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 Rescue Rat
Posts: 2844
   
Location: Louisiana | Im feeding bluebonnet intensify (perform and growth) but it will soon be not as avalible in my area. So i am having to re group my feeding program. I was thinking about a alfafa base diet with good quality hay and minimal grain. Just wanting to get opionions on this. I have a WIDE variety of horse from a stallion, broomares, babies, yearling and competition up to seniors AND minis. |
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| Alfalfa+rice bran=beautiful maintenance combo |
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 Swiffer PIcker Upper
Posts: 4015
Location: Four Corners Colorado | I've done it in the past free choice ton bales and I am thinking of going back to it if I can find a goods safe free choice mineral to balance it out. |
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  Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | I think a diet of only alfalfa isnt good for the minis..their lil bodies cant metabolize it as well. |
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Expert
Posts: 1695
Location: Willows, CA | Like any hay type, alfalfa has it's good and bad points. It is easier on most ulcer horses because of the higher calcium. It also has some good applications on pssm horses as a partial component of the roughage in the diet. Not a very good deal on IR or Cushings horses. The super high protein and calcium testing alfalfa can be a very bad thing for OCD or Epiphysitis in young horses. I am sure that you know that you need to be very careful where your alfalfa comes from in your part of the country. Beyond that, I see quite a few diets that are based on alfalfa. While some sources are very high in protein, there is plenty produced that can make good horse hay. I really like some alfalfa in a coastal burmuda or other grass based diet. I am in Northern CA and it is easier to get alfalfa here than good grass hay. Lots of horses live their whole long healthy life without ever seeing anything else. That being said, I would rather see a blend if that works with what is available. |
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Queen Bean of Ponyland
Posts: 24955
Location: WYOMING | Alfalfa and rice bran  |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | I feed alfalfa and rice bran in place of grain and am *very* happy with it. |
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 Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| We grow alfalfa so that is mainly what we feed. Depending on the job and amount of riding time, we might supplement with grain, 2lbs or less per day. Broodmares and young horses spend a majority of their time turned out to grass pasture with access to round bales. If the young horses are gathered off of pasture we are careful about their diets as was mentioned because of the possibility of OCD lesions and epiphysitis. We like to also have a good quality grass hay so that we can feed that along with the alfalfa and a foal specific feed. We have a couple of ponies, and do not feed them alfalfa. Alfalfa is probably the most available hay in our area, so it is the main forage for many horses. I like how well our horses maintain a good body condition. |
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 Hog Tie My Mojo
Posts: 4847
Location: Opelousas, LA | 4x4performancehorses - 2015-08-19 4:50 PM Im feeding bluebonnet intensify (perform and growth) but it will soon be not as avalible in my area. So i am having to re group my feeding program. I was thinking about a alfafa base diet with good quality hay and minimal grain. Just wanting to get opionions on this. I have a WIDE variety of horse from a stallion, broomares, babies, yearling and competition up to seniors AND minis.
I sale prepped my yearlings on BB Intensify growth and development and they looked and felt awesome. The two I bought back came home and are now almost completely off the BB and are eating mostly Danco Omnis cubes and grass hay. They still look good and what really suprised me is that the snotty nose, yearling sale crud that usually lasts a few weeks cleared up in less than a week. Not sure if the cubes had anything to do with that but I really thought they would not get over it until early Sept. |
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 Texas Taco
Posts: 7499
Location: Bandera, TX | I feed alfalfa cubes and pellets with Renew Gold. They look good. Thinking about adding some oats too.
They also get costal hay. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 851
Location: West Texas | I feel that alfalfa is the best forage God ever invented. The vast majority of performance horse trainers feed alfalfa as the sole or main forage ration, in some form or fashion. Many feed it as the sole feeding ration, although many of those use a cube when doing that.
Personal preference drives much of what is considered best, from laymen to nutrition "experts". Straight alfalfa along with no concentrate or reduced concentrate is a truly great program. Are there other good programs? Yes, indeed.
I can say that you will not be doing anything out of the ordinary by trying it. I think you will find many benefits to a mostly or all alfalfa diet. There are a lot of top quality horses out there that have never been on anything else, and never will be a reason to. Good luck! |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 600
Location: Oklahoma & Texas | I feed premium alfalfa as the base for all my horses and they all look great...they get alfalfa morning noon and night and then am and pm they also get renew gold and free choice coastal hay and then omegahorseshine,a little little msm and electrolytes too...they've never looked better! |
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 Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| My vet said his ideal feed program is alfalfa and pasture. I feed Omis cubes 1 x day with renew gold, they have 100 acres to graze. I have not fed grain in years |
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 I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets? |
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 I hate cooking and cleaning
Posts: 3314
Location: Jersey Girl | I grain my horses once a day. I have 2 geldings, one 8 the other 23. They get a bale of good quality have between them and a flake each of alfalfa. I will prob be switching to the cubes soon tho.
