Webcast | Horse Under Stress? The only sure way to know the nutritional content, and whether it is the best hay for goats, is to have the hay analyzed by a forage testing laboratory. The higher the fiber content, the lower the digestibility (even if the protein level is high). VerticalScope Inc., 111 Peter, Suite 901, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 2H1, Canada. JavaScript is disabled. The pasture at the new barn is also much better. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. 1. Intake, rate of passage, performance, and reproduction by gestating and lactating Quarter Horse mares fed the hay was investigated. their owner or master buys the hay for them. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Introduction 2. Brome hay is good for smaller animals such as rabbits, guinea pigs etc. Do not graze in the spring until forage is 8 to 12 inches high and remove animals from pasture when 3 to 4 inch stubble height remains. So this is definitely a regional hay. Good grass hay … It has a great track record as a grazing species under irrigation in the arid Southern USA. Forage should be the foundation of every horse … Cool-season grasses … Good Horse Grass Crested Dog’s Tail. Productive, well-managed pastures can provide most of the feed requirements of horses for the least cost. Grass hay should be fertilized each year with nitrogen to be productive. Hey, hay is for horses! Mold can also cause digestive upsets in the horse. Many horses can develop permanent lung damage after consuming moldy or dusty hay. Detailed seeding dates and rates can be found in the Grain and Forage Crop Guide for Kentucky (AGR-18) at www.uky.edu/ag/forages or by contacting your local county Extension office. Equine Innovators: Feeding Horses With Dr. Laurie Lawrence, Case Study: Tumor-Laden Testicles Found in XY ‘Mare’, The One-Hour Solution to Improved Equine Pregnancy Rates, Two California Equines Contract Equine Influenza, Study: Nosebands Can Cause Nasal Bone Damage in Horses, Northeast Association of Equine Practitioners Symposium 2019, International Society for Equitation Science 2019, Podotrochlosis: ‘Navicular’ is No Longer the End of the Road for Horses, Core Vaccination: Protecting Horses From 5 Deadly Diseases. It does not do well in high temperatures. However, birdfoot trefoil, alfalfa, orchardgrass and bromegrass, are also well suited for horse pasture if rotational grazing is used. Posted by University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment | Oct 26, 2019 | Article, Hay, Pasture and Forages. At a Glance | The Good Drink: Keeping Horses Hydrated, incredible pony gelding for your christmas, University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Low-Dust Forages Essential for Asthmatic Horses, Recipes for Success: Formulating Equine Diets, Dynamic Endoscopy to Assess Airway Function. a. of crabgrass hay on DM yield, growth stage at harvest and nutritive characteristics (Beck et al., 2007. THAT MAKES SENSE. Hay Production Production of high-quality brome hay requires adequate fertility and timely cutting. horses do not get hay. Alfalfa is the most universally utilized legume hay fed to Oklahoma horses. then the human throws the hay on the ground for the horse to eat. When grass is not available, hay may make up the largest part of a horse's diet. Growing, breeding, or working horses require supplemental grain or concentrate to meet their additional nutrient requirements. Feeding horses hay before the initial turn out to pasture also decreases overconsumption of lush forage. It is low-growing and, therefore, low-yielding. Smooth Bromegrass – a perennial which grows well in a variety of soils. Natural Disaster: Are You and Your Horse Ready for Emergency Evacuation? Alfalfa Hay (also known as Legume Hay) averages 21.2% protein and 11% NSC (simple starches). Learn why hay is so important to horse owners. Matua bromegrass hay (Bromus willdenowii Kunth) is a high quality forage, but its value for mares during gestation and lactation is not well known. A holding area or dry lot for such occasions is recommended. Horse mares fed Matua bromegrass or Alfalfa hay during Experiment 1. Since bromegrass is a long-stemmed grass rather than turf (lawn) grass, it is most commonly dried, bundled and used as hay for horses and other livestock. This is a very common grass especially in dry areas and is great for horses. Kentucky bluegrass is very winter hardy but does not tolerate hot, dry summers found further south. For most horse owners, feeding a horse is the major cost of ownership. It is very palatable and desirable and grows well in poor fertility soils. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Come join the discussion about breeding, grooming, reviews, health, behavior, housing, adopting, care, classifieds, and more! Some types of mold may cause colic or can cause a pregnant mare to abort. Brome Grass Hay is a great feed source not only for younger and active horses, but also suits the needs for older and lightly worked horses, horses kept in stalls, and those benefiting from slow, all-day feeding – it provides the additional fiber less-active horses need for chewing and weight management. Producing quality hay, however, eliminates producing a seed crop. We went out to the hay shed on both of my visits to the new barn and BO tore open a few bales and showed us all the hay, very clean. Timothy: The best Timothy hay … Matua Prairie brome (Bromus wildenowii Kunth) is a very widely adapted prairie bromegrass. Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress. There are cereal grain hays too, such as oat or barley hay, which are different nutritionally than typical grass hays, but they also fall under the grass hay … Grass type horse hays have a lower nutritional value than legumes, but are considered ‘safe’ hays, because it is harder for a horse … Alfalfa can also be grazed, but it usually is not an economically feasible alternative. Good pasture alone is sufficient to meet all of the nutritional requirements for many classes of horses. Mold and dust can inflame the respiratory tract and impair breathing. If grazed, it appears that rotational stocking … Smooth brome hay can be an extremely high-quality forage if harvested at the bloom stage. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Caution to Hay Producers, Livestock Owners, Farmers, and Home Gardeners Many farmers and home gardeners have reported damage to vegetable and flower crops after applying horse or livestock manure, compost, hay, or grass clippings to the soil. If you continue to use the site, we'll assume you're okay with this. To improve forage quality, remove uneaten clumps, unpalatable growth, and weeds by clipping. • Small-grain hay is useful for horses who suffer from hyperkalemic periodic paralysis, a genetic disorder that affects certain Quarter Horses and causes uncontrolled muscle contractions, weakness and even paralysis. Horses challenged by metabolic syndrome should be offered hays that are low in non-structural … Horses need long-stem fiber to remain healthy - in a perfect situation horses will graze for approximately 18 hours per day. Horses should consume at least 1 percent of their body weight in hay or pasture grasses and legumes each day. As such, it is not an ideal forage for hay, but it excellent for horse pasture. Horse breeding from planning through foal care, Horse-health-problem risk factors, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, Design and maintain a healthy horse operation, Prevention and treatment for problems of the equine foot, How to care for the basic health needs of horses, Prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of leg lameness, Proper feeding practices for foals, adult horses, and older horses, All aspects of caring for performance horses, News and issues for equine health professionals, Discussions about the welfare of our equine friends, Virginia Tech Improves and Expands its Equine Neurologic Treatment Stall, UK Ag Equine Programs Leadership Transitions to MacLeod. "Mix" could be … The equine digestive system is designed to extract nutrients from grass. Further north it does well as a grass companion in hay fields. Kentucky bluegrass, orchardgrass and timothy are all examples of common grasses used for hay. Grass Hay averages 10.8% protein and 12.9% NSC. Effect of harvest interval. Then, if needed, BO will feed soaked alfalfa cubes as well. Bromegrass takes some specific care during planting and growing. Matua bromegrass (Bromus willdenowii Kunth. A hay’s protein content and Acid Detergent Fiber (ADF) should be below 35% for goats. Grazing is not recommended when the soil is wet and muddy as the horses' hooves can cause damage to the small forage seedlings. Heaves is a common respiratory problem that occurs when a horse consumes moldy or dusty hay. TABLE 1. Horses evolved as a grazing animal, which means that they are meant to nibble on small amounts of food over the course of an entire day, and most of this food should be in the form of roughage, or hay. Then they plead with me to give them something else. It has some resistance to wet or soil low in pH. High-quality, properly fenced pastures are one of the best and least expensive sources of summer feed for a horse. All three are part of UK’s Department of Plant and Soil Sciences. This abundance of choices can lead to confusion when deciding which species is best for a … Like most horse owners, Kathleen Crandell, Ph.D., has opened hundreds of bales of hay during her lifetime of owning and caring for horses. Brome for Sale. Many horse owners select hay for their horses based on what they think looks good or on what they have been told is good. NEW Equine Pasture Max – An all grass blend for horse owners providing a palatable grazing option from spring to late fall. Fructan is a type of carbohydrate that plants accumulate and store for energy. Forage should be the foundation of every horse ration. Stay up-to-date on the latest news about your horse's health with FREE newsletters from TheHorse.com. Forage seeding-rate recommendations for horse pastures (in pounds of pure live seed per acre). In November I was part of a webinar series on hay for horses and other livestock, the topics covered included the current hay market, testing hay for nutrient quality, what type of hay is best for horses and other farm animals. Opinions vary all the way from believing that timothy is an essential part of every horse ration to that which insists on alfalfa for all horses. Kentucky bluegrass is well-adapted to the cool, humid growing conditions found in Kentucky and throughout the transition zone of the Eastern United States and most northern states. Timothy – is a perennial and very palatable to horses. I don’t give in – mainly because I usually don’t have anything else… And the next morning, all the hay is gone, along with their bravado and curled lips. SOMETHING TO DILUTE THE HIGH PROTEIN. More information on Gluck Equine Research Center and UK Ag Equine Programs. 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