Not all supplements are born equal – and not surprisingly, some are more effective than others. With so many supplements to choose from, it can be quite challenging to know what is best for your horse, and best for your wallet. If you want to assess a product before you buy, it’s a good idea to try and establish how much active ingredients are supplied per daily serving. Equine nutritionist Clare MacLeod helps us understand what to look for… First and foremost, before you consider therapeutic supplements, you need to make sure the diet is balanced. Essential nutrients are called that because without them, harmful deficiencies will result. If you are feeding less than the full recommended amount of any compound feed, you need to add vitamin and minerals. Balancers or vitamin and mineral supplements – such as ReadySupp Essential Vitamins and Minerals – are essential to ensure the diet is balanced. Active ingredients need to be present in therapeutic levels if the supplement is to work. There is no point in a joint product containing the same dose of an active ingredient as you’d find in a human joint supplement – it just won’t work. There is no point in feeding very small amounts of essential micronutrients e.g. 10 mg of zinc or suchlike, because it will make no significant difference to the horse’s daily intake. Check that your chosen supplement contains levels of active ingredients that will work for a horse, not a hamster (or a human).
