| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Holly |
Posted - 05 Dec 2009 : 7:44:21 PM
Well im wondering which is more nutritous and which contains more calories between haylage and grass?
I ask because i have 1 very fat mare who needs to lose weight before spring as are hoping to get her in foal and she is way too fat at the moment! But my other 3 mares are just the right weight and wouldnt want them to lose any.
At the moment they are all in a 2 acre field which still has a bit of grass in, they get a feed once a day and a pile of haylage each in the evening.
I have another field which is about 4 acres and is ankle high in green grass. I also have 75 bales of very good quality large round bale haylage(had it made off my land and half of it is for sale).
My problem is that the fat mare doesnt need anything else but the others could do with having a bale out in the field to munch on all day and i cant separate them as the fatty will turn loopy and hurt herself.
So is it better to put a bale of haylage out for them all or to stop the haylage and put them onto the long grass? Or is there not much difference.
Not sure best way to get the weight off her. Shes only wearing a light weight rug and i clipped her in October so that she didnt have a wooly coat going into winter but its grown back already!
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| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Holly |
Posted - 10 Dec 2009 : 9:35:22 PM
Sarahi Lily already has a round tummy but not as round as Keetas! Im just uploading some pics that i took today. Will post them in a second.x |
| sarahlock |
Posted - 09 Dec 2009 : 3:47:30 PM
Holly , my 2 are both rugged & have access to their own stable 24/7 but im only feeding them on hay this year & give them a very small token feed of Mollichaff, nuts & chopped carrots in the morning ,i couldn`t let them have ad lib grass & / or haylage or they`d be obese !
I fed them haylage last winter & they looked more like 2 charolais heifers in the spring than palomino PBA`s, i had loads of lovely spring grass but had to put them both on a bare patch moving their fence just a fraction daily for 8 weeks to get them slimmed down !
I only have just under 2 acres which i strip graze & i still have grass , we`ve had such a mild autumn that the part i took them off in October is growing back nicely already !
At night i put their hay in 2 haylage nets which are inside one another so it takes them longer to eat it , Could you not fence her off in her own bit next to her friends ?
Then when shes eaten her grass down you could then either move her fence or give her some haylage but at least you can monitor whats shes having & help get that weight off her !
I bet you`ll have this problem with your palomino in a couple of years !  |
| Pasha |
Posted - 09 Dec 2009 : 09:19:36 AM
Holly to be honest you won't know unless you have it analysed and then, it will only give you the analysis of the grass at that specific time. Of course, the problem with grass is that it can change dramatically within a few hours.
With the haylage, it will depend on when it was cut and the quality of your grass. Is it first or second cut?
Isn't there anyway you can section off a bit of the field for your calorie challenged one so she is still in contact over the fence but has a limited amount to eat? |
| Holly |
Posted - 08 Dec 2009 : 10:47:26 PM
Im just bumping this up as im interested to know the calorie and nutrient difference please?
Thanks
Holly |
| Dot |
Posted - 05 Dec 2009 : 7:56:09 PM
I would leave the food as is and take the rug off and see how it goes, you may be surprised in that it does not work though if the horse has access to eat what it wants with no limits. |
