Try keeping the hay or pasture mixture about 50-50 grass and legume to avoid feeding too much straight legume to horses. As a general rule of thumb, grass hay is best for horses—alfalfa or other legume hay can be an excellent feed to mix with grass hay for animals that need more protein. Horse Hay Bank Resources. High-quality, properly fenced pastures are one of the best and least expensive sources of summer feed for a horse. In fact, horses can live outdoors comfortably in temperatures as low as 30 degrees below zero Fahrenheit, so long as they're given plenty of hay, ample unfrozen water and simple shelter designed to protect against the particular bad-weather patterns of their locale. Some believe that increasing grain will keep a horse … A Horses winter coat is also naturally greasy, which helps it repel snow, ice, and sleet. As animals switch from moisture-rich grass to drier hay, water consumption is important not only for hydration but … Provide as much turn out as possible. I try to ensure all the horses have plenty of condition on them — it helps with their ‘central heating’. A change of horse diet onto lush green feed or lucerne hay may precipitate mild diarrhea that will firm up with time or another minor feed change. You can even perform a hay analysis to check crude protein, fiber, energy, and mineral content. Grass type horse hays have a lower nutritional value than legumes, but are considered ‘safe’ hays, because it is harder for a horse to over eat or have a reaction to grass hay. To see prices and customer reviews view the links below. Planning ahead for how much hay is needed for feeding all winter is essential for maintaining healthy horses. The best way to warm your horse from the inside is to increase the hay content in his diet. Alfalfa is the first choice as a legume seeded for hay or pasture. Expert Advice on Selecting Hay. Transitioning horses to a hay diet during the cold weather months may lead to deficiencies in key nutrients and a need for supplementation. Here are some helpful hints on how to store hay for the winter. Third Cut Hay. Aside from pasture, hay is the predominant forage consumed by horses, so its value in equine diets is unquestionable. Although not a nutrient, horses require a nominal amount of fiber for normal gastrointestinal … An additional benefit to grass hay is that is easier on the kidney's due to it's lower protein content and it tends to have finer stems, making it easier to chew and digest…..nice for senior horses. You can use bran, beet pulp, a "Senior" formulation horse feed, or hay cubes or pellets. Our clients are educated and can not afford to take risks. However, a lot of horses do just fine on quality 1st cutting hay. “My horses live out without rugs through the winter. Third cut hay is really soft and super leafy. Though it is sometimes tempting to allow animals to forage later or earlier in the year, it is best to remember that this can damage pastures and keep them from reaching peak production during the growing season—a topic for another blog. The top rated seed mixes are designed for the specific nutritional needs of horses and made to germinate quickly. As nature slips toward dormancy in winter, hay becomes the forage of choice for most horses. If you have a hard keeper or senior horse, then this may be a good idea. If the horse is being fed all the hay it will consume and weight loss is still a problem, better quality hay or forage should be substituted for all or part of the current hay source. The best alfalfa is cut more on the early side, and horses LOVE to eat it! Alfalfa is also a good winter feed because heat is created by digestion of protein, so a horse can keep warmer on a cold night. While pasture may be best, pasture grass may not be adequate during hot weather, drought or winter conditions and this means owners need to feed hay. The free choice grass hay will provide calories as well as the needed fiber to help keep your horse warm through the winter. Where wet soils require alternatives, try bird’s-foot trefoil. Alfalfa, like most other legumes, is generally higher in crude protein, digestibility, and minerals when compared to grasses. For example – avoid feeding overly mature and stemmy hay, provide plenty of fresh clean water at all times and gradually make the switch from alfalfa or other hay types to bermudagrass (this allows the horse to slowly become adjusted to the new fiber source). Good quality hay contains 12%–20% crude protein; grasses are at the lower end of this range, legumes and annual forage at the upper. Livestock Winter Hay Needs. Horse Health Care. Horses grazing poor pasture, mainly late summer pasture that is dry and short, may develop a watery post-defecation discharge. A high quality horse pasture seed mix is an important investment in your horse’s health. Horses thrive in the winter chill that makes us reluctant to leave our houses. Legume hay is higher in protein, energy, calcium and vitamin A than grass hays. Grass Hay for Horses Kentucky bluegrass, orchardgrass and timothy are all examples of common grasses used for hay. When allowed to grow, a horse's natural hair coat acts as a very effective thermal blanket, it increases both in length and density as the days grow shorter. Provide your mini with good quality, soft hay at least twice a day. https://stablemanagement.com/articles/estimating-winter-hay-horses-30422 Be sure to feel your horse’s body on a weekly basis, especially in the winter, to be sure he is not getting too fat or too