More Hay choice

[LittleRibbie]

Tons of rain here lately and Im attempting to let pastures dry out so I am putting horses in other pastures that do not have alot of grass but are dry. They are all now getting O/A @ 15.75 a bale but would like to give them something else to satisfy their urge to graze thru the day. And would not cost as much.

Timothy 13.00

20/80 Alfalfa Grass 13.00

Prairie Grass (?) 11.50

Coastal 7.00.....this is really IMO much to fine...almost like string

T/A 14.00....not as soft but not terriblly stalky either.

I dont want them to all get big hay belly's but I want to be able to pick at something during the day. with the bulk of their hay being the O/A am and pm

The also get Strategy.

Thanks for your opinions,

heidi

 

[Charlotte]

We have fed costal bermuda many times with no problems. Just like any diet change, do it slowly over a period of days.

Now me, I simply love a good prairie hay! Blue stem is my favorite and I want an early cut that isn't all stem. Nice and leafy. I have run into people selling 'prarie hay' that was just junk and weeds cut off the road sides. not good!

Once horses are adjusted to the prarie hay most can have it free choice with not too much trouble of excessive weight gain.

So, that is one opinion.

Charlotte

 

[Becky]

I feed prairie hay here and much prefer it over bermuda. I've been lucky here this year as what I've been buying is bright, clean and green with a lot of bluestem and NO WEEDS! The horses actually prefer it over bermuda. All of my horses are fed that from the breeding herd to the show horses.

 

[Miniv]

Not sure what prairie hay is....... We have a grass hay in our area that is called "pasture grass" and it's just a mix of all sorts of different grasses. It's what we grow and feed our own herd. It also includes a little clover and wild alfalfa. Is that similar to your "prairie hay"?

Before we moved to this part of Oregon, we lived west of the Cascades and the best hay in that area was Timothy.

Every region seems to be different.

 

[LittleRibbie]

Thanks, I had never heard of Prairie I think I'll have to go see it. After lots of tel calls this AM I was able to find O/A for 10.00 with only a 20 bale min. Thats better than what I normally would pay. Maybe I will be able to just give them the O/A if it stays this cheap......I know...some of you lucky folks only have to pay 5.00....wish I lived where the hay was alittle cheaper!

Thanks

 

[Alex]

I have always liked a grass hay with some alfalfa in it. Timothy is usually very nice too.

But, honestly, with those prices I would be looking for the hay that was decent and for the best price. My grass hay mix that has a little bit of everything in it is $2.50 a bale! There isn't really any stalks, once in a while I'll get a few coarser peices and small stalks but it is very few and easy to pick out. Very green, fine, an leafy.

 

[Minimor]

Prairie hay is plentiful around here; as a rule our horses don't like it. If it's mixed with alfalfa they pick out the alfalfa and leave the rest. If it's straight prairie hay they nose through it & then look for the real hay. But, as extra feed/"grazing hay" it works well--they can pick through it and eat some of it if they get hungry; no worries about them overeating on it.

 

[LittleRibbie]

Thanks Minimor, Prairie is now going to be on my list of hays/grass to check out....this is a new feed store and they are carrying alot of hays Im not familiar with. Going tomorrow to give it the old squeeze test. Thanks again

heidi

 

[Sandy B]

Tons of rain here lately and Im attempting to let pastures dry out so I am putting horses in other pastures that do not have alot of grass but are dry. They are all now getting O/A @ 15.75 a bale but would like to give them something else to satisfy their urge to graze thru the day. And would not cost as much.Timothy 13.00

20/80 Alfalfa Grass 13.00

Prairie Grass (?) 11.50

Coastal 7.00.....this is really IMO much to fine...almost like string

T/A 14.00....not as soft but not terriblly stalky either.

I dont want them to all get big hay belly's but I want to be able to pick at something during the day. with the bulk of their hay being the O/A am and pm

The also get Strategy.

Thanks for your opinions,

heidi

Thanks Heidi for asking this question. As a newbie to minis, I feel like I am starving mine. I am used to keeping feed in front of my reining horses almost all day. I feed alfalfa/orchard mix. When I got the minis, what I thought was only 1.5 to 2 pounds of hay was much more. I have now started using a scale to weigh the feed. I am going off the suggested 1 to 2% of their body weight as an amount to feed. The two boys we are fitting to show are longed and worked in hand for about 20 minutes a day and did need to lose a little bit of weight. They get a complete pellet ( 1 pound) in the am and a few handfuls of hay, and in the evening they get about 1.5 pounds of hay. They act like they are starving to death. Is there any hay (that is available in California) that I can give them that they can graze on and pick on and satisfy their grazing nature. We typically have rye grass, meadow grass, 3 grain, orchard and oat hay available. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[jegray21]

We use a toy that you can put alfalfa cubes in and they roll it around. Takes all day and they think they are grazing....