“Constant Nutrition Formulation”= Variable Formulation
Just another way to spin it!
I use it in moderation to add weight to horses. My daughters mare gets hot on it so when I do use it, she only gets a handful.
I feed the Healthy Edge and the Omelene 400. HE to the draft mare and it has done absolute wonders for her. She was (or so prev owner claims) on reg strategy and eating like 9lbs a day while hanging out in the pasture. She was sun bleached, on the skinny side, and had horrible hooves, mane, and tail. Since being on the HE for going on 3 years now, she has stayed at a nice consistent weight (pasture changed from sand lot with weeds and nasty round bale to grass and flakes of hay during winter), has NOT gotten sun bleached again (weird in my opinion), and her hooves, mane, and tail are fantastic (no more dry and brittle).
I feed the Omelene 400 to the QH mare I take care of. Owner was feeding low end 10% sweet feed pellets. She was getting anywhere from 8 to 10 pounds a day! (split into 2 feedings) And still had a hard time keeping weight on. Mane and tail didn’t grow at all for the year that I feed her the sweet feed. And she NEVER finished her bucket. (always about .5 pounds left) Finally convinced owner to switch her over to Omelene 400 and she gets between 4-6 pounds a day (split between 2 feedings) and maintains a better weight, mane and tail are growing again, and she licks her bucket clean unless there is nasty stuff in it (like bute). Nothing else changed for this horse except the feed and she looks tons better. Now as long as I don’t get another heat wave this year, she should stay at a nice 4.5-5 BC all year long.
And for my third mare, while during spring, summer, fall, and early winter she gets nothing except a little bit of beet pulp and vit-min mix as she stays rather round on the grass. During middle and late winter when she has lost the grass belly she gets .5 pounds of HE with some beet pulp and vit-min mix so she doesn’t become a skeleton. Also given hay. Right now, I was say she is a 4 BC and when the grass comes will jump to a 6 or 7 BC. (yes I do watch for founder and limit time on the new grass, but I swear she looks at it and gains weight!)
I have feed local milled stuff from 2 different millers (not impressed), TC (liked it but too far to drive one way to get it), Nutrena (liked it but hard to get where I live now), which leaves me with just Pruina.
I have nothing against Purina, but last time I read a Strategy label, it contained mineral oil. I don’t like the idea of feeding my horses petroleum products on a daily basis.
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I, personally, stopped feeding Strategy because my horses seemed to have variable reactions to it. They looked great for a while, then merely okay, then better, etc. Finally, during a long period of ‘meh’, I swapped feed to something whose ingredient list sounded better, the horses bloomed, and I haven’t gone back.
[QUOTE=Frizzle;6123432]
So, if not having a fixed formula is so great, how come Purina’s higher-priced feeds are fixed formula?[/QUOTE]
As far as I know, I have never seen literature saying that they are fixed formulas. I assume you are speaking of products like Ultium and Wellsolve. The difference with those products is that, per the consumer requests, the company lists out the specific ingredient list whereas on a lot of the other products Purina uses collective term ingredients. But, using one vs the other still does not signify “fixed formula”. Even if you list out specific ingredients you can still test all the ingredients for nutrition and slightly alter the amounts if need be for nutritional consistency.
[QUOTE=Discobold;6123997]
Yes, Holly, thanks you posting. The internet is a font of good information and misinformation, and it can be hard to sift through it. I’m still learning and keeping an open mind :winkgrin:
How do we find out which formulas are “fixed” and which aren’t? Thanks in advance for a reference to the sources![/QUOTE]
All Purina products are made using Constant Nutrition Formulation (see my other response) as for other companies you would have to ask them…you can’t tell by the tag whether it is or isn’t because no where on the tag does it list the amount of ingredients in the bag.
