[Eolith]

I have been doing a lot of research on psyllium products lately, hunting down the best deals. I found this thread which is interesting and helpful... but I think you all might not be correct about the Equate being cheaper. If my per pound calculations are correct, SandClear is actually cheaper than the Walmart Equate when you buy it in bulk.

Hopefully I can make this make sense:

You can buy a 1 lb 13 oz container of Equate at Walmart for $8.84: Equate Fiber Original Texture NBE to Metamucil Fiber Powder - Walmart.com

You can buy 20 lbs of SandClear from Drs. Foster & Smith for $84.99: Fiber Supplement for Sand Colic in Horses: SandClear by Farnam for Equine Digestion


1 lb 13 oz is equivalent to 1.8125 lbs.

$8.84 / 1.8125 lbs = $4.88 per lb for Equate

$84.99 / 20 lbs = $4.25 per lb for SandClear

Anyone who feels so inclined can check my math. It's late and I'm an English Lit major. If I'm correct though, SandClear ends up being $0.63 cheaper per pound... which adds up if you're going through a lot of it.

 

[COWCHICK77]

Your math is right
For where I live,
Equate is the same price:
$8.84
But for Sand Clear:
20# is $99.95 so either I drive somewhere else which will be over an hour away to get a better price on the Sand Clear-waste of diesel in my opinion.
Or pay the shipping to have it shipped to my house. I realize that some places offer free shipping if you order a set dollar amount but I never seem to meet the Free Shipping qualifications.

 

[Eolith]

The Drs. Foster and Smith site that I linked to is one of those free shipping places, and the order qualifies for free shipping if you get that 20 lb bucket of Sand Clear.

 

[COWCHICK77]

Awesome!! Thanks

 

[gssw5]

I don't think it gets much cheaper than beet pulp - plus they enjoy it. I feed pulp and flax seed, both of which help clear sand and for 2 horses is under a buck a day. I don't know how the cost compares w sand clear. Alfalfa reportedly assists in clearing sand, too - which is what I feed. I have never had a problem w sand colic and all of my horses have spent/did spend the majority of their lives in the desert. I started feeding beet pulp on a consistant basis after I had sand brought in - just in case.

I live on sand too and feed beet pulp as part of their daily fiber, never bran mash or any thing else. Knock on wood have not has a colic in over 10 years.

 

[cowgirllinda1952]

I keep hearing about the benefits of beet pulp. Where do you buy it? Do you soak it first, and what is the cost? The same questions also regarding the flax seed, is it actual seeds? What dept is it in? Do you buy these at the feed stores or what? I have a very thin mare, who I am trying my best to get healthy. I'm feeding Safechoice, stabilized rice bran, and electrolytes. The pasture she is on is very sandy.

 

[gssw5]

I keep hearing about the benefits of beet pulp. Where do you buy it? Do you soak it first, and what is the cost? The same questions also regarding the flax seed, is it actual seeds? What dept is it in? Do you buy these at the feed stores or what? I have a very thin mare, who I am trying my best to get healthy. I'm feeding Safechoice, stabilized rice bran, and electrolytes. The pasture she is on is very sandy.

I get my beet pulp at TSC (Tractor Supply Company) but you should be able to get it at any feed store. I prefer the pellets, and you absolutely need to soak it I think the bag says like 1:2 ratio beet pulp:water and let it soak for at least an hour or two. You can also get shredded beet pulp it takes up more room and is less dense then the pellets so I double what I feed if I end up with shredded. The benefits are it is considered a forage I am in Fl where hay is expensive so I use beet pulp to help meet their forage requirements, I think I read it can be used to fill 50% of their forage requirements, it is 6% protein low carbs and sugar so it is cool calories, adding water to it adds water to your horses gut, if you feel it when it is wet is slimy and all that sliminess helps push everything through their gut. As far as the cost I imagine if differs everywhere, in Fl we seem to pay a premium for everything, I think I am paying $15 for a 40lb bag, at TSC but for one horse that would last quite a while. But you also need to feed hay to put weight on a horse, they are designed to eat forage, so make sure she is getting enough hay as well.

