People in cool wet climates, how do you keep your horses healthy (sugary grass)?

[PonyRiderMom]

We are moving from Texas to the wet part of the PNW next year, and I’m trying to be sure I’ve thought of everything I can do to keep them sound. I’m worried about the sugar levels in the grass. One of my horses has Cushings (but not insulin resistance), one has extremely damaged joints and shouldn’t be carrying any extra weight, one is an air-fern Pony, and one is healthy and young but subject to digestive upsets and he also has bad feet.

I have about six acres of pasture for them. It is, I think, mostly perennial rye, but there’s other grasses mixed in there, along with blackberry shoots, tree leaves, and who knows what else. Mostly I’m concerned about the sugar in the grass. I’ve done a lot of research and I believe I understand when I can let them out on the pasture and when I can’t (in terms of time of day as well as temperature). With respect to sugar levels, I mean.

I have also read a lot of the fertilize / don’t fertilize debate, with respect to creating sugar in grasses, and I believe I know what to do there.

I have a dry lot to keep them in when they are off the pastures, a grazing muzzle for Pony, and I will be purchasing low-sugar hay. I have slow-feed hay nets but I’d rather not use them if I don’t have to. I do have a hay feeder ball that is really popular, and I could get a second one of those.

Is there anything else I could be doing to keep them from the many problems associated with eating high-sugar grass? I don’t want them to have to live in the dry lot every hour of every day.

[sparkygrace]

It sounds like you have everything covered. Spring grass is extremely high in sugar, so that is when you must be very diligent. Fall grass is also a problem. Once the rains start, grass grows quickly and the sugar levels increase.

When my older GRP became insulin resistant, we stopped fertilizing and watering the pasture. Once the heat of summer stops the grass from growing, it is safe to turn out. However, some grass can still have sugar when dead and brown, so you will have to watch for any changes in your horse’s weight.

Winter pasture is fine since the water content in the grass is extremely high and the grass is not nutritious. For the young horse with bad feet, be sure there is a dry place at night for him.

[cayuse]

Try to make a paddock that will be a dry lot in case you need it. It never hurts to have a smaller paddock and if the grass gets to lush in the pasture, you can always limit their amount by splitting time between the lot and the pasture.

[Alterwho]

Definitely put in a dry lot/sacrifice area

There were also some good.suggestions on this thread you posted Back in 2019

Low NSC grass for PNW? Or, avoiding founder...

For people on the wet (West) side of the PNW, what grass have you had luck with that is fairly low in NSCs? The more I read about NSCs in grass, the more I realize that it’s not just the type of grass, but it also depends on time of day, time of year, micro climate, drought, stress, etc. Worse, it seems that grasses that are considered high-sugar in one locale can be low-sugar in another. Most of these are variables that I can’t control (besides time of day if I’m willing to limit turnout), s…

[PonyRiderMom]

Ugh, I ALWAYS forget what I’ve posted before…

Thank you!

[luvmyhackney]

Something I’ve found super helpful is having two muzzles. One with a normal hole and one completely closed that allows them no grass.

That way I can give them an hour or two in the bigger pasture to play and get movement even if grass isn’t optimal and I don’t want them getting any of it.

I also have a no contact infrared thermometer that I check feet temps with and get a good baseline to notice changes. Let’s me notice small changes and maybe 2 hours of muzzled grass is ok but 3 hours is a bit much, etc.

Other than that it’s pull blood and make sure levels are good 2x a year plus adjust for seasonal rise in the fall.

[goodhors]

We let horses out to graze at night, no sunshine to make the sugar rise.

You should get your soil tested to see what you lack in the soil. Then amend the soil with fertilizer or supplement the horses to ensure they are balanced with their mineral intake. I believe there are severe shortages in some areas of the PNW, so horses would be deficient if fed local hays or just grazing. Copper comes to mind, but there could be other mineral shortages too or too much of a certain mineral. You won’t know that without soil testing.

Perennial rye is not the best choice of grass, but can be a low percentage in a mix, without issue.

