering if he’ll eat it as happily as Safe Choice Original.

Horse is on unlimited free choice grass hay and gets several flakes of alfalfa in the evening.

[JB]

While cal/lb is a good starting point, it’s not the entire story. That’s something to keep in mind. Ultium is appreciably higher in NSC than TC Sr, which is an important factor for an ulcer-prone horse.

TC Sr is in the 1500 cal/lb range, but only 11.7% NSC, compared to Ultium Competition at 16%, and the Gastric Care at 17% (no idea why they thought 17% NSC is suitable for “gastric care”).

TC Sr is technically a textured feed, but it does have some thin pellets in it. I’ve never used any of the SC line, but TC Sr has been very well received here for the few horses I’ve fed it to.

If it were me, I’d start with the TC Sr.

The other area of comparison the weight/qt. You’d feed more volume per pound of the TC Sr than the Ultium. Competition is 1.3lb/qt, TC Sr is 1.08lb/qt, and I don’t know the Gastric Care number but suspect it’s right in that 1.3lb/qt range. For a horse who has a relatively small volume limit on what he’ll eat in a meal, that might matter. Might not.

I’d still start with TC

[BlueDrifter]

From the TC website: TC Senior has 1546 Kcal/lb.

[reithme2]

Thanks for the feedback. @BlueDrifter I was on TC’s site and saw the breakdown/percentages but didn’t see the Kcal/lb listed. Thanks for answering anyways…

[eqsiu]

How much Safechoice is he getting? Have you considered just increasing the amount he gets? You have been adding feeds that are forages, so maybe adding more of the Safechoice will do the trick. Especially for convenience’s sake in a boarding situation.

[allegro18]

I have an OTTB that I needed to put a BUNCH of weight on when I first got him. Having read glowing things about TC Senior, I started there, and on paper, I LOVE it as a feed. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t convince my picky redhead of that fact, and I could never get him to eat enough of it to provide sufficient calories. I tried feeding dry, various levels of feeding wet, adding ‘goodies’, etc. Honestly, I ended up throwing out far too much feed, and as much as I liked it, I couldn’t justify tossing $$$ grain out. Switched to Ultium Competition and finally started making headway on the weight. Since it’s a more dense feed than TC Senior, there was less bulk to try to get him to eat, and he seemed to really like the taste. Re: NSC, I think TC Senior and Ultium come out closer than you think if you were to do the math (you feed fewer lbs of Ultium since it’s more dense, so even though it’s a higher % NSC, the actually amount is probably about the same). I did experiment for a bit with a couple Nutrena feeds (SafeChoice Perform and ProForce Fuel) - could definitely feel the difference in my horse with the NSC in these feeds - he wasn’t BAD, but he was extra tight.

Just my experience - your mileage may vary given your horse’s preferences.

[BlueDrifter]

@reithme2

Thanks for the feedback. @BlueDrifter I was on TC’s site and saw the breakdown/percentages but didn’t see the Kcal/lb listed. Thanks for answering anyways…

It seems like all the feed mfgrs, hide it somewhere. It was in the product brochure for TC. I never found Ultium’s in a logical place, but just a reference to it, lol…

[JB]

Most companies don’t have the kcal on their site, but will give it if asked. Enough people have called that in general, if you google the feed name + “calories” you can find the answer.

[vali]

My picky eater prefers the triple crown senior to ultium, and then I topdress with a mix of canola and flax oil.

[Palm_Beach]

@allegro18

Switched to Ultium Competition and finally started making headway on the weight. Since it’s a more dense feed than TC Senior, there was less bulk to try to get him to eat, and he seemed to really like the taste. Re: NSC, I think TC Senior and Ultium come out closer than you think if you were to do the math (you feed fewer lbs of Ultium since it’s more dense, so even though it’s a higher % NSC, the actually amount is probably about the same).

Good post. Some people have their heads so buried in the numbers they can’t see the forest for the trees. Since you feed fewer pounds of the higher NSC for the same amount of calories, the slight difference in NSC is irrelevant. OP, they are both good choices, and if your horse won’t eat enough TC Sr, don’t fret about it and try the Ultium.

[reithme2]

Thanks everyone. I’m planning to pick up just one bag of Triple Crown Sr. and see if he’ll happily eat it and fall back to Ultium if that’s not the case. My vet actually made the same point regarding NSC and amount of grain which is something to consider. Triple Crown Sr. says not to feed more than 10lb a day and thinking of starting off at 5 lb AM and PM if he’ll eat it. He currently gets closer to 3lb of grain AM + PM and several lbs or beet pulp and alfalfa pellets.

[JB]

@reithme2

Triple Crown Sr. says not to feed more than 10lb a day

It says don’t feed more than 5lb a meal, which is standard for most every feed. It is a complete feed, and can be fed as the sole source of calories for horses who can’t have hay for whatever reason.

He currently gets closer to 3lb of grain AM + PM and several lbs or beet pulp and alfalfa pellets.

beet pulp and alf pellets are a lower calorie:volume feedstuff, especially beet pulp (shreds, moreso than pellets). For horses who really need calories, I stay away from beet pulp as much as possible, just because the volume detracts from how many calories they can eat. So that’s good that you’re looking to move away from several pounds of those.