Thank you, Sherry! 

The soaking of hay is a bit of a conundrum. He is one of four horses in a dry lot in the summer and one of five horses and two donkeys in a winter paddock. We primarily feed netted round bales due to lack of storage space for small squares (and the added fun of winter hay soaking in Wisconsin). 

We incorporated the alfalfa on the recommendation of an equine nutritionist. With my previous research in 2019, I had all but eliminated it and honestly saw little difference in soundness when we reincorporated it. The reason for using it in the first place was to increase satiety and lessen their intake of the grass hay as the entire herd (minus my elder gelding) had become terribly obese despite following the dietary guidelines (minus soaking). I am open to the conversation about the alfalfa being a contributing factor but would like to account for the protein it adds because we have seen such a positive change in all of our animals body conditions since adding it in. I can post pics of the body condition changes that I've kept since. Are there IR/PPID-friendly sources of protein that are comparable?

I made a quick switch to the Purina Omega Match on the fly for two reasons: First, it was free of soy, added iron, wheat, and alfalfa and has flax, which I wanted to try adding in. Second, I was looking for a quick stop gap while searching for my next step. The bad news is, as you mentioned, it has some concerning traits with the higher ESC and fat. The good news is that they hate it, and Frodo will not touch it. Unfortunately, he will not eat beet pulp or flax either, so I'm back to square one in finding a carrier for my supplements. Ugh. As noted in the case history, we struggle with our entire herd with palatability of mineral and carriers. They typically with eat it for 3-4 weeks and then refuse it forevermore. Originally, I tried many of the recommendations on the provided list. I can circle back around and give it another go. 

I am open to having our ration re-balanced now that we have updated hay analyses completed. The only supplements he is currently receiving are the Horse Tech High Point Alfalfa, Uckele Poly Copper and Poly Zinc, and Immubiome Strength and Stamina.

What is the best way to get feedback on the KSU iron panel results?

I will get body pics today. Hoof pics will be delayed because he's all duct-tape-booted-up to address the abscesses and thrush.

Thanks again!
--
Becky Crowe
Luck, Wisconsin, USA
Joined July 2019
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Frodo
Frodo Case History
Frodo Photos: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=93268
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Thunder (2000-2021)
Thunder Case History
Thunder Photos: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=93211
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Soozee (1999-2020)
Soozee Case History
Soozee Photos: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=93212
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Hay Analysis: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Becky%20and%20Frodo%20-Thunder%20-%20Soozee/Hay%20Analysis/2021_7_20_%20Crowe_Hay%20Analysis.pdf