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Post by peggyloo on May 23, 2006 15:35:01 GMT -1
we currently feed felix alfa lite as he wont eat straw chaff and sorts through hi etc to get to the green bits.....
he has it with his top spec feed balancer.
a few people have said that natives shouldnt be fed alfalfa as its not good for them due to high protein and laminitis.
the studs i worked at in australia fed it in hay form all the time to their welsh ponies and they didnt have a problem.Although they didnt feed it to the stallions as they believed it causes a crest neck....
What are other opinions on feeding alfa to native types.
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Post by ruth on May 23, 2006 16:46:40 GMT -1
I use simple systems feeds and most of what I have been using over winter is alfalfa based, I remember big discussions a while ago about this which started in America stating the dangers of it, but I seem to remember the amount we would feed is perfectly ok. Jane Van Lennep at Simple Systems is very knowledgable and would explain all if you were worried.
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Post by shaklana on May 23, 2006 17:01:04 GMT -1
it's a good food for natives. it's low in sugars which are the main cause (in excess) of laminitis. overfeeding protein does not cause laminitis. there have been trials where enormous quantities were fed to horses and ponies without triggering laminitis. overfeeding carbs however caused laminitis in almost all horses.
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Post by harleydales on May 23, 2006 18:22:01 GMT -1
I know someone who has a filed that had alfalfa on it as a crop, and there's a lot of it in the grass. She has a Shetland on it, and he's never had any problems
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Post by khristyne on May 28, 2006 12:48:08 GMT -1
I agree with Alison. I would feed according to work and condition. I wouldnt give natives cereals unless they are working REALLY hard and need them.
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Post by Debbie on May 28, 2006 19:59:20 GMT -1
We went over this on the old board, and basically what it came down to is the feeding methods (and I daresay the quality of the alfalfa) is far different in the UK, from what it is in the US. In the US alfalfa can and has caused problems with horses (let alone natives). I think you need to look at your own pony and decide upon protein levels needed, and how many calories you're aiming for rather than a blanket decision of whether or not a certain type of hay is 'good' or 'bad' for your particular pony.
I think any of the nutritionists working for a feed company would obviously be pushing their brand, but would be a good starting place for deciding on a feeding regime.
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Post by shaklana on May 29, 2006 7:46:15 GMT -1
debbie, when people feed alfalfa here in uk, they mean feeding small quantities, usually a couple of kilo's at the most. we feed it in place of a bucket feed of say oats or cereal mix. the only alfalfa hay available in uk is imported from canada or south africa and costs over £1/kg, 10x the cost of grass hay. it's viewed as a complimentary feed rather than a main fibre source.
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Post by Debbie on May 29, 2006 14:53:44 GMT -1
My point exactly, in the UK its used as a complimentary, or a supplement feed...and yet here in the US, the alfalfa is used as a MAIN source of food. And that's why the articles.
I'm not sure about the alfalfa in the UK or Canada, but here in the US, alfalfa has been worked with for quite sometime and 'improved' as a quality hay ~ for dairy cattle. The dietary needs for a lactating, or growing beef cattle are FAR different than those of horses. And yet, the farmers still continue to feed the exact same hay to their horses because its there. It is only recently that people are beginning to question whether the improved alfalfa is indeed safe for their horses...and why all these articles are surfacing about how bad alfalfa is ~ again, in the context of feeding this improved alfalfa as basically the only source of food...
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