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Not-So-Speedy Dressage

From Endurance to Dressage

Platinum Performance Update

8/22/2016

 
After a lot of thought and number crunching, I jumped on the Platinum Performance bandwagon this summer. You can follow the start of the journey by reading through these posts.
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At the beginning of June, Izzy was eating 30 pounds of alfafa/oat cubes (included in my board bill) with free choice timothy hay ($27 a bale) along with two pounds of beet pulp and an equal amount of rice bran (around $18.00 a bag each). That's almost 40 pounds of feed a day. While he looked good, it was costing me an arm and a leg. He was also getting Quiessence in a Smartpak at around $25 a month.

When I made the switch to Platinum at the end of June, Heather, my Platinum advisor, assured me that Izzy's nutritional needs would change. She was right. As I transitioned him to the Platinum, I slowly cut back on the beet pulp and eliminated the rice bran. I then gradually reduced the amount of free choice hay. His weight remained the same!
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Bottom of the bucket
It was clear that his body was metabolizing his feed in a much more efficient manner. In addition to that, his energy level also got more focused. He's still energetic, but it's a quieter energy. He literally seems happier, calmer, and more content in his own skin.

I think I gave Platinum a solid test these past seven weeks. Izzy went to three schooling shows (all almost three hours away), one of which was an overnighter that included a lesson on the first day. He also did an away from home lesson that included five hours of round-trip driving. On top of all of that, I changed barns. Through it all, his weight remained fairly constant, and he dealt with the activity as well as any veteran.

Izzy now gets two medium flakes of alfalfa each morning along with some grass hay. In the evenings, he gets several flakes of just grass hay. I haven't weighed it, but it's less than 30 pounds a day. He's also getting about a pound of beet pulp with his daily scoops of Platinum. He never finishes his hay. On some days, my barn owner reduces his evening ration because he has left so much from the morning (he likes it, it's just too much!).
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Izzy hasn't been on Quiessence since early May. The money that I spent on that supplement is now going toward Platinum as is what I used to spend on beet pulp and rice bran. Platinum is actually costing me less per month than all of that feed did. In fact, eliminating the Quiessence and cutting back on all that feed is almost covering the cost of putting both horses on the Platinum!

A 17.5 pound of Platinum Performance costs $101 dollars plus an additional $7.58 in California state taxes. It has 60 servings, the perfect amount for two horses to consume in a month. Since I elected to do auto-ship, my shipping charge is only $5.00. The grand total for my first paid bucket of Platinum Performance was $113.58, or $56.79 per horse for one month.

I think that I am getting more for my money than I was. I haven't yet seen any changes in Speedy, but I didn't really expect to either. Just knowing that I am better meeting his vitamin and mineral requirements makes the cost worth it.

Has anyone else considered Platinum this summer? I know one of my friends has both of her boys on it (Baltimore!) - anyone else?
Mel link
8/22/2016 06:31:35 am

I had Farley and minx on it a couple years ago and kept them on it for a solid year when they were both my active endurance horses. I didn't see a change and so I discontinued it. I'm reluctant to try again just from the standpoint it has to be fed every day, ideally twice, but at least once a day (unless the recommendations have changed). I can't get out to the barn daily any more and my barn isn't the type of barn that can easily do supplements. The last year or two I tried equipride in their equulix formulation and thought it did well. I have been considering putting them back on that. On nearly free choice hay I know how many extra bales I'm feeding so it would be pretty easy to see if that changes.

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:19:03 pm

I have to be out there to feed the Platinum myself, but with no kids, it's just my daily routine. Since I was buying the supplemental hay (to allow free choice), I know what it was costing, and it was a LOT! :0)

Leah link
8/22/2016 06:54:06 am

I've heard so many good things (from several sources) I'm tempted to try it!

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:20:53 pm

So far so good, but honestly, I've had horses for more than twenty years as an adult (as a kid too), and mine did just fine without it. :0)

Sandy Baur
8/22/2016 08:23:58 am

I absolutely love Platinum. All 3 of my horses are on it. Aspen (nursing mare) looks fantastic. She has not lost any weight typical of a mare nursing a large foal. I love it and will be a loyal customers for life!

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:21:56 pm

I figure it can't do any harm, and in all likelihood it will make them healthier. :0)

Appydoesdressage
8/22/2016 08:29:40 am

I have heard about them and tried a couple of sample packs a few years ago when I went to Rolex. And then the reviews from you and jenj make me tempted but I am not sure I can justify the cost. Glad they are working for you!

