SmartPak Smart & Simple Kelp Granules Horse Supplement, 5-lb tub

I love the idea of giving pure kelp as a nutritional supplement to my 11 hand, 16 year old Shetland pony, Smokey. It's simple; it's only dried and granulated kelp. Nothing else. It has some good nutrients: Calcium, phosphorous, and a bit of salt are some of the those listed on the label. And it provides those nutrients in a surprisingly small dose. This five pound bag says it contains 324 servings. It comes with a little scoop in the bag for easy dosing. I chose to top dress a scoop of kelp over Smokey's favorite treat, alfalfa pellets. Normally he just scarfs up any supplements I've added along with the pellets. If something is new, he might be cautious of it for a day or two, just nibbling and sampling before going back to scarfing. To this point he's always accepted and even enjoyed each new experience. However, this kelp has become the exception to that rule. The first four samplings, Smokey actually dumped his bowl over in order to separate the kelp from his beloved pellets. The fifth time he finally just ate it all and cleaned his bowl. He's been eating it since, but isn't thrilled about having the kelp in there. I give him his bowl, and as I walk away, he will follow me, as if to say, hey, where are my real treats? These ones are tainted and not as good. If I don't give him any new treats, he will go back to the bowl with kelp and eat it all. He'd still rather rather have no kelp than kelp, but has just decided it is too much work to try to separate it out. Palatability is the reason I have only given it four stars rather than five. I think it smells good, and the product itself is of excellent quality; dry and clean. It's a high quality product from what I can see. But Smokey isn't thrilled with the taste, so I have to give his opinion some credit.

I have subscribed to smartpak for my horses over the years, so I trust their products. That being said, it takes a while to see results when feeding a supplement, and I only received this kelp supplement a few days ago, so time will tell how well it works. I gave a little bit to my bottle lamb the first day and she gobbled it down, but I am actually feeding this product to my two Australian Shepherds that compete in agility, using the dosage recommended for their weight (note: smartpak labels this for horses only). They seem to love it and I'm hoping to see good long term joint health and energy benefits. As for the pricing, this is a big purchase, but the daily dosing isn't huge so the 5# bag should last quite a while. I would recommend this product to those looking for a good powerhouse supplement for their horses.

So this little pellet, kelp, I was amazed at how small an amount to add to Appey, my horse, feed. Put it right on top so I cud see her reaction. She didn’t seem to even notice it. Normally she will smell something first. She ate it right down she has been using it for several days now and it is agreeing with her belly too. Really like this.

This is a supplement that our equine love and so do we! We have miniature and full size equine and we’re always looking for ways to add nutrients (and micronutrients) to their diet. We have noticed thicker manes and tails, healthier hooves and overall happier and healthier mares thanks to this product! The price is on point too!