Comparing Five Star to Improver and Antifungal

Back in May of 2008, I was approached by a European company to become a distributor of their products called Improver and Antifungal. After some research into the products, I decided to decline their offer to become a distributor. There were two reasons I made that decision, the first reason was that I only handle products that I develop and manufacture myself. The second reason is I was in the process of developing a new product called Five Star which basically used the same methodology as the Improver and Antifungal products, yet the suggested retail price for Improver and Antifungal is considerably more expensive than my new product Five Star and Improver and Antifungal lacks the superior effectiveness of Five Star in combating certain Viral infections and combating Protozoa infections (like coccidiosis, giardia lamblia, canker, etc.).

I believe that Improver and Antifungal are good products, and I have no problem recommending them to the sport. However, I believe that my health program is superior, offers more flexible to fanciers and is less expensive than the Improver and Antifungal products. The thing is, my customers have a four year history using my two health products (Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper) and ny customer are well pleased with the "good" health their birds experience on the Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper products.

On an October 21st, 2008, email, the head of the marketing department for the Improver and Antifungal products recommends the following dosage and use of their products. He instructions were: "5 liters (1.2 Gallon) of water will be consumed within 3 days by 100 pigeons, you do not have to change the water every day, the active ingredients will keep the water pure and efficient against the bad bacterias until the water is gone. Once the water with our products is gone, repeat the operation of pouring 5 liters (1.2 gallon) of water in 2.5gr of each products. then serve it to the birds. This means that our products needs to be continuously in the drinking water of the birds."

So it seems that Improver and Antifungal are to be in front of the birds at all times in the water. Now in Norway, where the Improver and Antifungal products were created, their weather is much like northern Canada, so in Norway, 100 birds might drink 1.2 gallons of water in three days, but here in the USA the rate is more likely to be between 1.2 gallons and 2.0 gallons a day per 100 birds, depending on your geographical location and the season of the year. Since their product needs a certain concentration of active ingredient in the water to be effective (as advertised), you need to maintain the concentration of 2.5 grams of Improver and 2.5 grams of Antifungal in each 1.2 gallons of drinking water given the birds.

Here in the USA, 100 birds do not drink 1.2 gallons of water in three days. My calculations are that (in temperate climates) 80 birds will drink one gallon of water a day. However, even if I use their numbers, of 100 birds consuming 1.2 gallons of treated water every three days, that still means 365 days a year / 3 days per treatment = 122 treatments a year.

A container of Improver and Antifungal each contain 125 grams of product and the dose is 2.5 grams of Improver and 2.5 grams of Antifungal per treatment. This means that a jar of Improver and a jar of Antifungal each contain 50 treatments and each sells for $36.95. So, the cost to treat 100 birds for one year with the Improver and Antifungal products is $179.33

On the other hand, if you use a more realistic but conservative water consumption of 100 birds drinking 1.2 gallons of water a day, then the math works out like this: 100 birds drinking 1.2 gallons of water containing 2.5 grams of Improver and 2.5 grams of Antifungal for 365 days a year = $539.47 a year per 100 birds.

Even if we reduce the dosage by half, that still looks like a one year supply of Improver and Antifungal for 100 birds, would cost $291.31

On the other hand, a one year supply of Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper for 100 birds, would cost $72.09 (includes 5% discount for buying both products together)

If you wanted the added protection of Five Star for the OB and YB race seasons, then a one year supply of Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper 26 weeks of Five Star would cost $91.75 to treat 100 birds for a year.

The cost of using Improver and Antifungal for one year is either $179.33 or $291.31 or $582.63 depending on how you interpret the dosage instructions

Of course with the Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper products you are also getting immunoglobulins and antibodies effective against Rotavirus, Coronavirus, E coli, Clostridium, Salmonella, Paratyphoid, Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Candida, H pylori, Cryptosporidium and many other pathogens, probiotics (friendly bacteria), vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fructooligosaccharides, Inulin polysaccharides, beta glucans, glycoproteins, glycolipids, betaine, alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, ATP, Boron, Calcium, Choline Bitartrate, Chromium, citrulline, Copper, cysteine, fatty acids, Folic Acid, glutamin, glycine, Glycocymine, histidine Inositol, Iodine, Iron, isoleucine, l-glutamine acid, leucine, long chain glucose polymers, lysine, Magnesium, Manganese, medium chain triglycerides, methionine, Molybdenum, n-Aceyle-Glucosamine, Omega 3, ornithine, Para-Amino Acid, phenylanine, Phosphorus, Potassium, proline, red apple, Selenium, serine, Sodium, sweet potato, taurine, threonine, TMG, tyrosine, valine, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Vitamin H (biotin), White Willow Bark Extract, and Zinc. This means when you are using Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper, you can forego the additional cost of supplemental vitamins, minerals, amino acids, herbs, and many other useful ingredients

There is a saying, "If it ain't broken, don't fix it". This is the problem I face, my Max Immune Plus and Show Stopper products have produced excellent health in many of the top lofts in America today. I really have nothing to fix in these two products, yet I am always reviewing research papers for the latest developments in avian health. That is how I came across the ingredients for the new product (Five Star) that I am developing. You can read more about these new ingredients here!

If you read the article, you will find that my new ingredients do more that what the Improver and Antifungal products accomplish, they not only inhibit the Bad Bacteria, Fungus and Yeast, using the same methods as Improver, but they also have the added protection of working effectively against many Viruses and Protozoa infecting our birds.

The bottom line: Improver and Antifungal are good products and I recommend them to anyone in the sport. However, Max Immune Plus, Show Stopper and Five Star offer better protection at less than half the price of Improver and Antifungal and you do not need to use my products every day like you would need to use Improver and Antifungal. Read About Five Star here!


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