RE: [RC] "Feeding the Hoof"- Just Curious - Terry Banister
As with everything, not all information applies to all readers. I am
one of those still playing the "guessing game" with supplements because
I board my horse, and we buy hay in small quantities from different sources. But I know there
are some people on RC who buy bulk and round bales.
I did phone a couple of hay suppliers (Moorpark Hay and Chris Sommers)
this morning, and MP Hay said they "usually" have an analysis
available, but this last shipment did not come with one. CS said that the
Alfalfa comes with an analysis because the dairy farmers & ranchers
require it. It doesn't hurt to start asking.
I know there are minimum quantities required for some hay deliveries,
and sometimes several owners share a delivery load. That could be
practical to have analyzed.
In any case, the vitamin/mineral balance of the horse's diet is an important factor (but not always obvious) in hoof health. That balance has to be addressed in whatever way we can.
Terry
From: FXLivestock@xxxxxxx Date: Thu, 14 Aug 2008 19:29:01 -0400 Subject: Re: [RC] "Feeding the Hoof"- Just Curious To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
I really wonder how practical it is to test hay if you don't buy in
quantity. It seems that if you don't buy all your hay at one time and from
one source that testing would have to be done quite frequently depending on how
often you buy forage, where you buy, and where the broker is getting the
forage. I know when I used to buy in small quantities that quality of the
forage could change from load to load even if I was buying from the same feed
store.
I am not sure how practical it is for most horse owners in CA (who buy hay
by the bale or in small quantities several times a year) to invest in testing
forage. I know some horse owners that buy hay on a weekly
basis. Perhaps endurance riders would do this kind of testing but I
find it hard to believe that the average horse owner would do this.
Terry, do you know the amount (tonage) that most mills require to formulate
a concentrate ration for an individual horse owner? I was always under the
impression that it was quite a large amount but my experience was in a specific
ration that was being formulated for a large herd of Angora goats. Again,
I wonder how practical this is for the average horse owner.
It is great that all this information is available but I wonder how easy it
is to really put in practice considering that in many areas (again thinking of
So Cal) that there are very few choices when it comes to keeping horses.
