Platinum Performance Update

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.

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!

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!).

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?