thin. Answer: An adult horse at maintenance will consume between 2 – 2.5% of their bodyweight in feed (hay and grain) each day. Productive, well-managed pastures can provide most of the feed requirements of horses for the least cost. The second cut has slightly higher fat and protein contents and is lower in fibre. If conditions require that digestible energy be increased by 20%, then the horse should be fed an additional 3 Mcal of energy (15 Mcal X 20% = 3 Mcal) each day. This process is critical to winter survival. At the same time, p… We supply hay for top performing horses, breeding facilities large and small to the back yard horse owner. Soaking the forage is a good idea for any horse with a history of choke, whether feeding cubes or loose hay. It's not okay to feed just any dried fodder to horses. A well-kept pasture also is the most natural and healthy environment for exercise and rest. Benefits: Grass hay is lower in protein and energy than legume hay — but it’s also higher in fiber, which can make it a good choice for many horses. Annual ryegrass primarily works as a high-protein winter food to feed horses when hay shortages occur in the southeastern United States. Fill the bucket with hot water from the tap in your house. Hay banks help feed horses when their owners are temporarily unable to. Older horses that don’t chew thoroughly, aren’t producing a normal amount of saliva, or have swallowing problems or abnormal motility in their esophagus could have problems with cubes but would also have problems with loose hay. Second cut hay is the hay most people feed their horses. Better quality hays are typically higher calorie hays such as alfalfa compared to grass hay. During cold months, the horse’s digestion converts feedstuffs into energy that results in body heat. One good recipe is to put 7 or 8 compressed hay cubes in a clean bucket with a lid, such as a cat litter bucket. Many horse owners jump at the chance to purchase 2nd. For more sensitive metabolic and/or laminitic horses and ponies, however, it is often necessary to reduce the sugar content of hay, so that total Non-Structural Carbohydrates (NSC) – basically sugars plus starch, are 10% or less. Senior horses may have additional challenges in the winter due to decreased ability to chew or digest hay. Here’s how to advise your clients when it comes to winter feeding. The addition of the Nutrena Senior feed will help provide additional calories as well as pre and probiotics, biotin, added fat, not to … This is the standard go-to hay for adults horses and should smell good even to us humans. Because the horse is a herbivore, the majority of its diet can consist of roughages. While hay alone may not meet the total dietary requirements of young, growing horses or those used for high levels of performance, high-quality hay may supply ample nutrition for less active adult horses. Purina ® Equine Senior ® horse feed can help with digestion, absorption of nutrients and meet elevated fiber and calorie requirements without depending on forage. During certain times of year, hay may be the only forage available to horses and therefore the selection of well-preserved hay harvested at the appropriate stage of maturity is … Annual Ryegrass. The horses winter coat is a horse's first defense from the cold. Exceptions would be hard-working horses and young horses where a fast growth rate is desired. Because I’ve always boarded my horses, I’m not sure how to estimate how much hay I will need for the winter. From Horse & Rider magazine. Here is the quick list for my picks for the best horse pasture seed mix on more time. Alfalfa has lots … That is why they buy from Hay … Hay is the most important supplementary feed and the primary source of fiber for horses. There are more leaves on the stems than the first cut; the stems are also thinner. All cuttings can result in good-quality horse hay! Hay USA Inc. feeds a wide variety of horses. Feeding hay to laminitic horses or ponies. Jennie Ivey, University of Tennessee Extension equine specialist, says ideally, a horse should consume between 1.5 percent to 2 percent of their body weight of hay … Here’s a list of the most common hays found in the United States (alphabetical order): Alfalfa: This is by far the most common legume used as hay for horses. Horse Health Care. High quality pastures or hays are excellent sources of energy, protein and vitamins necessary for a balanced ration. Texas Call 1800-4-HAY-USA for current retail and full load prices. Good quality pasture plus free choice trace mineralized salt and water can supply the nutrients needed by many classes of horses. The grass also grows in coastal Pacific Northwest meadows, although using it for hay is not recommended. Sometimes ranchers overseed warm season perennial grass to help extend the grazing season. While many owners use color in determining hay quality, forage analysis provides an objective report of hay quality. It’s a well-established fact that a horse who is kept in a stall … Good pasture alone is sufficient to meet all of the nutritional requirements for many classes of horses. In all other respects, the horse is generally healthy. Alfalfa hay that is fed to horses must be free from the presence of blister beetles to be a safe forage (see Forage Toxicity section). Months may lead to deficiencies in key nutrients and a need for supplementation vitamins for... Can provide most of the feed requirements of horses horse is a horse … Call... 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