My horse refuses feed with supplements...any suggestions?

Question

I bout some Finish Line HA joint supplements for my barrel horse...I started her on them last night and she wouldn't eat it. I'm pretty sure its the abnormal smell to it that she isn't used to.They are Liquid and I mixed them up real good in her usual feed....any suggestions on how to get her to eat them or should I try a different Supplement. I'd really like to get her on a supplement to prevent expensive joint injections as long as possible. THANKS!

Answer 1

The two best additives I've found for masking the taste and smell of supplements in a horses food are apple sauce and apple cider vinegar (strangly this one seems to work well though I'm repulsed by the smell of it).  With applesauce I mix the supplements into the sauce first then mix the sauce into the feed.  Apple cider vinegar works best when you dump it on top of the feed and mix it only seconds before you feed your horse.  You can also try adding molasses or simply syrup (dissolve 1 part sugar into 1 part boiling water and cool) though I've had less success with these methods.  The last thing to try would be a powered electrolyte supplement, these are often strongly flavored and have a strong odor that most horses enjoy, but again I haven't had as much luck with this one.