Flax has a lot of nutritional benefits good for adding fat to a diet, omega 3 & 6 it needs to be ground though for the horse to get the benefits, otherwise they have to chew it good and most horses would not chew it good enough to get the benefits.

I feed a fat supplemet from Smartpak called gleam and gain it has stabalized flax seeds, rice bran, and soy oil I really could see a difference in my hard to keep horse within two weeks of using it.

Hopes this helps.

 

[demonwolfmoon]

subbing. lots of sand here :/

 

[cowgirllinda1952]

That is a big help, thanks a lot. TSC is right down the road. I love that store.

 

[cowgirllinda1952]

Where do you get the ground flax seed?

 

[Endiku]

The cheapest place I've found pure ground flax seed is at my local whole foods/natural foods store. You can get it in 20 or 40 lb bulk bags. Its fairly expensive but it lasts a long time and does wonders for their skin health.

 

[COWCHICK77]

I have been doing a lot of research on psyllium products lately, hunting down the best deals. I found this thread which is interesting and helpful... but I think you all might not be correct about the Equate being cheaper. If my per pound calculations are correct, SandClear is actually cheaper than the Walmart Equate when you buy it in bulk.

Hopefully I can make this make sense:

You can buy a 1 lb 13 oz container of Equate at Walmart for $8.84: Equate Fiber Original Texture NBE to Metamucil Fiber Powder - Walmart.com

You can buy 20 lbs of SandClear from Drs. Foster & Smith for $84.99: Fiber Supplement for Sand Colic in Horses: SandClear by Farnam for Equine Digestion


1 lb 13 oz is equivalent to 1.8125 lbs.

$8.84 / 1.8125 lbs = $4.88 per lb for Equate

$84.99 / 20 lbs = $4.25 per lb for SandClear

Anyone who feels so inclined can check my math. It's late and I'm an English Lit major. If I'm correct though, SandClear ends up being $0.63 cheaper per pound... which adds up if you're going through a lot of it.

I got to thinking about this and it was bugging me because I have done the math on this before.
So here is my math, correct me if I am wrong because it has been a looooong time since I was edumakated..derp..:lol:

A 20# bucket of Sand Clear is $84.99.
Farnam claims that is a 64 day supply, one horse.

A jar 1.825# of Equate brand Metamucil is $8.84
I get about 13 days out of one jar for one horse. (I feed 1/2 c.)

If you do cost per day...

Sand Clear- $84.99 / 64 days= $1.33 a day
Equate- $8.84 / 13 days= $0.68 a day
Still if I only got 7 days out of the Equate, I would be doing better than the Sand Clear.

 

[COWCHICK77]

Where do you get the ground flax seed?

They have it at TSC Omega Fields® Omega Horseshine®, 20 lb. - Tractor Supply Online Store

But I am sure its cheaper to buy it in bulk like Endiku suggested.

 

[Eolith]

It gets messy when you try to do the math by number of days, because it depends greatly on what a single "dose" is. Not to mention, the suggested dose is something that can be adjusted according to need. Measuring it by anything other than weight won't really work, because 1/2 cup of Equate will probably weigh less than 1/2 cup of SandClear (due to differences in density).

If you weigh 1/2 cup of Equate and then fed the equivalent weight of SandClear, you should be saving money.

Of course, this all assumes that the actual level of "potency" is the same.

 

[offinthedistance]

This is an Aussie recipe for sand colic. it works a treat and brings the coat up all shiny by next day. Not all horses will 'drink' it. You could mix it in with chaff, or dose with a syringe (which is messy and takes ages but is better than a refusal).
The only rules are; natural, non processed, non supermarket honey. you need it fresh from the apiary or a country store. I don't know why exactly but it's something to do with the enzymes that are killed when honey is heat treated and blended and super-marketed.

In a heavy base pan, heat gently without boiling; 500g honey, 600ml full cream milk, 200ml full fat cream.
Allow to cool. Feed to horse.
One dose per year, any weight, any breed.
I swear by it.