Over the eight months that Denise McKay was riding Foxy, a Friesian mare based in England, she noticed a significant improvement in condition, strength, and temperament after KER Equi-Jewel was introduced to her diet.

Denise says, "I rode Foxy for the owner who bought her from Holland unseen. She'd had her about a month when I started riding her. She would tire after about 20 minutes of flatwork, was very unbalanced, and didn't have much muscle. I figured she needed some fattening up but because of her 'mare-ish' temperament and potential strength, I really didn't want to heat her up more."

Denise recommended that Foxy should start receiving Equi-Jewel to provide her with a low-starch, safe form of energy. Foxy was already receiving a balancer from KER Team Member Saracen to successfully meet all her nutrient requirements, and Equi-Jewel was an ideal addition to this diet.

"Her energy levels increased, and she was able to handle much longer flatwork sessions," says Denise. "Her condition improved dramatically within three months and we won a red rosette at a little local show for "best conditioned" in a class of 10. Foxy was no quiet horse. Although I classify her as flighty, she was definitely very strong, so we didn't want her getting out of hand. Equi-Jewel helped to keep that lid on and turn that energy into performance. I totally love this product and Foxy's owner was very impressed with the results."

For more information on KER Equi-Jewel or any of your horse's nutritional needs, contact KER

Ardverness Almira

Ardverness Almira, a two-year-old filly owned by Marie Kukawski, won the led part-bred Andalusian youngstock class at the 2011 Royal Melbourne Horse Show in Australia. The filly is by the national champion PRE (Pura Raza Espanola) stallion Pagan MF and out the Anglo-Arabian mare Abbeyance Almira.

Ardverness Almira joined stablemate Zorra MFI (also by Pagan MF) as a Royal Show winner. Zorra MFI claimed victory in the led purebred class and was also named the reserve champion led purebred at this year's event.

Both horses were given a variety of Kentucky Equine Research (KER) supplements in preparation for the horse show, including All-Phase, Equi-Jewel, Bio-Bloom, and Restore. In addition to these, they were fed Barastoc Groom, which is a blend of high-quality protein meals, oils, live yeast culture, vitamins, and minerals. Barastoc Groom is  manufactured by KER Team Member Ridley AgriProducts.

The broodmares at Kukawski's farm are typically fed All-Phase from the time they are bred through early lactation, and then are fed Low GI Cube throughout the remainder of lactation.

The Royal Melbourne Horse Show is the largest breed show in the Southern Hemisphere, attracting over 1,000 competitors to the annual event. The next major events for both horses will be The Victorian State Championships to be held in March this year.

Kukawski is employed by KER as the Australasia marketing manager.

Brook Dobbin and Belcam Advisor

Talented Victorian rider Brook Dobbin held off a strong field to convincingly win the Equestrian NSW World Cup Qualifier held at the Sydney International Equestrian Centre on December 12 aboard the 11-year-old gray gelding Belcam Advisor.

Brook and Angela Dobbin own the scopey Australian-bred gelding by Belcam Agassi and have high hopes for him on the World Cup circuit. Created by the renowned course designer Leopoldo Palacios from Venezuela, the challenging track at the event asked many questions of the riders and horses.

Brook and Belcam Advisor are members of the Equestrian Australia National Jumping Development Squad and are currently sitting in second place on the Australian World Cup leaderboard.

Brook and Angela run Glenwood Park in Yarra Glen, Victoria, a picturesque breaking and training facility for performance horses. Brook and Angela are well known for their ability to breed, break and train top-class jumpers with many reaching World Cup level. Glenwood Park uses a variety of KER and KERx products including Low GI Cube, Equi-Jewel, Glucos-A-Flex, EquiShure, Restore, and Neigh-Lox.

Lifelong horsewoman Kerstin Egeskog imported her Oldenburg mare from Germany with high hopes and was thrilled when she was awarded Best Mare at the Norwegian Warmblood Championships, held August 7-8, 2010. The mare, Dea Saphira, ridden by junior rider Ingelin Egeskog, earned the top overall score in all criteria: external examination, loose jumping, performance under a foreign rider, and dressage performance, as well as the highest scores in both jumping and dressage indexes.

Judges Guri Grayling and Live Skatvedt from Norway were specifically pleased with the mare's condition and appearance, giving extra comments on the mare's topline and hind leg muscle. Judge Grayling praised the mare's flawless conformation stating, "This is how a trained hind end should look."

Egeskog credits Equi-Jewel, a stabilized rice bran product from Kentucky Equine Research (KER), for the outstanding results.

Egeskog works with Felleskjøpet Rogaland Agder (FKRA), a legally and economically independent cooperative based in Stavanger, covering the southwest part of Norway. FKRA is a feed manufacturer and a leading supplier of animal feed, fertilizers, and machinery for the Norwegian farmer with a history that dates to 1899. The company has approximately 20 shops spread throughout the region that supplies the farmer and items for home gardens and pets.

Originally purchased in Germany, the pony jumper Janika had talent to spare. Though small in stature (137 cm at the withers), Janika regularly competed over 1.2-meter obstacles. As the pony competed more and more in Norway with her new owner and despite the best of care, she developed a sour disposition and unruly behavior. Believing diet might be partially to blame, the owners changed her feed, but this only made matters worse, as she lost weight and became more nervous. The owners were facing a crisis as the pony was becoming too dangerous for their daughter to ride, leaving the alternative of sending the pony to a sales stable. The stable manager then contacted Kerstin Egeskog at FKRA for advice because she believed Kerstin could help the pony.

