Last updated on October 8, 2024

Ali Armstrong, a barrel racer out of Oklahoma and an avid Animal Element user, was excited for the upcoming San Antonio race. She and her 16-year-old roan, Panama, qualified at Uvalde. She had a feeling San Antonio would be his scene, and he would do great at the race. 

Unexpected Injury

Unfortunately, the Tuesday before the race, Panama (AQHA horse, registered name MattsFreckledCowboy) came down with an abscess. Ali took him to the vet, got it taken care of and wrapped, and by Thursday Panama was cleared to run. They loaded up and headed to San Antonio, getting there by Saturday afternoon, with their first race scheduled that night. Ali was nervous about running Panama again so soon after an abscess, so she brought a younger horse “just in case.” San Antonio is a small arena, and contestants aren’t allowed to walk through the pattern first so that added to Ali’s nerves.

Panama pulled through, however, running a 14.1 second run on his first round! Unfortunately, he also hit a barrel, causing them to lose the money. Despite the hit barrel, Ali was excited because “I knew he was feeling good!” On Sunday they ran in the second and third rounds, running a 14.11 in both. Ali laughs that Panama was probably the oldest one running and was just “Mr. Consistent.” They ran three races in less than 24 hours!

Good Health All Thanks to Animal Element

Ali credits Panama’s quick recovery and consistent times to being on Animal Element since he was 4 years old. “He’s been on it pretty much his entire career,” she says. Panama gets Foundation Daily Detox and NuTrack “religiously” and had never had an injury until 2020. An MRI found a partial tear in his deep flexor, but after several months of rest he was back to normal. Other than a few abscesses, Panama has been injury free ever since! Ali just recently added Cissus Quadrangularis to Panama’s supplement list, to help keep that old injury at bay.

She also “lives by” In the Zone paste, giving him 20cc an hour before a race. Panama has been known to get ornery in the alleyway. “It’s his world, and I’m just in it,” Ali jokes. If she knows it’s going to be a long trailer ride, or just a super stressful situation, she will give him a whole tube of In the Zone. 

“Animal Element is all-natural,” Ali says. “You know what you’re giving your horse. What you see is what you get.” She doesn’t just feed Animal Element to Panama, either. 10 out of the 13 horses on her property are also fed Animal Element! “Other supplements go over the top or they’re not as effective,” Ali explains. Which is why she likes Animal Element over other supplement brands.  “You know, they [other brands] try to sell the BRAND, but I think Animal Element simply sells the supplement.” 

We are so proud of Ali and Panama and relieved that his abscess was short-lived! We’re cheering Ali and all her horses on for a successful 2023 season! If you’re curious about our all-natural products, give sales manager Mark Kaylor a shout at 509-301-1798, and we’ll help get you started!

Content is for informational purposes only. Written by team at FaithHanan.com