I use a 13oz coffee can to scoop feed, the younger one gets 3 scoops and the older one 1 scoop. I also have them on Equipride. They are fat and happy! They are turned out 24/7 on "pasture" (using that term loosely) there is grass buy only enough to keep them busy no real substance to it.
Edited by fulltiltfilly 2015-08-20 9:14 AM
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 795
Location: GODS country | CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:09 AM
Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets?
I have done both alfalfa hay and the cubes and I am on cubes right now and plan to stick with that. My performance horses also get some oats and Platinum Performance with their rice bran. |
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I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | ecranch - 2015-08-20 7:53 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:09 AM Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets? I have done both alfalfa hay and the cubes and I am on cubes right now and plan to stick with that. My performance horses also get some oats and Platinum Performance with their rice bran.
Do you soak them? |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 795
Location: GODS country | CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:56 AM
ecranch - 2015-08-20 7:53 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:09 AM Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets? I have done both alfalfa hay and the cubes and I am on cubes right now and plan to stick with that. My performance horses also get some oats and Platinum Performance with their rice bran.
Yes, I cover them with water and soak usually about 30 minutes and then I have an older gelding that needs the soaked over night. I know that some people do not soak them, but I have had one choke, so I always do. |
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I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | ecranch - 2015-08-20 8:05 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:56 AM ecranch - 2015-08-20 7:53 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:09 AM Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets? I have done both alfalfa hay and the cubes and I am on cubes right now and plan to stick with that. My performance horses also get some oats and Platinum Performance with their rice bran. Yes, I cover them with water and soak usually about 30 minutes and then I have an older gelding that needs the soaked over night. I know that some people do not soak them, but I have had one choke, so I always do.
Thank you for answering all of my questions :) When you soak what do you do in the winter when it freezes? |
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Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | If you use hot water they are mushy and soup within 15- 30 minutes..just break them up.. |
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Texas Taco
Posts: 7499
Location: Bandera, TX | CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 8:21 AM ecranch - 2015-08-20 8:05 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:56 AM ecranch - 2015-08-20 7:53 AM CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 7:09 AM Those that feed alfalfa and rice bran. Are you feeding flakes cubes or pellets? I have done both alfalfa hay and the cubes and I am on cubes right now and plan to stick with that. My performance horses also get some oats and Platinum Performance with their rice bran. Yes, I cover them with water and soak usually about 30 minutes and then I have an older gelding that needs the soaked over night. I know that some people do not soak them, but I have had one choke, so I always do.
Mine get cubes at night and alfalfa pellets in the morning - I don't have time to soak in the mornings. At night I just cover them with water and let them sit for a few minutes. When it is really cold in the winter I use warm water - they love that. |
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 Party Girl
Posts: 12293
Location: Buffalo, Wyoming | Mine are on all they can eat alfalfa and they look great. We have a big feeder that we put a full 3X3 in and that last them about 2 weeks.
I once had a conversation with a well known vet in this area and he told me this. He said with as good of alfalfa hay as he grow out here a horse shouldn't need any grain. |
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I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | I'm thinking of doing soaked alfalfa cubes, flax, and rice bran oil. I'm not sure how much to give of each? How many lbs a day do you feed omni cubes? |
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 Jr. Detective
Location: Beggs, OK | CE's wrapn3 - 2015-08-20 9:29 AM I'm thinking of doing soaked alfalfa cubes, flax, and rice bran oil. I'm not sure how much to give of each? How many lbs a day do you feed omni cubes?
We feed our cubes at an average rate of 1.5% of the horses body weight, some of ours only get 1%. The recommended rate on flax is 8oz a day and I think most people only feed 1/4 cup of oil a day. |
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Jr. Detective
Location: Beggs, OK | We have actually cut back on our feeding rates on the Omnis cubes. Pj's mares were getting fat on them, lol. The horses that are in the barn during the day get 10# in the mornings and another 5# in the evening before they go out on pasture at night. |
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 Pork Fat is my Favorite
Posts: 3791
Location: The Oklahoma plains. | UTAHCANCHASER - 2015-08-20 9:15 AM Mine are on all they can eat alfalfa and they look great. We have a big feeder that we put a full 3X3 in and that last them about 2 weeks.
I once had a conversation with a well known vet in this area and he told me this. He said with as good of alfalfa hay as he grow out here a horse shouldn't need any grain.
