Spring/Summer Stall Board Feeding Plan
After almost two years, Violet is finally moving (back) to SmartPaks!
I have been trying to simplify Violet's diet since she moved to my new barn last summer. However, I also want to make sure she receives all the support she needs while keeping it simple for the barn staff. (My husband is also not thrilled with my turning the garage into a grain room.) So, coming out of winter, I had planned to make some changes.
On a whim, I decided to retest Violet's Vitamin E and Selenium levels. I tested her back in the spring of 2021, and while I did not receive her official lab report, I was informed her levels were within normal limits. Since she had moved barns and I was supplementing her Vitamin E over the winter, I wanted to check and see if I should continue supplementing her next winter.
In short: no. Violet's results came back as "above adequate" for both Vitamin E and Selenium. Being over-supplemented on Vitamin E is not a concern as it's not toxic, but this is good information to have for next winter because I probably do not need to supplement her again. (And bioavailable Vitamin E is not cheap!)
However, the "above adequate" Selenium levels are a little more concerning. According to KER, "toxic levels [for Selenium] start at 2 mg/kg of diet for the horse" (Selenium for Horses: How Important Is It?). I have included the full report below.
It is especially interesting because I do not feed any supplements that contain Selenium; I intentionally fed a Vitamin E supplement with no Selenium, though there are many E + Se supplements on the market. While the lab and my vet indicated she is not in any immediate danger of toxicity, it is something I am considering as I move forward with her feed changes for this year.
I also submitted a fecal sample to Horseman's Lab to get her fecal egg count (FEC) results coming out of winter.
She is positive for strongyles with a result of 50 eggs/gm. Her test results are usually negative, so this is a change for her but still within the "low shedder" category. I dewormed her as I normally would in the Spring with Quest Plus, and I'll retest her over the summer. I wrote a long post on deworming last year, so I am not going to dive too deeply back into that here. I may write a follow-up later this year if her re-testing results in July are interesting.
Grain
After our last spring vet exam, Violet is a little overweight. (The vet rated her BCS 5.5/9.) This isn't completely surprising because during spring, the grass is growing but the horses are still often coming in overnight because of the temperature drops, so they are getting quite a bit of hay as well. The weather has been particularly wet this year, so she isn't getting as much exercise as usual, either.
Triple Crown 30% Ration Balancer has 2mg of selenium per pound. Given her recent testing results, I considered switching her to a no-selenium vitamin/mineral pellet. The folks at Thorne Bottom Farm were nice enough to send us a sample of K.I.S.Trace Pellets (No Selenium) for a taste test. Violet ate the pellets from my hand without issue, so I think we are in the clear on palatability if I wanted to switch.
After consulting with my vet, since her levels are not dangerously high, I am going to keep her on Triple Crown 30% through the end of this summer and retest her levels again in the fall. I suspect the increased hay intake over the winter was the culprit for her higher-than-average selenium levels because our soil is relatively selenium poor. Alternatively, if she fails to maintain a leaner BCS this year, then I may switch to the K.I.S.Trace Pellets anyway.
Supplements
It finally happened -- I am switching (back) to SmartPaks! I have considered going the SmartPak route again for a long time, but SmartPak did not carry all the supplements I was feeding, and I didn't like the available alternatives. Finally, I have found a combination of her current supplements and acceptable alternatives. The bimonthly individual supplement mixing has been harder to maintain recently too, so this will be a needed break for me.
I have also decided to switch all of her supplements to AM-only feeding. It was nice to be able to feed her supplements twice daily, but it is more effort for the barn staff and least cost-effective with SmartPaks. I am going to try this for a couple of months and see how it works for her.
SmartLytes Pellets
I described Violet's potential anhidrosis last summer, and I am making a concerted effort to support her and her sweating this year. One of those changes is the addition of electrolytes. SmartLyte pellets are SmartPak's version of a pelleted electrolyte. I really like this option for Violet because these electrolytes are pelleted (her favorite), smell amazing, and contain no added sugars.
I bought a huge bag of these when I was mixing my own supplements, so I also plan to give her an additional dose before riding on extra hot days this summer.
SmartSalt Pellets
I have officially given up trying to get her to eat coarse salt and switched to SmartSalt pellets. She had previously been on Redmond Rock Salt; however, she was leaving more and more in the bottom of the feed bucket.
You may be wondering why I am feeding Violet both electrolytes and salt. In the past, when I have doubled Violet's salt, she refuses to eat two full helpings. However, if I feed salt in combination with the electrolytes, she is much more willing to eat all of it.
Uckele CocoHoof Pellets
I have faithfully fed a blend of Uckele Poly Copper and Uckele Poly Zinc for a long time to support Violet's hooves and various skin conditions. Unfortunately, SmartPak does not carry either of those in pelleted form, so I had to make some changes. I am a big fan of Uckele, so when I dug into Uckele CocoHoof, I was very interested in what I found.
There is quite a bit less Copper/Zinc in Uckele CocoHoof than in the individual supplements. However, it does include similar amounts of Omegas and twice as much Biotin. I have been having good luck treating Violet's cannon crud with Equiderma lotion this year, so I feel comfortable dropping down her Cu/Zn if that means I can combine three supplements into one. And it's cheaper.
Uckele G.U.T. Pellets
Violet was on Uckele G.U.T. for a long time before I switched to MadBarn Visceral+. While I have no complaints about Visceral+ (except maybe its price of $90/month!), SmartPak does not carry it. When I was first considering switching Violet to SmartPaks, they did not carry Uckele G.U.T. in pellets, and that was a big factor in my decision not to use SmartPaks at that time. I was so happy to see that the pelleted version finally made it!
One AC
Last year, I tried Platinum Performance Refresh with Violet. Admittedly, I probably started too late in the season for a true test of its efficacy. One AC has many positive reviews, and at a fraction of the price, I thought I would try it this year. I started Violet on One AC in April, so this summer should provide a good test of how it works for her. Additionally, SmartPak carries One AC, but not any Platinum products.
LubriSyn HA
I stopped feeding Violet LubriSyn last year when we moved because LubriSyn cannot tolerate cold temperatures. Since our grain room is not temperature-controlled, I didn't want to risk feeding her something that lost its potency.
This year, I think I am going to feed her LubriSyn during the warm months and take her off of it when the overnight temperatures dip below freezing. I do feel like she responds well to this supplement, so 9-10 months out of the year is better than 0!
Feeding Plan
All together, her final diet includes the following:
Fed AM and PM:
0.5 pounds Triple Crown 30% Balancer
Fed AM only:
SmartPaks:
60g SmartLytes Pellets
50g SmartSalt Pellets
30g Uckele CocoHoof Pellets
20g Uckele G.U.T. Pellets
4.7g One AC
15 mL LubriSyn HA
At current prices, this works out to approximately $154+ / month.
I absolutely love learning about horse nutrition, and I spend a lot of time researching this topic. However, I am not a veterinarian or a nutritionist, so the information here should not be taken as veterinary or nutritional advice for your horse.