Grass Nuts?

[Shoei]

Hi Guys,
I'm just looking at my feed bills and wondering if I could swap my chaff out? Both boys (rising 2 year old and my rising 16 year old elementary) are given a stubs scoop of grass chaff with their feed. A few reasons, to carry supplements, linseed oil and as additional forage for weight maintenance. Both are looking very well on their feed currently. They also have ballancers etc.

But the chaff takes up so much space and is expensive in comparison with other chaff but we can't have alfa as Chester is allergic. My question is, how do grass nuts compare in comparison? More energy for weight maintenance? Do you feed based in soaked weight or dry?

Thanks ?

 

[Squeak]

Out of interest which grass chaff are you feeding? I've found that grass chaff is usually cheaper than other chaff so maybe you could just swap to a cheaper grass chaff?

 

[Shoei]

I generally get TopSpec or Dengie as that's what the local store has in.

 

[criso]

I've actually introduced grass chaff to economise but i use Emerald Green Grasstatic, it's bit cheaper per bag than the same brand grass pellets but the pellets weigh more so might work out cheaper. Both much cheaper than the other brands.

Grass nuts should be soaked or can cause choke.

 

[Squeak]

I generally get TopSpec or Dengie as that's what the local store has in.

Looking online they look like they're about £16? I think graze on and emerald green should be a bit cheaper - all their prices keep going up all the time so that might have already changed!

I think grass pellets do last longer because they bulk out when soaked - a bit like a bag of sugarbeet lasts longer but it is more of a faff dealing with soaking etc. It also ends up more of a mash than chop.

 

[Tiddlypom]

I've moved from the majorly over hyped and very spendy Agrobs range to Dengie grass pellets. The pellets do need soaking first as they swell up a lot, I give them 12 hours.

Mine get about 250ml dry volume of grass pellets twice daily, it bulks up a lot after soaking. It is there as a palatable carrier for their supplements, micronised linseed etc.

 

[criso]

Looking online they look like they're about £16? I think graze on and emerald green should be a bit cheaper - all their prices keep going up all the time so that might have already changed!

I think grass pellets do last longer because they bulk out when soaked - a bit like a bag of sugarbeet lasts longer but it is more of a faff dealing with soaking etc. It also ends up more of a mash than chop.

I was just checking prices before putting my regular order in and grasstastic is 11.70, graze on 13.50 dengie 15.08, topspec 14.99 readigrass 17.45. Grasstastic is a bit smaller but still works out cheaper than most.

 

[Squeak]

I was just checking prices before putting my regular order in and grasstastic is 11.70, graze on 13.50 dengie 15.08, topspec 14.99 readigrass 17.45. Grasstastic is a bit smaller but still works out cheaper than most.

Wow you should grab the grasstastic while you can at that price!! On their website it's gone up to £14.75 now and in the past I've found their website to be accurate for what my supplier charges

It's genuinely depressing how fast feed is going up in price at the moment.

 

[criso]

Wow you should grab the grasstastic while you can at that price!! On their website it's gone up to £14.75 now and in the past I've found their website to be accurate for what my supplier charges

It's genuinely depressing how fast feed is going up in price at the moment.

Titmuss - very cheap and often less than the rrp across many brands. Charnwood linseed is also cheaper than the charnwood site.

But everything is going up. This time last year I was paying 7.99 for Grasstastic, in January it jumped to 9.99 and it went up to 11.70 in Sept when I put my last order in between when i checked and when i ordered.

I join up with someone who bulk buys haylage as they will only deliver over a certain amount and they are a little bit out of the way for the odd bag. Prices are so good, it's worth stocking up for the next few months rather than buying the odd bag here and there from the local shops.

ETA although their prices are not necessarily typical the difference between brands will be.

 

[TGM]

I prefer to feed soaked fibre pellets rather than chaff, as I find it generally works out more cost effective and, as you rightly say, chaff takes up a lot of storage space. Also I find they make a better base to mix any supplements into. As for feed values, there are different brands of both grass chaffs and grass nuts and their feed value will vary according to the type of grass used and when it was cut, plus if there are any additional ingredients such as oil. So you need to check out the manufacturer's website for the nutritional analysis. Look for the Digestible Energy figure, that gives you an idea of the calorific value. The higher the DE the more calorific or conditioning it is. For example, Dengie Grass Pellets have 10 MJDE/kg as does their Pure Grass chaff. Dengie's Meadow Grass chaff, however, has 11.5 MJDE/kg, so is slightly more calorific.

I would measure amounts based on dry weight before soaking, because that is more accurate. The soaked weight will vary according to how much water is in it.

 

[sportsmansB]

I find grass nuts to be economical due to how much they absorb the water, provided you can be bothered with the soaking
They also seem to be tasty and defo hide the supplements etc
I used dengie or emerald I think