I would like to tell you about my horse Juno. I saw a photo of him and fell in love at first sight. He was what I was looking for, as I had just sold my dressage horse to a lovely person who was turning professional and needed the type of horse that could take her all the way. I realised I just could not give him the justice he deserved, so made the painful decision to sell him. Lucky for me he went to a great person and we still keep in touch to this day.

I was looking for something smaller and a horse that I could just have fun with. Juno was the one. The owner was good and told me he previously had Equine Influenza and that he had recovered well. As this was all resolved and in the past, I decided to buy him anyway. Juno had come from New South Wales, so very different to Victorian weather. He is Warmbloood/American Saddlebred cross, with a fine type/elegant structure as his previous owner stated. I was also informed about his feeding regime and how he liked to stand under a tree most of the day, grazing very little.

I started hard feeding Juno as he came to me in the winter. I was giving him lots of feed, mainly bulk, however he was not putting on any weight, if anything he was losing weight. What to do? If I increased his Lucerne, he would lose even more weight so I started playing around with his feed. I quickly realised I could not feed him big feeds as he just would not eat it all. I went on to processed feed and if it was too sweet he would not eat it, pellets he just did not like and cubes were a no go. So I decided just to go plain feeds such as oaten chaff, barley and a little Lucerne and made up my own combination of feed, specifically tailored for him. I tried different supplements and he would just turn his nose up at it and would not even attempt to eat it. Anything that smelled or tasted a bit different was just a no go. I could not sweeten it with molasses as he did not like it, I even tried golden syrup and honey. I cut up carrots and apples, but he would just eat those and leave the rest of the feed. At this stage I was pulling my hair out!

Also during that time, I had his hair tested twice at different labs. I treated him for ulcers and tried different products and supplements that were recommended to me from the hair testing results. I had the chiropractor and cranial sacral therapist look at him. I tried herbs and other therapies, but he did not put on much weight and the colour of his coat was not the best. I even had his teeth done and his saddle checked and fitted. Also, his feet were done on a regular basis and now he is going barefoot. It appeared that Juno could not tolerate much when it came to digestion, and who knows how Equine Influenza had affected him. This horse has led me down so many paths that I am now studing to be an Equine Sports Therapist through the College of Animal Tactile Thearpy and can't recommend them highly enough.

About a year ago, Juno came up with a splint and I came across Gotcha Equine and made contact with Lucy Prior. She was very helpful, so I thought I would give her products a go. I wish I could say he just loved the supplements straight away but he did not. At least he would eat them in small amounts. I really liked the idea of the supplements so I persisted. Over time his splint went down, however I still could only feed him the supplements in small amounts, so I was always concerned he was not getting the recommended dose. I had got to the point of syringing it in and let me tell you that was so much fun... Not!

I was however beginning to notice some visible changes emerging in Juno. He was now grazing most of the time, his coat had darkened. He was also putting on weight and holding it. Even so, I rang Lucy in despair with the hope that she could give me some practical advice, regarding actually getting the recommended dose of supplements into him. I told Lucy how fussy he was and what was happening. She then went on to tell me how the products had changed and that this might help with my fussy eater. We agreed to commence Juno on a trial of the new line of products.

I placed a little in his feed and watched to see what the verdict was. He sniffed it a bit and then started eating. To my surprise, he ate the whole lot. To say I was a bit excited would be an understatement. So, slowly over the next week I increased the amount of the vitamin and minerals to his correct dosage and he continued to gobble it up.

I rang Lucy and told her the good news. Since then, Juno's coat colour has darkened even more and he is as fat as he can be. He grazes all day and I have been able to increase feed without any problems. I am very pleased with the results. I really like the products and from my experience they have undoubtedly been beneficial for my horse. If indeed, you have a fussy eater I would recommend giving the Gotcha Equine products a go.

Shauleen Rooney - Victoria.

Traralgon and District Adult Riders Club (ARC) member.