Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse is labeled as a minimum of 32% protein. The protein in Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse is derived from three main sources. A main ingredient and the largest contributor of protein is soy protein concentrate, which contains 66 % protein. Methionine, Lysine, yeast culture, and to a lesser degree alfalfa also contribute to crude protein levels.

A horse consuming 5 kg of a 13% protein feedstuff per day is consuming 650 grams of protein per day, and this is often a poor quality protein. Add 9 kg of hay or equivalent pasture and the horse consumes approximately 2000 grams of crude protein per day.

In comparison, an 85 gram serving of Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse provides only 27 grams of protein per day – an insignificant level of protein compared to the total daily intake of crude protein.

Crude protein is calculated from a measurement of the amount of nitrogen in the feedstuff. Amino acids contain nitrogen and are therefore labeled as “crude protein”.

Amino acids combine together to form protein, and are therefore the building blocks of protein. Poor quality proteins may contain an abundance of some amino acids, but a deficiency of other amino acids. The lack of an amino acid blocks the formation of a protein that requires that particular amino acid.

High quality protein diets contain amino acids that are present in sufficient quantities and proper ratios for the efficient formation of protein. Soy protein concentrate is high in the amino acids that are often the most deficient in an equine diet, so when soy protein concentrate and the amino acid lysine are supplemented the utilization of other amino acids in the diet is increased.

For example, lysine is an amino acid that is present in less than ideal amounts in hay and pasture grasses, and therefore deficient in most horses’ diets. Lysine is the “weak link” and prevents other amino acids in the diet from being utilized to build tissue proteins. Barn Bag^®Pleasure and Performance Horse contains relatively high levels of lysine, improving the utilization of other dietary proteins by providing this “weak link” amino acid. The lysine in Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse is derived from the soy protein concentrate and additional “pure” lysine.

Methionine, another example of an amino acid weak in typical equine diets, is added to Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse to provide building blocks for strong connective tissue growth. Methionine, like lysine and the other amino acids, adds to the “crude protein” levels that are reported on the product label.

Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse does not create the “hot” horse that is associated with high protein feedstuffs.

Barn Bag^® Pleasure and Performance Horse fortifies the weak nutrients in hay and/or pasture diet of horses, including amino acids and nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, phospholipids, and fatty acids.

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