I had never heard of it either…

A reader told me about it and asked if I knew anything.

I said, “No.”

I thought Equine “Chia” was a Chia Pet.  In my mind, I was thinking of a chia plant growing out of a horse shaped ceramic figure.  (I always liked the ‘Chia Scooby-Do’ the best.)

 

GOOGLE’D IT

So, I Googled it.

Aha!  I was wrong.  Equine Chia is not a chia plant holder…  It is a seed for equines that is supposed to help them in a myriad of ways.

Hmmmmm.  Sounded kinda gimmicky to me.

But, it wasn’t that expensive and I noticed that some ‘natural’ vets were using it.

Hmmmmm.  Oh Alright!

I went to the page and ordered the cheapest size (which at that time was 5lbs but now I see they have a 24-day Challenge size…).  I figured I could try it on the ponies because a smaller amount goes a long way with Shetlands.

Besides… the ponies had a hard winter.  They are older now and need help to keep their weight on.

 

2  MONTHS LATER…

So, the 5lb bucket of Equine Chia arrived.  It looks a bit like bird seed, kinda oily in a flax seed way.  Not much fragrance.  Couldn’t hurt, could help.

I poured it onto the Shetland’s soaked mixture of beet pulp pellets and flax for 8 weeks (my equine nutritionist suggested I soak the Chia seed as well – with the flax and beet pulp – as it is much more effective when it is softened so it is more digestible).  I used it until it was gone which was about a week ago.

SHED-OUT JUBILATION

Now, I’m not one to really jump up and down unless a product has made a significant and focused difference.

OK, so here I go…

Slick and Dodger shed out last week and I helped them with a thorough grooming.  As I was brushing all the excess hair off of their toplines, I was taken aback.

They were totally filled-in and even a bit (OK, a lot) plump!  So, I continued to pull off the dead shag to see the entirety of my Spring ponies and I gotta say, they both looked terrific!  They looked better than they looked going into winter.  I was astounded!  Both were kinda fat (wow) and their coats were shiny and dappled!

I had no idea that under those shaggy coats were little Jack LaLannes.  Older but looking great!  Honest to Betsy, I usually have to fatten them up or at least get rid of Slick’s rain rot (he won’t go into his shelter unless he absolutely has to…).  To me, they look and seem very vital.

BEFORES AND AFTERS

Below I’ve provided some photos from earlier this winter before the Equine Chia.

 

AFTER SHEDDING AND 8 WEEKS OF EQUINE CHIA

Now, even though the heavy winter coat hid their true new coat, it is obvious to me that they are now heavier, their topline is invisible and their coats look really nice!

 

IN CONCLUSION

It is kinda nebulous for me to recommend this because I’m not exactly sure what it did since neither ponies were sick.  Yet, they both look terrific.

I mean, with Anti-Flam, Norma was no longer lame.  You know… an obvious improvement from an illness that could be directly correlated to the remedy.

With this Equine Chia, I’m not sure what it did; I can only say that all-around, they look great coming out of the hardest time of year.  So, I think I like it as a general food additive.

If any of you try it, PLEASE let me know what you think.  It isn’t a ProBiotic or Ulcer remedy or anything specific.  But, I do think it is a simple and successful, inexpensive food supplement.

So, please let me know if you try it and what you think.  In the meantime, I’m going to get more and see what it does for Wrigley.

You can order it here.

 

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