Salt is vital for for the survival of all mammals, without it muscles do not function and life will cease to exist. Salt regulates the water content inside cells and it detoxifies the body. Salt is essential for nerve impulse transmissions and proper heart function.
Salt is mainly composed of Sodium and Chloride. Both play a major part in proper blood ph level, balanced stomach acids to digest food and also bone density. Half of the sodium in the body is stored within the bones.
Salt is found in the sea, in the ground and in mines. As soon as it is extracted, it is chemically cleaned and often exposed to temperatures of 1200 F and more, a process that destroys just about all trace minerals and nutrients. Industrially treated table salt is reduced to just Sodium and Chloride, while natural Salt found in the ground and the sea contains up to 90 additional crucial nutrients and chemical elements, which make a huge difference in all our lives.
Horses consume about 1 to 2 oz of Salt a day, in hotter climates and/or while exercising, the demand goes up to 6 or 7 oz of Salt. While sweating, horses do not only loose sodium and chloride, but also a large amount of minerals. Without all the important trace minerals, their bodies are lacking substantial chemical elements and mineral nutrients. Our horses are thus being compromised in their health and their performance.
Allowing the horses to replenish only sodium and chloride on form of commercial salt blocks and through administering commercial electrolyte mixtures, is simply not enough.
Luckily, there are alternatives to the widely available salt blocks:
Mined 300 feet below the earth’s surface from an ancient mineral deposit in central Utah, Redmond Rock is a natural sea salt containing more than 60 trace minerals. In comparison to other pressed mineral blocks available on the market, Redmond Rock offers a full array of minerals with a natural shape and taste that horses love. Redmond Rock is an excellent source of essential minerals and sea salt-vital components missing from many natural forages.
At Global Endurance Training Center, we are testing products all year around. From tack, saddles, hoof protection, nutrition, supplements, we are testing and then only using the best products for our horses. That’s one of the reasons our horses are performing so well year after year. Once we have tested the products over and over and seen first hand positive results, we then consider offering these products for sale in our online store. We do not sell any products we do not believe in, have not tested ourselves and are not using ourselves.
Often, we are not satiesfied only with our judgement, but we are asking our horses as well. In the case of REDMOND SALT LICKS, we allowed our horses to have a say. We already knew from their performance improvement, their shinier haircoat, their healthier appetite and their improvement in hoof health that Redmond salt licks are better for them. Would the horses agree and also prefer the Redmond Salt Licks over regular salt blocks?
We put regular salt licks and Redmond salt licks side by side in a feeder and allowed a herd of 10 horses to choose. We watched for a while:
We watched for over an hour. 9 out of 10 horses prefered the Redmond salt licks.
The Salt licks come in 7 to 10 lb blocks, but for easier use and to mix it in the feed, it is also available as loose salt.
Daily Red™
Redmond Daily Red is a granular form of our Redmond Rock designed for horses that prefer receiving their supplements in their daily feed ration. Daily Red provides all the natural trace minerals and electrolytes found in Redmond Rock and is perfect for your horse’s diet during periods of hard work or activity when good hydration is critical. Some horses like their mineral licks too much and will chew or bite free choice mineral salt.
Daily Red brand natural minerals provide a perfect amount and totally natural blend of essential trace minerals and electrolytes your horse needs to live a more healthy, balanced life just as nature intended. Just like Redmond Rock, Daily Red is a natural mineral sea salt harvested from deep within the earth in Southern Utah. Daily Red contains more than 60 beneficial trace minerals.
Daily Red Plus has additional healing clay added to reduce stomach acid and combat ulcers. We like the results we have been seeing.
Visit our product page for acquiring Redmond salt licks and Daily Red. A healthy Christmas gift for our 4 legged friends and companions.
Redmond salt is also available for human consumption. It has the same benefits for our bodies as it does for our horses. More info can be found on the REDMOND website.
For GETC
Christoph Schork
my horses also prefer these blocks over others.
Oh, that’s very idealistic. Horses preferred that.
Feeding your horses a salt product with trace minerals included makes a lot of sense. These trace minerals would be hard to get otherwise.
I have read in different places the importance of salt more than any other mineral for horses. I figure with the salt, they drink more, and if they drink more, it is very healthy, especially if they are sweating lots.
You have shared a great idea and resource. Thank you for sharing.