Blue Seal mineral question

[millstreaminn]

I bought a few bags of Blue Seal Min-A-Vite conditioning supplement today. The label says to feed 2-4 oz per day. It doesn't say anything about offering this stuff free choice. Can I offer it free choice and expect the cows to self limit themselves? I couldn't imagine they would eat enough to make themselves sick, but they are cows...

 

[TexasBred]

I bought a few bags of Blue Seal Min-A-Vite conditioning supplement today. The label says to feed 2-4 oz per day. It doesn't say anything about offering this stuff free choice. Can I offer it free choice and expect the cows to self limit themselves? I couldn't imagine they would eat enough to make themselves sick, but they are cows...

After reading the guaranteed analysis as well as the list of ingredients, I'd be inclined to give them 3-4 lbs. at one time and see how quickly they consume it. The first 4-5 ingredients are actually ingredients to encourage consumption and have little to do with vitamins and minerals. The calcium, phos and salt are included at reduced amounts so overconsumption could certainly occur. Probably won't hurt anything besides your pocketbook but it also really needs to be more heavily fortified. Most all the vitamins and minerals are guaranteed at much lower rates than more typical minerals. On the positive side it does have some chelated minerals in the formula which are much more readily available to the animal so that will help. If you decide to put out a full bag I'd probably add about 10 lbs. of salt to 50 lbs. of mineral. BTW, the website shows that to be a horse mineral. Did I look up the wrong one? Even has a horse on the bag.