- Best Trait = Affordable powder form of natural Vitamin E
- Worst Trait = Stretching here…but it’s not quite a cheap as Stuart Product’s Emcelle [See review]
Consider this product if…
- Your horse is exposed to higher than average levels of stress (i.e. regular competition, frequent changes in environment, regular trailering, high level of performance)
- Your active horse’s diet is hay-based and he/she does not have regular access to fresh, green pasture.
- You are not seeing expected muscle tone or stamina corresponding to quantity and quality of work load perhaps due to myopathy.
- You want to optimize reproductive health of stallions, broodmares and prodigy.
Why review this product?
Management preferences play a huge role in what products will work for clients long term, and though I prefer liquid forms of natural Vitamin E in cases of disease, stress or intense exercise, there are many situations where a powder is necessary to fit the management style. Kentucky Performance Products has both; the Elevate Maintenance Powder and the Elevate W.S. (water soluble). KPP’s website says that the water soluble version is only available through veterinarians though I did find it on Amazon. With that said, I will only be comparing the powdered maintenance product in this review. I recommend Vitamin E supplementation a lot and wanted to compare the value of their Elevate® product to other natural Vitamin E supplements on the market.
The Actual Review in 5 Parts
Company Information & Communication
They had me at ISO-SFSF! Like a warm summer breeze carrying my horses’ contented whinnies into my office, I read these words on their website. How refreshing to FINALLY find a company that is 1) proud of their stringent quality standards, 2) knows what ISO/SFSF and GMP stand for, and 3) believes in simplicity and purpose. The “ABOUT KPP” page on Kentucky Performance Product’s website wooed me!
Kentucky Performance Products has a fabulous return policy- just send the opened or unopened product back with a “why” note and you will be refunded. It’s as simple as that.
Emails for the company president, vice-president, a representative, and the general inbox were available on the website. Though brief, I did receive an email reply to my questions within 24 hours. The representative was helpful without being generous, but I understand their caution. I received two peer reviewed journal articles to support their claims. I give KPP five stars for company information and communication.
Feeding Directions
Directions for use were broken down into 5 life stages including maintenance, exercise, foals, broodmares and stallions. I like that the feeding directions on the container give indications for amount by weight of the horse as well. Scooping can range from 1 to 5 a day or 1,000 IUs to 5,000 IUs of d-alpha-tocopherol (7-35 grams) per day. KPP acknowledges the many unique scenarios that may warrant Vitamin E supplementation, so they recommend again and again to consult your veterinarian/nutritionist.
Ingredients List
The product is using a natural d-alpha-tocopherol acetate powder to supply your horse with Vitamin E. Dextrose is used a carrier and to make it palatable.
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Guaranteed Analysis
The guaranteed analysis is very simple; 1,000 IUs of vitamin E per 7 grams of product. Great!
Cost
I try to give companies a break by calculating cost from bulk discounts, but in this case, the products that I want to compare KPP Elevate to do not have bulk discounts. So, I’m going to use the 2lb container to compare costs instead of their 10lb containter. I calculated costs by pretending to purchase this product straight from KPP’s website. I do NOT recommend this. The 2 lb container cost $59.20 (March 17th, 2021) plus $20.17 in shipping to Montana! I can get it on Amazon for $48.00, choose a free but longer shipping option, and have a free return guarantee. At this price this product costs $1.12 per day to supply 3,000 IUs of Vitamin E. Compared to KER’s Nano-E $2.29/day and Stuart Product’s Emcelle Tocopherol $0.68/day, it’s middle of the field for natural Vitamin E sources.
Back to Basics Alternatives
Summary
I was already recommending this product, but after a more thorough review, I think that I’ll be recommending it more often due to the company’s professionalism, product value, and feed label information. This is a great choice for a wide array of equine needs, management situations, and work loads when horses do not have access to fresh, green pasture.
