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By Sarah Jane Colhoun

I’m not generally a big fan of calmers, most of the time I think I just need to give them more work! However, there does come a point occasionally where I think they are exhibiting behaviours that maybe a calmer might take the edge off, just so that they can see this is not such a big deal! Whatever ‘this’ is…! May be helping them get over a fear of coffin fences! Or coping with a big atmospheric crowd for the first time!

But then what calmer do you get, and does it actually work, and if it does work, is it the calmer or did something else go right on the day?!

I’ve tried a few different ones, on different horses, for various reasons, and with various results.  I like the Cool It + Mag because it incorporates both Magnesium and Tryptophan in the one calmer. Most options I’ve tried before have been one or the other.

What this means is that I cover both potential deficiencies with one product. With my little bit of research in nutrition books and good old Google, if my horse is lacking in either of these, it can lead to expressing excitable, anxious or nervous behaviour, and by supplementing the feed, I hope to address that lack of mineral/amino acid and therefore remove the possibility for the nervous/excitable behaviour as a result of being ‘lacking’ in anything.

Tryptophan is used in the body to help make niacin, a B vitamin important for digestion, skin, nerves, and to help make serotonin. Serotonin is used to make melatonin, a hormone that helps to control sleep and wake cycles, and thought to be a factor in improving mood. In humans, L-tryptophan is used for a number of ailments, but most importantly in this context, for anxiety, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder and to improve athletic performance. 

Magnesium is considered a vital macro mineral for horses, and plays an important role in nerve and muscle function.  Deficiency of magnesium in the diet/pasture can lead to nervousness, muscle tremors, lack of co-ordination and increased respiration. You can also feed too much and the wrong kind and it’s recommended to use magnesium oxide, preferably chelated, to ensure absorption.

Cool It + Mag contains both a high concentration of L-tryptophan and uses Magnesium Oxide (chelated) thus giving you the best of both worlds. I have noticed a definite calming effect on two of our horses that has been of benefit to me and them. Both these two horses are quite different in their personalities so this was another positive for me for the Cool It + Mag, it didn’t affect their personality, I got the same attitude and movement (and potential for naughtiness!) that I normally have, without the spooky, liable to explode, panic that had been present prior to the supplement.

Cool It + Mag is available as a powder in 500g tub and you feed 25g daily to minimum 1kg feed ration and if necessary you can feed 50g daily for a short loading period.

Purchase either online from Horseware Australia or ask in your local Feed/Produce store.

TRM supplements are distributed in Australia on their behalf by Leader Equine Pty Ltd.
 

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