[QUOTE=whbar158;6123438]
Honestly even though these are national brands, they are milled regionally and some regions have better mills than others. I know people who have had quality problems with Purina, but not TC, but then know other people where it is the other way around. I know that Purina has done a ton of research and do have some quality feeds, I think recently they ended up being a little behind the research curve with regards to having feeds that were lower in NSC and more forage based feeds.
I have heard good things about the Healthy Edge, but it is also one of their new feeds that is lower in NSC. I understand the constant nutrition, but there are times when knowing the ingredients is important. Some of Purina’s feeds are good, but they have some lesser feeds as well, just like most of the major brands. There are some Purina feeds I would feed, but there are a lot I wouldn’t as well, but that is true about a lot of the brands.[/QUOTE]
The nice thing about Purina is we have our own manufacturing plants whereas some of the bigger national brands out there don’t even manufacture their own feeds. Also if you need to know specific ingredients you can usually get that information if you get in touch with your local rep via the customer service line.
[QUOTE=whbar158;6124318]
Formulas that are fixed will often be able to be found on their website, I clicked around on the Purina website and found that Ultium and Wellsolve lines have ingredients posted (have to click on the printable brochure though) while most of the others didn’t (I did not click on every single one). Triple Crown has all of their feed ingredients listed on each product page. Also often on the actual bags of feed fixed formulas are sometimes printed right on the bag and not on the little tag at the bottom.[/QUOTE]
Listing out all the ingredients does not signify whether or not a formula is fixed. Fixed means the same amount of each ingredient every time, aka set or fixed formulation. Likewise just because some products use collective term ingredients doesn’t automatically mean they are not fixed. The important thing is to learn about the company and how manufacture their feeds and why.
[QUOTE=Tamara in TN;6124426]
yeah some…15 years ? ago land o lakes bought the Purina mills…and my cats love ultium growth…they should at $1000/ton:lol:
Tamara[/QUOTE]
I believe it was more like 30 years ago, a long time before land o lakes was involved anyway. LOL bought Purina about 12 years ago.
[QUOTE=Frizzle;6123432]
So, if not having a fixed formula is so great, how come Purina’s higher-priced feeds are fixed formula?[/QUOTE]
Please see my other responses in regards to this, but basically a set ingredient list does not have to mean fixed formula AND most of the products that don’t list out the ingredients specifically also have a set ingredient list.
[QUOTE=whbar158;6125273]
Both Strategys do not suggest 9 pounds for maintenance or active pleasure horses, only those amounts for heavy work/breeding animals. The Performance Strategy suggests about 5 pounds for a 1000 lbs active pleasure horse, and the Healthy edge doesn’t suggest more than 5.25 pounds for maintenance for a 1000 pound horse. It is true you probably could feed less Ultium because it has a higher calorie per pound than Strategy, but it still suggests ~6 pounds to get all vits/mins.[/QUOTE]
This person was trying to show feeding rates for a “like” animal to show the difference in rates for Strategy, Strategy Healthy Edge and Ultium. They did not choose a maintenance horse because Ultium isn’t even recommended for maintenance horses. Ultium is 1900 cal/lb, Strategy is 1500 cal/lb and Strategy Healthy Edge is 1300 cal/lb so you definitely have a difference in feeding rates.
[QUOTE=Frizzle;6125664]
I’m talking more expensive per bag, which would be the Ultium, etc.[/QUOTE]
Yes Ultium is more expensive/bag then some products but it is a unique product in both it’s form and nutritional content. Basically it has more, so it costs more but definitely you feed less of it so that make up for the cost.
I will make a comparison. We have painted lots of rooms in our house. Whenever we buy the paint that is cheaper per gallon we always have to use more to coat the wall and we usually have to use primer. When we use the paint that costs more per gallon we rarely use primary and sometimes can even get away with one coat. So, in the end the cheaper one often times costs more.
You can’t use the same analogy for Wellsolve because it is a low calorie product, but it costs a lot to make that product and it is worth the money if you have a horse that has a health condition that requires it. There are some things you can’t put a price on. Although, I have heard of people who have had horses that did so well on Wellsolve that they saved money on vet bills and even some medications that were no longer necessary so even there you could save some in the long run.
