I have done searches on here - and have found lots of positive posts about the Tribute line of products… however looking to see if the people saying great things about it a year or so ago still feel the same way today 
As well - trying to figure out which is better: Tribute Essential K versus Purina’s ration balancer (the comparable one in Canada is known as Optimal)
And Tribute Kalm Ultra versus Purina Ultium (or TriMax as we know it in Canada)
Thanks!
Personally, I don’t think they are comparable. I won’t go back to Purina.
My hard keeping, ulcer prone Thoroughbred put weight on and kept his head on Kalm Ultra. He is now on a “top of the line” Buckeye feed, and does not look half as good (weight/coat/muscle). But he is boarded-and I am a horrible absentee boarder.
Everyone at home is on 1 lbs of Essential K and free choice quality hay. The only one that gets anything extra is my 30+ year old pony. One of the crew on 1 lbs of Essential K is a formally hard keeping Thoroughbred. I give most of the credit to him having his head stuck in a hay bale 24/7-but he does not have a hay gut.
They do get flax-but I cannot imagine that they would gleam on a cup of flax if they were not getting all of their nutrition.
PS-My Thoroughbreds raced (one very successfully), I got them directly off the track. Yet I don’t pigeon hole him as an OTTB. I hate that.
Many horses at a barn I board (mine included) at have switched to Tribute in the last 2 months and the results are amazing! We are on combinations of Essential K and Ultra Kalm. The one main benefit across the board has been topline development. I ran a feed analysis on FeedXL and my horses diet is balanced and complete on Essential K, Ultra Kalm and Bermuda hay.
Purina is not a feed I would ever give to my horse.
I don’t think you can compare Purina and Tribute. We had a nutritionist come to the barn to talk about feeds and she compared Tribute to the HiPro Step feeds. I think the Kalm Ultra is similar to step 6 and the other to step 8…? Not quite sure though, I can’t remember. At first I was feeling pretty onboard to switching to Tribute but in the end I couldn’t justify the cost for my mostly pleasure horse. And in the end it’s good quality forage that is most important. So she just gets her few cups of step 6 and I have no issues.
JLR1 I’m glad you mentioned that FeedXL though, I had never heard of it so I got onto their website and wow, looks like a great program! Good to keep in mind 
my OTTB was on Purina Ultium for many years and then switched (when barn switched to Tribute) to Kalm Ultra. The difference is night and day. He has kept weight better the last three years during show season and in winter. All the horses in our barn have really blossomed on the Tribute feed (most are on Kalm N EZ) and they used to be on SafeChoice. I would not switch back to Nutrena or Purina!
Becky
My senior gelding was up to eating a lot of Purina Senior to keep weight before our barn switched to Tribute Kalm n EZ a few years back. He needed half as much and looked awesome all the way until the day he passed at 26. Some of the horses were refusing to eat the Purina and others choked. Every bag the feed looked different - apparently they (Purina) can use whatever rather than sticking to a fixed formula.
I feed Tribute, essential k GC for easy keepers and Kalm Ultra for everyone else. Great results, particularly with the hard keeper who would not eat as much of the Ultium.
Tribute is a fixed formula feed and is amazing! I’ve fed kalm ultra, essential k, and kalm and ez and have loved them all!
Well I have a horse that needs to get up to 6 to 9 lbs (ideally) of the Purina Ultium / Trimax a day - and so far she is barely able to polish off 3 to 4 lbs a day. On what I fed previously she was able to eat 10 lbs a day of concentrates - so methinks she just isn’t a fan of this feed really. And you all are really making me consider going to Tribute - it sure sounds promising anyway Thank you for the feed back so far everyone!!
I switched to Tribute a while back and still love it! Most bang for the buck that I’ve found for sure and the shine is wonderful.
I also used to feed Purina and will never go back. I feed Tribute Kalm N EZ, Essential K, Kalm Ultra, and Growth Pelleted and couldn’t be happier. My horses look fantastic and I don’t have to supplement with anything else. The two brands just don’t compare!
You really can’t compare unless you have a feed tag from the Purina product (and even then you might not be able to compare because Purina often lists ingredients in AAFCO categories rather than actual ingredients).
Purina had something like 91 mills to my knowledge (not all of them make horse feed), and they do not use fixed formulas. Their formulas vary regionally. They use low-cost formulations so for example, they may use things like citrus pulp as forage products in the southeast, whereas the ingredients in the same product made out west would have totally different ingredients, even though the guaranteed analysis for protein, fat and fiber are the same. Some people may love and swear by Purina Senior while others hate it…they are both feeding purina senior but what is in the bag is not the same.
Tribute feeds are made in one new, clean and ionophore free facility in Ohio. Their quality control is the best I’ve seen. Their products typically have higher guaranteed levels of amino acids (lysine, methionine, threonine) than competitors. They also have higher guaranteed levels of pre and probiotics, and I’ve seen better results with their EquifermXL than with other brands of probiotics. They use chelated minerals for better absorption, and they use quality ingredients.
There are other companies out there that have great products too. I have fed many of them over the years. I’m married to a feed dealer so I’m lucky in that I’ve been able to feed my horses the best feeds over the years. I’ve fed everything from Nutrena, Buckeye, Triple Crown and even grain mixes milled by my husband. Triple Crown is one of the few in my opinion that compares to Tribute. However, Triple Crown products cost a lot more money, and they aren’t made in one single ionophore free facility.
I’ve fed Tribute for at least 5 years now. My horses look and feel great and I think it’s a great company. Those are the reasons I chose and recommend Tribute.
Forget them both - you are in Ontario - look at Brooks Feeds. Made right here in Ontario. Purina does not use the same ingredient for every batch. Sometimes they use corn, or soy, or wheat, or barley…to get the protein, fibre, etc. Basically, your horse is never getting the same bag of feed. This is not good for your horses digestive system.
I used to feed a tonne of Purina Fat n fibre and Roughage with Beet Pulp to my OTTB - three times daily. About 8 lbs. I switched to Brooks Omega and Masterfeed Roughage and was able to cut the ration in HALF and my horse gained 200 lbs in 2 months. Nothing else changed. The quality of feed speaks for itself.
After going to seminars by Purina, Tribute, Brooks, and getting my Equine Nutrition certificate, I would never feed Purina again.
No question, Tribute. I don’t feed Tribute myself but have looked into it and think it is an excellent feed. I have considered using it but the closest dealer is about twice as far as my Triple Crown dealer, and that is already a good drive, so it is not very convenient for me. It is significantly cheaper, though, so I might try it at some point.
I boarded at a place that used Purina once and my horses looked terrible on it, the Senior and the Ultium products. I had to use additional supplements and they still didn’t look as good as they did on TC or Southern States feeds, which I have used before and been very happy with. I won’t use it again.
My barn uses purina. I hate it my horse gets a lot more grain than he did on triple crown and has lost condition. He’s never been on tribute so I’m not sure there but purina isn’t a good feed in my opinion.
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