Opinions on Top Spec Comprehensive Feed Balancer

[Bay_Beasty]

Hi,

I was thinking of changing my horse off his hard feed and onto this, as he has got a bit full of it recently which is fine, but the annoying spooking at things I know he is not scared of is really starting to bother me. Lol.

Any hoo he is on at the mo: -

Alpha A oil
Spiller Slow release cubes
A little bit of unmollased Sugar beet shred
Protexin once a day

Top spec have told me that I could also feed him balancer plus the cool condition cubes, but I actually don't think he needs this energy wise at the mo (perhaps in winter). So was wandering thoughts and whether it would be ok fed with just Alpha A oil and beet (I would up his beet to 1/2 scp on each feed or more if needed). He is out on grass and when he comes in has hay (ad lib if he eats it though). Would have to stop feeding him protexin which is a shame, but I think other wise I am going to have to cut down his hard feed and then he is not getting the right balance of feed at all.

Whoops, sorry for waffling.

 

[Nari]

Absolutely fantastic stuff!!!!!!

I use AntiLam in the summer & this in the winter simply because he does a little too well on grass plus Comp balancer unless I'm working the socks off him. I've been using it for a bit over a year now & don't think I'll ever change.

Temperament wise it's been a huge breakthrough. He's less sharp, hasn't had his spring & autumn psycho spells, more settled in himself. I've had him nearly nine years & I've never known him so relaxed, my RI agrees & is so impressed that she's trying it on her stressy horse.

You can feed it with alfalfa & other feeds though be aware that you'll almost certainly need less of them. I feed it with chaff or soaked alfalfa depending on what I think he needs. I fed some of the Cool Condition cubes when he dropped off a bit in the winter & they were very effective without hotting him up at all but for him they were too good to feed all the time, he'd look like a beached whale

.

Re the Protexin you might be surprised & find that he's fine without it. I still feed U-Gard but I can get away with a lower dose & when he's on the Comp I can do without Cortaflex. As for his feet, well they still wouldn't win any prizes but for him they're amazingly good!

 

[vhf]

I'm a convert too. Mare looks stunning on it despite living out 24/7 and getting little else - and she's a TB type. No behaviour issues, and I spend less on feed since I started using it. And this from an old fashioned (OK, just old) stick-in-the-mud!

 

[ruscara]

I expect your horse will be fine, but I did put mine on the Top Spec Balancer a couple of years ago, and within a week he was completely loopy! My YM described him as 'a horse on the edge', totally stressed out and jumpy. I took him off it, and he was back to normal within days.
I told Top Spec who said that no other horse had reacted that way - but since then I have heard of several. They sent me a large tub of the Comprehensive Supplement, which I used with no ill effect and which seemed to be very good.

Apparently, the Balancer contains high levels of some amino acids which some horses react to by becoming anxious. So I have been told. I am no expert - I can merely relate what happened to me.

 

[joy]

Thanks for the amino acid tip. My horse looks fab on it, however he has become a real tw@t to hack, being at one nappy and then bolting. Will knock it on the head for him and use it on the broodmare.
This is a shame because he really does look fantastic. Will speak to TopSpec.

 

[atouchwild]

[ QUOTE ]
I expect your horse will be fine, but I did put mine on the Top Spec Balancer a couple of years ago, and within a week he was completely loopy! My YM described him as 'a horse on the edge', totally stressed out and jumpy. I took him off it, and he was back to normal within days.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yep, second this. I won a bag smehow and thought I might as well put pony on it, but couldnt do anything with him He was nervy in the first place, and although it ddnt make him badly behaved as such, it did really fizz him up!

 

[Nari]

I wonder if the high amino acids are why the one I mentioned above has show such dramatic improvement on it? I've never known his feet so good for so long (frantically touching wood now!) despite years of good hoof supplements & careful management. And he's become a lot calmer. My welsh cob, who's on the Lite version, has shown no temperament change either way.

As with so many things I guess you just have to try it & see. I had major problems with a different very popular balancer that most people say doesn't fizz horses up.

 

[MrsMozart]

Skimming answers

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Wondering if it's the Alpha A Oil that's sent ned slightly wappy?

 

[star]

my horse is crazy whether he's on it or not. i feed the balancer, cool condition cubes, baileys outshine, alfa-a oil and sugar beet. he was on nothing when i got him and was still crazy so i know it's not food that makes him a spooky eejit.

 

[RachelB]

I fed my horse a bag of TopSpec Lite a few months ago, as an experiment to see if it was worth it, and much to the dismay of my purse she looks and feels fab on it! For the first time since I've known her, she has a shiny coat! Her hooves look fab, her weight is stable, she has almost enough energy on the TopSpec and Alfa-A Lite she eats, and is generally happy and healthy. She looks much better on TopSpec than she did on the other balancers and GP supplements I fed her in the past.

Have you changed any other aspect of feeding or management since he became spooky? Maiden gets a bit sparky on spring grass (finally calming down now after about a month of being off her rocker!) so maybe it could be something other than your feeding regime?

 

[Jericho]

its good stuff - its the only feed I believe has everything my boy needs - he looks wonderful. He has it with small amount of sugarbeet for palability and happy hoof and I add Outshine in winter to keep weight on. I have even swapped my laminitic and I think cushinoid pony on to the anti lam balancer and she has improved condition really well.

I swapped off Top Spec for a while but noticed the difference within a month so started back on despite having half a tub of the other supplement left!

 

[seabiscuit]

I have had bad experiences with both the top spec balancer and the top spec cool condition cubes- sent both my horses positively NUTS!!!!

The balancer especially! Marius-Mum- cant believe that TS told you that, it sends a lot of horses crazy!