Dear TLC,

I have three beautiful palomino horses. Today I am counting my blessings, as one by one I see their health, their strength and their spirit return.

Three months after I purchased him, my most beloved horse "The General" began stumbling. General was diagnosed with arthritis, navicular and tendonitis, he had foundered in the past and suffered from chronic gravel. We tried all of the usual treatments, but improvement was minimal. Needless to say, hope was beginning to fade that I would ever be able to help him.

While reading one day, I found an advertisement for your TLC Animal Nutrition Company. I called the number and as suggested, I made several changes to his diet, added Performance Plus Daily™, DBG Mineral and Niacin. Shortly after starting the program I saw something I thought I would never see again! The General was galloping across the arena. He was bucking and rearing and playing like a true horse! The sadness was gone from his eyes. He seemed more alive than I had seen him in a very long time. I started to cry and laugh at the same time. It wasn't long before I climbed up on him. We rode to the river and played. As I sit here to type this letter of thanks, I am crying. I will never forget that day as long as I live. General is now back in training and will begin Western Pleasure classes in the spring of 2001. He is happy and healthy and he thinks I'm god!

My second horse "Bo Dunnit" was often uncontrollable. Following an awful accident that might have ended his career (but fortunately didn't) I contacted Clare at TLC Animal Nutrition about his behavior. I changed his feed and added Easy Form to his diet. He is now able to concentrate and his movements are more controlled. He's a real sweetheart, and I couldn't be happier.

Last but not least, there is "Jumpin Jack" who has had injections in his hocks, stifles and fetlocks. He was diagnosed with bone spurs and stifle problems. Panic would set in when his legs gave out, and I was restricted to light riding. He is 17 hands and loaded with potential, I wasn't willing to give up. Again I turned to TLC Animal Nutrition for advice. He now gets the same program as The General. Shortly after starting, I noticed a definite change, he was learning to use all four legs again. Jack had never shown in an arena, but three weeks after starting the program, I took him to his very first show and he won in every class! I was so excited it was days before I could sleep again. To date, Jack has been to seven shows and is acing them all!

Thank you so much for all your time and knowledge, without this program we could never have done it!

With love and gratitude,

Gini Thompson

Our sixteen-year-old son, Chris, has a twelve-year-old gelding name Red who was born and raised on our farm. They have been a team for the last six years in barrel racing and other contests. After one of his barrel runs we noticed tenderness in Red's left front foot. However, there were no visible signs of injury and no swelling. We consulted our farrier and he suggested rest, which we did. When Chris started light conditioning that went reasonably well. But to our dismay, after an Ohio NBHA show, lameness and pain were again obvious. Our farrier suggested elevated pads to take the pressure off his heel. There was no noticeable improvement. We scheduled an appointment with our local veterinarian for x-rays to see what was at the root of the problem. The x-rays revealed what the farrier had suspected and we had all feared, a hole in the navicular bone. It was through these x-rays that we also discovered Red had developed calcium deposits. The calcium deposits, acting as a spur, were adding to his lameness.

We contacted TLC Animal Nutrition and as suggested we changed the feed, supplementing with Performance Plus Daily™ and DBG Mineral. In addition, our vet prescribed a medication for speeding circulation to the hoof called Isoxuprin. It was a tremendous relief and a very happy moment when we turned Red out and he began jumping and romping around putting all of his weight on his front feet! Chris continued to give the supplement and medication to Red, slowly decreasing the amount of medication every three weeks. After diligently following the program for two months, we scheduled another series of x-rays, for what would be the ninth week on the program. This time there was no sign of the navicular hole or the calcium deposits. The only indication that Red ever had a problem was a slight mark where the hole had been, and this was only apparent when compared to the first x-rays.

Our competition show circuit is over for the year, but Red will have the opportunity to compete next season. Chris is trail riding and Red is showing no signs of pain whatsoever. Chris is striving to get Red ready for the next year's season, which he and his horse are very excited about. Red is now pain free, and we are very pleased with the results. Our sincerest thanks to TLC Animal Nutrition and our son who made sure that his horse was cared for properly.

Danny and Wendy Ray

Shortly after purchasing my gelding, I had him checked by several vets. he was lame on the right front foot and had tendons that stuck out so bad, they looked like spurs on a rooster. After several unsuccessful treatments, we took x-rays and that told the story - my gelding's worst nightmare, navicular! He had multiple holes in both front feet. I tried all the conventional treatments. There was no improvement. I was told to consider surgery on both front legs, because in his condition he would soon have to be destroyed.

Miracles Can Happen
I was feeling desperate and took a chance on something a friend had told me about. She had known of a company that had done a lot of work with navicular horses. When I called, the woman on the phone suggested I change his diet. In addition to his new grain he now gets several products that are specifically designed for horses with navicular. I also use Trainer's Choice on the legs. Two weeks after I started the program he was sound. Six months later I had more x-rays taken, and the vet said it was a "miracle." The holes on the navicular bone were filling in, and there was noticeable improvement in the "rooster spurs." I have to agree. This is a miracle. Angel is now earning me money. He has taken me to the State Finals each year, and I've won a saddle. Very impressive for a horse that might have otherwise been destroyed.

Another Second Chance
I had such great results with the first horse, I purchased another problem horse that I save from certain death. The former owner sold him to me for one dollar and was sure he would never walk a sound step again. This horse is fourteen years old and has been lame for more than half his life. Again x-rays confirmed five holes in the right front foot, navicular. But this wasn't his only problem. This horse also had arthritis so bad he could barely shuffle off at a fast walk. He literally smelled rotten, ahd a very bad hair coat and was loaded with large and small strongyles. Again I contacted Clare from TLC Animal Nutrition for a recommendation. We changed his feed. I give him Performance Plus Daily™, DBG Mineral, Niacin and MSM with vitamin C. For this horse we added Vita-Guard and Glucosamine. Progress was steady and slow, as I said he had been lame for a number of years and had multiple problems. Today he has a clean bill of health and I've started him around barrels.

