When it comes to your horse’s overall health and performance, maintaining its digestive health should be a top priority. That is why BioZyme® Inc., has developed Vitalize® products to help improve digestive health and gut integrity, keeping your horses healthy, looking their best and performing to their highest ability.
We recently visited with Lynsey Whitacre, Equine Business Development and Field Support, to get the facts on what Vitalize is and how it will work best to give your horse a good gut feeling. Here’s what Dr. Whitacre has to say:
- Is Vitalize a feed or a supplement?
- A supplement! Although several Vitalize products, such as High Performance, Protein Pellets, and the Free Choice Mineral, are fully fortified to help meet your horse’s vitamin and mineral needs, Vitalize is not a complete feed.
- What are the advantages of Vitalize over other digestive or gut health supplements?
- Vitalize is formulated with the best quality ingredients, including Amaferm®, an all-natural proprietary prebiotic RESEARCH-PROVEN to increase intake, digestion, and absorption of nutrients. It is also unique because it works in the both the foregut and the hindgut to improve overall gut health.
- What is a prebiotic and how is it different from a probiotic?
- A prebiotic promotes the health and growth of the good microbes in the gut. It is different from a probiotic because it is non-living and stimulates the microbes already in the gut to be more efficient whereas a probiotic adds more microbes by supplying living organisms to the animal.
- My horse is healthy, not at risk for ulcers, and does not require any additional nutrients such as protein, vitamins, or minerals. Which Vitalize product would be best for my horse?
- Vitalize Digest More PLUS is a perfect option for horses not requiring additional nutrients but needing gut health and digestion/absorption benefits.
- Can Vitalize High Performance only be fed with oats?
- No discrimination here! Although High Performance is fully fortified with vitamins and minerals, making it a great supplement for horses fed oats or other non-fortified feed, it can be fed with any ration. Many of our customers feed High Performance with Buckeye, Nutrena, or Purina feed.
- When and how should I use Vitalize Equine Recovery Gel?
- The Recovery Gel is made to help horses handle stress. Horses under stress (shipping, showing, being treated with antibiotics, etc.) should be given one tube of Recovery Gel approximately twice per day while under stress. When under extreme stress, causing diarrhea or other digestive upset, one tube of Gel can be given every 6 hours.
- How do I know if my horse needs the additional protein found in the Vitalize Protein Pellets?
- Most horses require about 1.4 pounds of protein per day. Your horse will get this protein from pasture, hay, and grain. Bagged grain contains a guaranteed analysis, which will list the percent of protein in the feed. It is a bit more challenging to determine the protein content of your hay, we recommend having your hay tested and can assist you with this.
- Can I top dress the Vitalize Free Choice Mineral?
- Of course! Although the product is meant to be fed free-choice, you can top dress this mineral at the rate of 4 ounces per day. Despite being a powder, it is highly palatable.
- Will any of the Vitalize products help prevent ulcers?
- Yes, because all of the Vitalize products contain Amaferm, which helps improve gut health, they will help prevent ulcers. In fact, not only will Amaferm help prevent gastric ulcers, its activity in the hindgut will also help prevent colonic ulcers.
- Will Vitalize help with diarrhea?
- In our research, we have determined that Amaferm can improve the gut’s ability to absorb water. Being able to absorb more water means less diarrhea.
- I am currently feeding a hoof supplement. Do I need to continue feeding it with Vitalize?
- Probably not! All the Vitalize daily products contain biotin. Plus, a health horse starts from the inside out, meaning you will see a big difference in your horse’s coat, hooves, mane, and tail on Vitalize!
- Where can I buy Vitalize products?
- You can find your nearest Vitalize dealer by visiting https://vitalizeeq.com/find-a-dealer/. If there is no dealer nearby, many of our Vitalize products are available in our online store. Visit www.vitalizeeq.com to shop online.
Now that you know are more familiar with the Vitalize line of equine supplements, you will be able keep you horse feeling good on the inside, looking good on the outside and performing its best each time out.