Is there an ingredient list for Strategy HE? My horse has been on Strategy for about four years now and is doing quite well on it, so I have no inclination to change. But, now I’m curious what is in strategy. I do understand the constant nutritional values and this seems like a better idea to me than the fixed formula, but I’d like to know what the “options” are for getting to these nutrient values.
I dont like it because carbs and sugar are so high and i prefer low starch low sugar feeds and the product quality is not very consistent.
Hmmmmm, haven’t really noticed differences in the color of Strategy as related here. Had my mare on alfalfa/rye hay, she was ribby, added in rice bran, she got a little better, then added Strategy, a little better, nixed the alfalfa and went all rye hay, and then added in Ultium and Assure Guard and got the perfect mix.
It all depends on what’s best for your horse. There’s a horse at the barn who gets 6 quarts of Omolene 400 a day. That’s a lot of Omolene, but he’s a big horse and he does just fine on it. Some horses at the barn get LMF feeds, some get Triple Crown, some get Elk Grove Milling feeds. They’re all different horses doing different jobs with different requirements, so they all eat different feeds.
My do fine on Healthy Edge
I’ve fed my two (16-yr-old TBX and 13-yr-old Welsh/Arab pony gelding) Healthy Edge for three or four years now and they both do very well on it. Neither gets much grain–the TBX gets a two-cup scoop twice a day and the pony gets half that–and they keep their weight. Hay is high quality grass. Sorry to hear others have had issues with Strategy, but my experience has been all positive.
I did, however, move our cat from Purina One to a food called “Before Grain” because she would get sick regularly on the Purina One and hasn’t had that issue with the Before Grain.
[QUOTE=Kealit;6147919]
Is there an ingredient list for Strategy HE? My horse has been on Strategy for about four years now and is doing quite well on it, so I have no inclination to change. But, now I’m curious what is in strategy. I do understand the constant nutritional values and this seems like a better idea to me than the fixed formula, but I’d like to know what the “options” are for getting to these nutrient values.[/QUOTE]
In some areas of the country the tags for Strategy list out specific ingredients and in some areas of the country some plants use collective term ingredients depending on what the laws are in your state. If you want/need more specific information on ingredients in Strategy you can call 800-227-8941 and they may be able to send you a ingredient specific label or help you get in touch with your local rep/plant and they may be able to assist you as well.
I am new to this forum but have found these threads EXTREMELY helpful and thank you!! I have had very good luck with Omolene 100 for my old (21yo) very light use horse with liver issues. He has maintained weight, coat looks great and he has not colicked (knocking on wood) since starting on the Omolene. My other senior is on Senior Equine, not wild about it but he is holding his weight and also looks great. I use it out of convenience but am very open to other suggestions as to what others use but so far, no complaints about those products.
On Strategy, both the 21yo (he was a bit younger) and another of my horses (13) were maniacs, very hot and “jittery”. I would not use it again.
I am liking Blue Seal, I use Hunter for one of my horses and will probably switch to Strider. Had not heard of them in Montana (where I usually live, am in vermont for the moment) but so far, am pleased with the result. This is a very informative thread.
I have used Strategy a lot. I had one horse, however, that needed more. I bought a skinny, ribby OTTB about a year ago. I talked to a Purina rep and she recommended I try Ultium. This horse thrived on the feed. Yes, it was a little more expensive, but he didn’t eat as much as he did when he was getting cheap food (at previous farm). Plus he was an extremely PICKY eater. I think he looked pretty good after a short period on Ultium. He was tall and leggy, so probably will never be chunky. 
Here is a pic of him after about 2 months on Ultium.
Though still lean, he looks MUCH better. Wish I had some before pictures.
I personally found the Purina rep very nice and very helpful.
