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My boy (24) has these bald spots every time he changes coat. To help him with it we feed him a special mixture, not sure if you have it over there, it's called Gladiator Plus. Atleast in his case it seems to work. :)
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Thanks friends! <3
@ Tosk - I haven't heard of it. After he had a bath, he looked much better and I haven't noticed them since so I think it was just during the transitional period of summer to winter and/or he was just dirty and needed a bath, LOL. :)
I'm going to start him on some stabilized rice bran today (Max-E-Glow), so hopefully that will also aide in improving his overall condition. I'm a little reluctant to just add a bunch of supplements at once, taking them one at a time to see how much/if it helps.
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Update time!
Alright sooo.. Ro has been on the Nutrena Safechoice for approx. 1.5 months now and I'm seeing little to no change. I'm likely not giving him enough to bulk (1lb AM/1lb PM) but I'm also hesitant to just funnel grain down his throat for weight. I'm also suspecting ulcers in which case I should probably pull him off grain altogether until I get that sorted out. I just started him on the stabilized rice bran and I'd like to keep him on that for at least a month or so to see if I see any results.
Ideally, I'd like to up his hay (2 flakes AM/2 flakes PM) but that isn't really an option at our barn unless I provide my own hay. Their hay is so inconsistent, some flakes are teeny and some are huge, I get worried he's not getting enough. This would be worse-case scenario for me because it'd be an absolute pain in the ass to find and haul hay. IF it comes down to that, I'll do it - but I have something else in mind first.
After chatting with another barn person, she recommended Elk Grove Stable Mix which is a complete pellet w/ vitamins/minerals/etc. (see link>> http://www.elkgrovemilling.com/Our-Products#StableMixTM ). I've read good reviews on people using it in place of hay but in my case, I'd use it as a supplement to what he's getting. 50lb bags run about $13-$15/each (which is also about what a bale of hay would cost me). I figure I'll start him off at 2-3lbs/day and go from there (up to 5lbs). Beyond 5lbs/day may not be worthwhile financially.
If I do the math...
I'm currently spending $90/month for alfalfa fed 1 flake AM/1 flake PM.
Alfalfa bales run $13-$15/bale. I have no idea how many bales he'd need at 3-4 flakes/day but say I needed 10 for a month, that'd run me: $130-$150. Would likely not supplement.
Assuming Ro needed the 5lbs (max I'll do) of Stable Mix in addition to his hay, that is $13-$15 per 50lb bag... would need approx. 3 bags/month = $45 (+ $90 for barn hay) = $135
So... I have a bit to think about lol. I think I'm going to give the Stable Mix a whirl and see how it goes. Otherwise, I'll just drop everything and get my own hay so he can be fed however much I want.
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I know they're expensive, but smartpaks are AMAZING. My OTTB used to do smartgut for his ulcers and it helped him tons. He was a really hard keeper and I swear he always looked like he was neglected even though he ate his weight in treats. Ro is so darn pretty! He reminds me a lot of Dylan <3
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