Stress. It is in our lives every day. Some stress can have a positive effect but more times than not we think of stress as something that causes a negative reaction to our bodies and minds. Just like humans, animals also experience their share of stress; however, they react differently to stress, often going off feed and water and getting sick.
In typical production systems and under good management, livestock experience stress occasionally. Female breeding animals – cows, ewes, does and sows – experience some stress at breeding and again at parturition. They and their offspring will again be stressed at weaning, and anytime they are transported or treated for illness. Breeding males of every specie also endure stress at breeding or when semen is collected. Higher-performing animals that are good enough to become show animals move into a life of more constant change, typically meaning more regular stress in their lives.
“With shows on a year-round basis, especially in different geographic regions, show animals of every specie are more likely to experience stress more regularly,” said Lindsey Grimes-Hall, Nutrition & Field Sales Support for BioZyme® Inc. “However, that stress can be easily eliminated by a good nutrition and health program.”
Common stressors for show animals include being introduced to a new environment/barn at the beginning of a project period, traveling to shows, adjusting to being shown/worked with daily and getting accustomed to high-quality show feeds while having the rations adjusted often. For these reasons, BioZyme makes a daily line of supplements to help reduce the effects of stress by supporting the animals and their digestive system during these times of stress and promoting water and feed intake to keep animals healthy and performing.
Sure Champ® is line a of show livestock supplements that proactively work to assist with the challenges created by the show environment. All Sure Champ products contain Amaferm®, is a prebiotic designed to enhance digestibility by amplifying the nutrient supply for maximum performance. It is research-proven to increase intake, digestion and absorption. In addition, research shows that Amaferm helps maintain normal body temperature in heat-stressed animals.
“Show animals deal with something daily that stress them out versus production animals that might experience two or three stressful periods all year. That is why including a supplement like Sure Champ in their diet every day is so critical to their daily health,” Grimes-Hall said.
Although show animals do undergo many changes in their lives, they also have many advantages, like living in climate-controlled environments, getting daily exercise and receiving regular skin and hair care in the way of rinsing, washing, conditioning, brushing and combing. These benefits are all important, but they shouldn’t replace the digestive care and nutritional support the animal truly needs.
According to Grimes-Hall one of the biggest stressors for show animals is in the inconsistency with feed. People love to play with feed and change rations, which has a huge impact on the digestive system. With the Amaferm in Sure Champ, livestock exhibitors will improve digestive health, alleviating the added stress of adjusting diets in the show animal.
With Sure Champ EVERY. DAY. your animals will be on the right track as you #preptowin.
