5 Smart Tips for Feeding Supplements

While we wish that supplementing horses was as easy as adding a “little of this” and a “little of that” to every feed bucket, there are several considerations to take into account when you’re feeding supplements.

When it comes to horses and feeding programs, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Every horse has unique needs, so developing a supplement program customized to the individual horse will help him look and feel his best. However, feeding every horse a customized supplement program can be a hassle if you’re using buckets. If you have a ten-horse barn and every horse gets two supplements, that’s twenty supplement buckets cluttering up the feed room!

For customized supplementing made easy, choose SmartPaks. With SmartPaks, you can give your horse the exact combination of supplements he needs in convenient daily dose paks. Plus, every new SmartPak comes with a free stackable storage drawer to keep the feed room neat and tidy.

Supplements work best when they’re fed every day. After all, horses’ joints are under stress every day, even if you’re not working hard. And horses are constantly, slowly growing new hoof wall, which needs proper nutrition to provide a solid foundation. From those areas to digestive health to calming and beyond, giving horses their supplements consistently is key.

But when there’s a barn full of horses who are getting supplements, it can be tricky to keep track of which horse is running out of supplements when. To help prevent any missed doses, keep your horse’s supplements on AutoShip. It’s a win-win for you and your horse — he’ll never miss a dose of his supplements and you won’t have to remember to reorder them!

Have you ever noticed that everyone has a different idea of what a “scoop” of a supplement is? While you may think it’s clear that your horse should be getting a level scoop of a supplement each day, others may think that a heaping scoop or a just-barely-full scoop is the right measurement. Luckily, you can take the guesswork out of serving sizes by using SmartPaks. With SmartPaks, your horse’s supplements come in pre-measured, daily dose paks that you simply peel and pour. This not only makes feeding faster, but also ensures that your horse gets the right supplements in the right amounts, every time.

Exposure to oxygen and moisture can adversely affect the quality and freshness of supplements. Every time you open a supplement bucket, the entire bucket of product is being exposed to air. To help minimize the product’s exposure to oxygen and moisture, it’s important to reseal supplement buckets carefully after each use – that includes resealing the inner plastic bag if the bucket has one. Better yet, consider SmartPaks! Because they have airtight seals, SmartPaks ensure that each daily dose is sealed against oxygen and moisture and that you’ll receive a fresh batch of product every four weeks.

No one likes a “borrower,” especially when it comes to their horses’ supplements. But when several horses are being fed the same supplement, it can be easy for their supplement buckets to get mixed up. Before you know it, your horse’s 56-day supply could be gone in 28 days. To help prevent mix-ups, be sure to label every supplement bucket clearly with your horse’s name. For completely foolproof feeding, consider using SmartPaks. Every daily dose pak is printed with your horse’s name so there are no mix-ups, making feeding time fast, accurate, and easy, no matter who’s feeding!