Getting and keeping excess weight off is one of the best ways to protect horses from taking in too much sugar. Here, we believe horses should look “athletic” by showing a hint of rib in turns, no digging thru an inch of fat to even FIND a rib! Weight tapes can help with a weekly measuring to chart gains and losses. Our horses are a heritage breed, made to gain and work hard on poor pasture, minimum grain, lIke ponies survive on… Kept trim, they graze all night in summer, on fertilized fields without any problems. They come inside during daylight hours, avoid the flies and extreme heat. Minimum grain and wet beet pulp served once a day. All look great, shiny, plenty of energy for a couple hours work a day. Our hay is fertilized yearly, very good numbers on everything except sugar. High in sugars when tested. Grass hays tend to be high in sugar, cut when the sun shines! Still no problems with anyone, even elderly horses.

You can soak high-sugar hay to remove sugars if that is all you can get locally.

My advice is do soil testing, hay testing to see what you are dealing with in forage things. Then maybe a blood workup on one horse after you have been there a while, like 6 months feeding local foods. See what the testing shows, then adjust feed if needed. Get the hay tested , since not all nice looking hay actually has minerals! We found that out the hard way!!

[Alterwho]

@goodhors

Our horses are a heritage breed

I’ve never heard this term used for horses would love to know what breed

[fledermaus]

Some of the North American heritage breeds of horses identified by the Livestock Conservancy:
American Cream Draft, Traditional Morgan, Banker, Canadian, Rocky Mountain, Colonial Spanish .

I have a Traditional Morgan myself, and in summer she is only allowed out to graze in a muzzle. These horses were bred to work hard on short commons (as most of those listed above), and get sick when they get the reverse.

[Calvincrowe]

Welcome! Horse keeping here can be a struggle especially if you try to only use pasture for feed. I’ve got aged geldings, one is IR and Cushings, the other just Cushings. Both are medicated and IR boy wears his Greenguard muzzle spring and fall. I’ve got about 3 acres in pasture. I spray, lime and fertilize lightly to keep horse two happy and limit turnout time for muzzle boy.

I feed tested hay with low sugar year round to help when they can’t graze enough. During the wet seasons, mine are in their mud-free paddocks with limited turnout on pastures to keep them from being destroyed. They’ll rip them up, create muddy, divoted, weedy messes.

[goodhors]

They are Cleveland Bays, bloodlines kept very pure, though Partbreds are allowed into the Cleveland Bay Partbred Registry. Purebreds do tend to all look very similar and they breed quite true when croseed with othe breeds. TBs are the most common cross, with both Pure and Partbreds can be found fox-hunting, jumping, doing dressage, CDE and pleasure driving or any other horse activity their owner prefers. They are agile, not the least bit clunky as movers. They are often mistakenly identified as Warmbloods. We look at the ears. Ha ha Clevelands all tend to have LARGE ears to go with big bones and proportionate size hooves.

Other "“Heritage” breeds would include Lippizans, Fjords. Lusitano and Andalusians, rare breeds that do not allow out crossings to be registered in the main Studbook. You should easily recognize the breed of horse by their distinct appearance. These breeds tend to be slow growing, late maturing, maybe have a “strong” profile that is good for breathing but not pretty enough for many people.

[Alterwho]

I love Cleveland Bays

Would Icelandic be considered A heritage breed?

[goodhors]

Yes.

[Alterwho]

Thanks for the info!

[rulex]

@PonyRiderMom

I don’t want them to have to live in the dry lot every hour of every day.

Another option would be a track where they still have limited access to grass but encourages more movement than a dry lot.

[Cowboy_Girl]

If you are on the western side of the Cascades and it sounds like you are, your horses will be dry lotted a lot of the time. Many places hold water much of the year and if you don’t want a mud swamp, horses need to stay off of it except for a few hours a day on average. With your small acreage, plan on a few hours of turn out every other day rotated through cross fenced pasture in summer and fall - depending on you it can be morning or evening (the sun is up at 5:15pm and barely dusk at 9:30pm.) Halloween through Easter is dry lot/gravel paddock season.