Walking On Volume 3, Issue 10, Nov./Dec. 2016 | Page 14

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Six Signs of Good Quality Horse Hay

By Purina Animal Nutrition Use these six helpful tips when choosing hay for your horse .
Forage makes up between 50 and 90 percent or more of a horse ’ s diet . Much of the forage part of the diet comes in the form of hay . Because it ’ s such a big part of the ration , good quality hay can help keep a horse healthy , while poor quality hay can be detrimental .
“ As nutritionists and horse owners , we put a big emphasis on the quality of hay we feed ,” says Gina M . Fresquez , technical specialist for Equine Technical Services at Purina Animal Nutrition .
“ The most important factor determining hay quality is the stage of plant maturity at time of harvest ,” says Fresquez . “ Young , immature plants contain more nutrients than older , stemmier plants . Though after hay is harvested , the level of hay quality goes beyond the age of the plant at harvest as there are more factors to consider .”
When selecting your horse ’ s forage , Fresquez recommends keeping these six signs of good quality hay in mind : 1 . HIGH LEAF-TO-STEM RATIO
Think about the leafy greens you eat . You likely prefer greens with leaves rather than just stems . The same is true for your horse .
“ Look for more flat leaves in the hay and fewer round stems ; this indicates the plant was less mature when cut ,” says Fresquez . “ More leaves typically mean higher digestibility and nutrient content for your horse .” 2 . SMALL DIAMETER STEMS
Stems smaller in diameter or finer are also indicators of higher quality . Small stems mean the plant was less mature when cut .
To test stem size , Fresquez recommends grabbing a handful of hay and giving it a squeeze .
“ Good quality hay is soft and pliable , and feels good in your hand ,” says Fresquez . “ If it feels like you ’ re squeezing a handful of sticks , it is not a good choice of hay to feed your horse .” 3 . FEW SEED HEADS OR BLOOMS
No matter the species of plant , hay with little to no seed heads or blooms indicates a younger , early maturity plant , and thus a higher quality hay . For example , timothy should be cut in the pre-bloom or early-bloom
stage when you see little to no seed heads ; and alfalfa 14 • Walking On
( for horses ) should be cut at early to mid-bloom stage . 4 . FRESH SMELL AND APPEARANCE
Avoid musty , moldy or off-setting smelling hay , because it can reduce palatability and indicate poor quality . “ On our farm , there ’ s nothing like haying season ,” comments Fresquez . “ We love the smell of fresh hay . The same is true for your horse . Good quality hay should have a fresh cut smell and appearance .” 5 . CLEANLINESS
Hay should be primarily made up of the harvested forages . Fresquez recommends looking for a clean forage with little to no dust . Even if most the hay is high quality , hays containing dirt , mold , weeds , trash or other foreign materials indicate poorer quality hay and may be unfit to feed to horses . 6 . COLOR
Good quality hay should be bright green in color with little fading . A bleached , yellow , brown or black color may indicate aged hay , mold or poor storage conditions . “ Storage conditions and age have a significant effect on vitamin content of hays ,” says Fresquez . “ Many vitamins , such as vitamins A and E , are not stable over time and lose biological activity . After approximately six months , almost all vitamin A and E activity levels are lost .” Exposure to heat , sunlight and rain will speed up this process .
When good quality hay for your horse is scarce or too costly , you may need to compensate for poorer quality hay . In some cases , increasing the amount of feed to provide calories and nutrients not provided by lesser quality hay may be adequate to meet your horse ’ s needs . However , in some situations it is most beneficial to replace most or all hay in the horse ’ s diet with a feed designed for that purpose . Complete feeds , such as Purina ® Equine Junior ®, Equine Adult ®, Equine Senior ®, and Omolene # 400 Complete Advantage offer built-in forage for situations require a replacement for some or all hay in a horse ’ s diet .
For more information on horse nutrition , visit www . purinamills . com / horse-feed or connect with Purina Horse Feed on Facebook or Pinterest .