This proved to be the right choice as Kerstin offered to take the pony on as a project for her own daughter Ronya. The first management decision Kerstin made was to change the diet and introduce Equi-Jewel, a high-fat stabilized rice bran that provides horses with cool energy. Within one month, the pony's temperament improved, and she was being ridden in a softer bit.

Ronya competed Janika in both speed jumping at 1.05 meters and style jumping (equivalent to hunter competition in the United States), winning second place in one class of 35 entries, only one-half point behind the winner. Ronya and this amazing pint-sized athlete were chosen to ride on the Nordic Development Tour for pony riders.

"Several of my customers have tried Equi-Jewel, and they are all happy with the results," said Kerstin.

Equi-Jewel is available internationally. For more information on other products developed by Kentucky Equine Research (KER), go to www.ker.com.

Egeskog works with Felleskjøpet Rogaland Agder (FKRA), a legally and economically independent cooperative based in Stavanger, covering the southwest part of Norway. FKRA is a feed manufacturer and a leading supplier of animal feed, fertilizers, and machinery for the Norwegian farmer with a history that dates to 1899. The company has approximately 20 shops spread throughout the region that supplies the farmer and items for home gardens and pets.

The 38 Australian horses taking part in the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games will have a place in history as the first equine athletes to participate in this new global effort to introduce young people to the Olympic values.

Australia's Glen Haven Park was charged with recruiting and training the horses for the event, which will include individual and team jumping competitions. The competitors select the horse on which they'll compete through a random draw. See a video of the horses arriving and settling in to the Singapore Turf Club Riding Centre. 

Kentucky Equine Research Team Member, Barastoc (Ridley Agriproducts) is the official feed supplier for these horses for the 12 months leading up to and during the event. The horses receive nutritionally balanced diets with Barastoc feeds and KER supplements to bring out the best in each horse.

KER has worked closely with the trainers and staff at Glen Haven Park to ensure that the transition of horses from Queensland, Australia to Singapore has been as seamless as possible. The horses have been gradually acclimatized during their 12 months of training in lead-up to the games. Their diet and condition been carefully monitored throughout each stage of their preparation. These diets include:

Equestrian uniforms for the Youth Olympic Games.

• Barastoc Calm Performer
• Barastoc Cool Command
• KER Restore ™
• KER Hemabuild™
• KER Equi-Jewel™

With little time between the horses' arrival and return to peak competition fitness it has been imperative that everything, from the hay and water was taken with them whilst in transit to ensuring that their usual feed and supplements were at the venue for when they landed, to make sure the journey has been as stress free as possible. All the horses travelled extremely well and landed in excellent condition and have since begun their rigorous training schedule in lead-up to this week's competition.

Learn more about the equestrian events of the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games.

In the $3.5 million Group 1 Golden Slipper (1200 meters) at Rosehill Racecourse in Australia, top filly Crystal Lily claimed victory. The Golden Slipper is the world's richest race for two-year-olds. The win was a career fourth in seven starts, with earnings of $2,289,250. Crystal Lily was bred by Contract Racing at Newham in Victoria using KER Gold Pellet.

Australian mare Typhoon Tracy won the $400,000 Group 1 Queen of the Turf Stakes (1500 meters) at the same race meet. Typhoon Tracy, a multiple Group 1 winner, was reared at Glenlogan Park Stud in Beaudesert, Queensland, using KER Low GI Cube.

Surprise winner of the $2.25 The BMW (2400 meters) was Littoria. The horse was sold as a yearling by Basinghall Thoroughbreds of Nagambie using KER All Phase Pellet and Equi-Jewel.

Kentucky Equine Research (KER) was well represented at the races when the KER-fed filly Macatina, trained by Monica Croston, was ridden by KER employee Sarah Sutherland to win by a half-length in late Janaury.

In addition to her balanced diet, Macatina has been prepped and raced on Equi-Jewel and EquiShure™. Because Macatina is a high-strung filly, the combination of a hindgut buffer and a high-fat diet has assisted her in reaching the winner's circle.

When not in active race training, Macatina is fed All Phase™ Feed Balancer Pellet and rich West Gippsland pasture to ensure that she receives all of the essential nutrients required to recuperate and prepare for her next victory.

Gary Bennett winner best conditioned Shazada 2009
Photo Credit Peter Orr

The Shazada is the world's longest endurance race covering 400 km (248.5 miles) in five days, and is based at the historic township of St. Albans, New South Wales, northwest of Sydney. This is certainly not an event for the faint-hearted with the ride's motto--"to finish is to win"--perfectly summarizing the challenge.

Gary Bennett from Mudgee, New South Wales could not have asked for a better 60th birthday present by not only completing the Shazada but earning the prestigious Best Conditioned and Managed Horse award with his Arabian Karabil Yaningi. The pair completed each day in the top few placings and finished in second place overall.

Gary credits Equi-Jewel™, Endura-Max™, and Endura-Max Plus as vital components of his winning program. All of these products are available from Kentucky Equine Research.

Bluegrass Horse Feeds sponsors international three-day event rider Mike Ryan, winner of the leading rider title at this year's Tattersalls International Horse Trials. Ryan accumulated the most points over the weekend of competition. He won the one-star event, placed second in the three-star event, and claimed third place in the two-star event. The three-star event, which was the FEI World Cup qualifying competition, was won by Patricia Ryan, Mike's wife, and Fernhill Clover Mist.

Mike and Patricia Ryan have been valued customers of Bluegrass Horse Feeds for many years and use Transform Cubes and Equi-Jewel as part of their regular feeding program. Both are members of the senior Horse Sport Ireland team, which benefits from nutritional consultation from Bluegrass Horse Feeds and Kentucky Equine Research.