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:23:50 pm

Like I told Leah above, my horses have been just fine without it. If it's a financial struggle, I don't think it's worth it. I know Izzy is doing better on it, but with Speedy, I don't see a difference.

jenj
8/22/2016 08:52:00 am

Yup, all of my guys are on it. For Paddy it doesn't seem to have done anything, but he's always had a great coat and great feet, and no problem with weight. However for Taran, it's definitely helped him beef up without adding hard feed. And it made Brego SUUUUPER shiny... like he's normally shiny, but this is just off the charts. If you're going for a vitamin/mineral supplement, I think it's pretty hard to beat!

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:27:02 pm

Speedy and Paddy are just awesome dudes - what can they say? The bummer is that Izzy had the most beautiful coat, dark chocolate brown with dazzling dapples and oh so shiny. When I moved him to the ranch, he lost his indoor shelter so now spends most of the day in the direct sun. He has shade, but he likes to hang out where he can see everyone else. The result is that his coat is now a burnt yellow ... I hope the Platinum can fix it for next year. :0)

LoveLaughRide link
8/22/2016 09:20:18 am

Sounds like its working for you. I just can't get past $27 for a bale of timothy hay... I can get straight timothy bales (about 60lbs) for $8-$9.

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:28:50 pm

Hay prices are shocking here in California. Living in the land of cheap and easy farming, you'd think our hay would be cheap too - NOPE!

Olivia link
8/22/2016 02:30:35 pm

I'd like to try it, but the cost has just been too prohibitive. It's interesting to me that it's saving you so much. Outside of Eugene mine are all easy keepers so I don't know that it'd save me much. If I could get a free trial, I'd be totally on board with that. But it's a lot of money if it doesn't work.

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:29:44 pm

Call them and ask!!!! They gave me a 60 day bucket for free. :0)

Teresa link
8/22/2016 04:34:31 pm

That is some good results. My mind boggled at the cost of your timothy- here I pay $2.50 a bale. But we can't get alfalfa other than in cubes or pellets. I feed that during the winter.

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/22/2016 06:31:41 pm

Holy crap. Seriously?!?!?! I can't get ANYTHING for $2.50. Alfalfa is the hay of choice here. We have TONS of dairy cattle so there is plenty of that. It's around $8 - 15 a bale (I think - depending on quantity).

Megan link
8/22/2016 07:52:05 pm

I've been thinking about trying Platinum but heard that it made horses feel a bit too good and could have an anti-calming effect. I've got my guy on SmartCalm Ultra and he definitely needs something to take the edge off. But you being able to take Izzy off the Quiessence gives me hope! I'm paying a lot in extra hay/grain (though I don't think he's on as much as Izzy was) and it'd be nice to reduce that. Maybe I'll see if I can get a sample...

Bakersfield Dressage link
8/23/2016 05:36:19 am

You can go back to read one of my earlier posts on the "feels too good" thing. Heather, my Platinum Advisor explained that Platinum doesn't make them hot. Instead, it makes them feel so much better that they come across as more energetic. She said that it only lasts a little while though until they're used to that I feel so good" feeling.

To help with that issue, she had me introduce the Platinum slowly over three weeks. At the same time I reduced his rice bran so that it was eliminated once he was at a full serving of Platinum (2 scoops a day). I also cut his beet pulp down to about a quarter of what he'd been getting. He's now back up to about a pound a day (down from 2 pounds).

I never saw a spike in energy. In fact, he got a little calmer. I never felt as though the Quiessence had any effect, but I was worried to take him off of it in case it was doing something. He was on it a full year. Knowing I was moving to Platinum (or some other supplement), I quit the Quiessence in May so that I could see what happened. Nothing changed. I had used Smartcalm with my last horse (an OTTB named Sydney) and didn't see any change with that either.

So far, the Platinum has done more to focus and soothe Izzy's energy than anything else. And really, it's hard to say it was JUST that. we do work hard every day so it could also just be a training thing. Ultimately, he does seem happier on it than off, and I can afford it without worrying about the price tag so it's worth it to me.

Micaylah link
8/25/2016 10:20:56 am

God I wish I could afford it but I ideally want to get my maintenance to below $50 a horse and monthly Adequan takes up most of it


Comments are closed.

    About the Writer and Rider

    ​I am a lifelong rider. 
    I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010.
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    About Speedy G

    ​Speedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
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    About Izzy

    Izzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
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