I think it is a great concept! I agree- I think Utah has some primo alfalfa and if I lived there- I wouldnt hesitate to feed straight alfalfa! You are very lucky. Here in the southern states- the chances of blister beetles are of high concern. And although rare, I still no longer gamble. The freight on northern hay just wont work for us as far as cost to feed it in baled form.
I thought soaking was necessary based on what so many have suggested but our horses didnt prefer a soaked one vs non soaked. We have a great supply of safe quality hay so we just feed alfalfa as a treat. |
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 Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
Location: In The Snow, AZ | We were just feeding alfalfa. All the horses could eat. Plus a rice bran/beet pulp mash. My mare would never finish her alfalfa. Was healthy and shiny. But we've recently added free choice Bermuda and/or Timothy grass hay. She has never looked better. She put on probably 50 lbs and feels good. |
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"Heck's Coming With Me"
Posts: 10797
Location: Kansas | I just bought 60 bales of beautiful alfalfa for two senior horses. They seem to love it and are also on pasture and grain but that fear of blister beetles is on my mind all the time. |
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12708
| I replaced grain only with Montana alfalfa for all but my broodie (she is on full ration bagged plus the alfalfa). They still get a handful of grain in the evening for their vitamin. They also still get timothy hay. They get 5-6# alfalfa, about 1# bagged, and 12-15# timothy. My guys are looking the best they have for years on this and the diet is very balanced. I do have a few that I top their bagged pound with rice bran - the broodie for extra weight and my competition horses for coat quality. |
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10D Crack Champion
| I would love to know what the top 15 in each NFR timed event feed.........not what they advertise or who sponsors them, but what they truly feed, hay included. I assume they actually feed the brand that sponsors them.
Edited by sodapop 2015-08-20 11:42 PM
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The Resident Destroyer of Liberal Logic
Location: PNW | I feed alfalfa pellets with Renew Gold during the summer. My gelding is on 24/7 turnout on about 20 acres of PRIMO pasture. I don't feed hay of any kind during the summer.
During the winter, half of our pasture floods, which obviously cuts his grazing. During the winter I continue to feed the pellets/Renew Gold (I soak this into a mash), and then at night my gelding comes in (because it is almost always raining) and he gets as much alfalfa as he can put away. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 550
| sodapop - 2015-08-21 12:40 AM
I would love to know what the top 15 in each NFR timed event feed.........not what they advertise or who sponsors them, but what they truly feed, hay included. I assume they actually feed the brand that sponsors them.
Every year in the Barrel Horse News they have an article on the top 15 that tells who they ride, what kind of saddle, boots, and what they feed. It's always an interesting read to me. I think most of them do feed alfalfa. I do sometimes wonder if they only feed those feeds because those are their sponsors, or if they truly liked those best & the sponsorships came laters. |
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Member
Posts: 5
| My company, Hay-Rite, has been mentioned in this post. If anyone would like a FREE sample of any of our products, please text your name and address to 817-599-3200. Please let us know which products you would like to receive. All products are listed at www.Hay-Rite.com. We can also be found at facebook.com/hayrite. When you get the samples, please let everyone know how they look, feel, smell and feed. Jim Willey, Pres., Hay-Rite, Inc. 2280 Mineral Wells Hwy. Weatherford, TX 76088
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 396
| In my area I would bet the majority of horse owners feed a straight alfalfa diet. Horses look fine and perform competitively. |
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 Expert
Posts: 2457
| GoMistyGo - 2015-08-19 7:40 PM I feed alfalfa cubes and pellets with Renew Gold. They look good. Thinking about adding some oats too.
They also get costal hay.
^^ This is what I have been feeding my finished mare that I've been running for the last 2 years. She looks GREAT! Add in a little platinum and some THE for her ulcers and the old gal has held her own and been to the pay window quite a bit in mounted shooting, pulling checks at the worlds show and several large regionals.
OP - Alfalfa based diets are what my horses are on. Maintenance over the winter is alfalfa, brome, platinum performance, and up until two years ago the only "grain" was rice bran. Now the grain is a mix of Renew gold and whole oats. You may not want to feed alfalfa free choice to your mini's but you certainly can feed it free choice to other full sized horses. Like others have said, watch the total protein and calcium intakes, but you'll be fine  |
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | Mine gets a flake of alfalfa and a flake of grass morning and night, plus a 1/2 lb of Renew Gold. I am pleased with this combo. |
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Rescue Rat
Posts: 2844
Location: Louisiana | Thanks everyone i havent been able to get back to this post to check replys...I picked up 5 of the 1000# bales on tuesday ill start feeding today with my blue bonnet feed until we are out of it. Then I think i will do the Renew Gold becasue i have fed that as a additive before and liked it alot. Im excited to see the difference !  |
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Opinions on Alfalfa based diets - (minimal grain)