Don't give up
Today I have two healthy horses. I would like to share with everyone, if it hadn't been for TLC Animal Nutrition products, their knowledge, and my persistence and faith in God, these horses would not be here today. I know there are many nutritional companies out there, but I just can't pull myself away from the correct and honest information I get each time from TLC Animal Nutrition.

Kathy Taran

The Early Years
Our Mare "Endless Dreams" was crippled on the track as a two-year-old. My parents John R. and Kathy Hill acquired her as a three-year-old and she was cautiously put into training for barrel racing. Her ability to stay sound was at the forefront of our thoughts. By the time she was four, she was a great barrel horse with bad front feet. "Miss Ed" (as we call her) won the 1993 WTBRA Futurity and was a finalist at Fort Smith, Lazy E and Oklahoma City. During her Derby year she started having some real problems staying sound after each run. She was sent to the University for experimental navicular treatment. Three months later she was sent home with the news that her foot would fall apart if we kept running her. Thus, the decision was made to breed her and turn her out permanently.

Just Give Her A Chance
Five years and several babies later, we needed a horse for my boyfreind's daughter, Bailey. Miss Ed was our best bet, because she is gentle and solid as a rock on her barrel pattern. It wasn't long before the navicular signs returned and I took her in for x-rays. Again I was advised not to use her as a barrel horse. I wasn't satisfied, and set out to find a solution. My farrier changed the kind of shoes she was wearing, and that helped immensely but Miss Ed needed more. As a last effort I turned to TLC Animal Nutrition for help. As suggested, I changed the feed and put her on DBG Mineral and Performance Plus Daily™. Several weeks later, I ran her at the D&G Barrel Race here in Amarillo. Three runs alter she hadn't taken a lame step and was running 1-D times. I then found the very best youth jockey in the Texas Panhandle, Lisa Maez, and entered her in the NasHorse National Championship. I told Lisa she had to win money. Miss Ed had ran here several times before and never failed to draw a check. They did just that, as the "Reserve National NasHorse Youth Champion."

The Sky is the Limit
I have not varied one step from what TLC originally suggested and she couldn't be healthier. It is amazing to me that ten years after her original injury and several babies later, one of the nicest barrel horses I have ever had the pleasure of riding is back doing what she has always done best, running barrels. Thanks to TLC's nutrition, my horse-shoer, my Mother and a great new jockey, the sky is the limit on a mare that everyone had written off. From Miss Ed, a mare that truly loves to run barrels, and myself we thank you for your wonderful products. I am glad I didn't give up and I am even happier that I found the TLC solution.

Sincerely,

Christi Hill

I have an eight-year-old mare named The Family Bear, a.k.a. "Fame." She is part of the family, not to mention a super barrel horse. At the age of five she began refusing to go in the gate and would run up the rail at the first barrel in a dead panic. X-Rays revealed bone spurs in her right hock. I worked closely with my vet and mind you, no expense was spared. For a long time the results were hit-and-miss. We would run good for a few weeks and then go down again. Despite all my efforts, her problem persisted to the point that her personality changed. She become depressed, frightened and lacked any confidence in herself or me.

Finally, at OKC 2000, I had to face the cold hard truth. She was entered in the Derby and Sweepstakes and could not even make the first barrel. More X-Rays told the tale, the bone spurs were still at the root of her problem. When I left OKC I knew I would never run her again if I couldn't find an effective solution. Knowing my situation, a friend told me to call TLC before I give up hope. Several suggestions were made for my feeding program, and I started her on TLC's Performance Plus Daily™, DBG Mineral and Glucosamine. I followed the suggestions to the letter. Today, X-Rays reveal a clean hock and she is running great.

Overcoming Fame's deep-seated fears have been slow, but she is sound and ALWAYS turns the first barrel. Over the last four months her confidence has returned and her times have improved. In her last nine competitions she has not placed below 2nd in the 1-D. We recently attended the NasHorse World Show in Louisville, KY. There we went into the short go 9th in the 1-D out of over 1,700 entries and two qualifying rounds. Our experience with TLC products gave us the confidence to believe that we can go anywhere and win.

Thanks TLC for giving me back my partner.

Sincerely,

Tammy Owens

Another Cactus Twist, or "Twister" as we lovingly call him, is an eighteen year-old AQHA barrel horse which we bought when he was fifteen. My daughter, Alicia, needed a horse to teach her how to run barrels. Twister has always taken care of Alicia and has been very consistent on the barrel pattern. This past year, however, we had considered retiring him since he had started to slow down quite a bit and we would be out of the 4-D at some big shows. He had been diagnosed with a bone spur in the right hock which we had injected more than once. When this started hurting, he would act up at the gate, even rearing up with her when he was really hurting. But Alicia qualified three horses for the NBHA Youth World Show, and we needed Twister to be that third horse, thinking that if we got him in better shape, he might get in the 4-D.

Seeing is Believing
My friend Tammy had used your products on a mare that was having trouble and told us to try them on Twister. Reluctantly, and with much disbelief, I ordered the products and started the feeding program. Within weeks, we began to see a miracle taking place. Twister began to act calmly in the gate, and his times started improving. The most amazing thing is that instead of running in the 4-D, at some shows he runs in the 1-D! his attitude is great; he eve seems to want to run. Everyone who has seen Alicia run him for the past four years wants to know what has happened to make him seem like a different horse.

I can't praise your company enough for the tremendous difference your products have made in our horse. Twister might now be turned out to pasture but for your products.

Thank-you

Gail Day