Long or short grass, which has the most sugars?

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Little-miss-perfect

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I've sectioned off the field for my boy as I found out he's had laminitis in the past (and he's a good doer). He's now grazing on short grass, the grass the other side the electric tape is now really long (nearly to your knees in parts), would you open up part of it to him, or just keep expanding his section VERY gradually? I've now heard that the shorter grass may be worse for him than the mass of long stuff.

Thanks everyone :)
 
Short stressed grass has more sugars, but I do keep mine on a short stressed paddock simply because of the volume she would consume on longer grass would probably exceed the sugars she gets on the shorter grass, if that makes sense? I'd just keep expanding very gradually, possibly closing up the paddock behind you to keep the area the same size.
 
it matters more what kind of grass you have. If you have rye grass which most horse paddocks have then this is not good. Which is why some many are coming down with lami. You need a pasture without rye grass in it and that has meadow plants. Paddocks tend to be sowen with rye grass as its a cheaper seed. Do a bit of research and see what you have.

A field full of proper grazing for horses is worth its weight in gold and it doesnt matter if its long or short.
 
Short new grass or frost short grass is the worst BUT lush long grass is not good either if good doer. However long grass that resembles hay ie end of summer is fine.

Agree if a paddock is really well grazed the short grass is fine.

This probably sounds contradictory. I am more wary of short grass as a loose rule.
 
As the otherd said really but my too lamis are on short grass but bigger that a postage stamp paddock and it is patchey grass......


Boblet how did you come up with your name? Thats what we call one of our rabbits :D
 
Kaylum said:
it matters more what kind of grass you have. If you have rye grass which most horse paddocks have then this is not good. Which is why some many are coming down with lami. You need a pasture without rye grass in it and that has meadow plants. Paddocks tend to be sowen with rye grass as its a cheaper seed. Do a bit of research and see what you have.

A field full of proper grazing for horses is worth its weight in gold and it doesnt matter if its long or short.
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That's interesting, thanks, I'll try and find out. It was (years ago) dairy pasture, it has lots of clover, buttercups and speedwell in it, aswell as other different grasses (which I don't know).
 
I went to a Dodson & Horrell talk last year on laminitis, and the UK expert
(Prof Knottenblatt sp?) said that the worst advice the experts ever gave was to avoid short stressed grass as people started turning out on long grass and the cases of laminitis went through the roof.

As has been pointed out, although short stressed grass does have a higher percentage of sugars per millimetre of leaf, horses can't eat much of it, whereas they can stuff themselves on long grass, so at the end of a grazing period they will have consumed hugely more sugar from long grass.

So stick with the short grass, and if the horse is coping you can move the fence back a little bit every day. Sugar levels peak mid afternoon, so move the fence late at night when the sugar levels have dropped back down, or very early in the morning before they rise again.
 
We move the fence slowly out as ponies are hoovers, so although short has more sugar in it, they would gorge a paddock of long grass in a day and make themselves very ill!

Pan
 
Llewelyn said:
I went to a Dodson & Horrell talk last year on laminitis, and the UK expert
(Prof Knottenblatt sp?) said that the worst advice the experts ever gave was to avoid short stressed grass as people started turning out on long grass and the cases of laminitis went through the roof.

As has been pointed out, although short stressed grass does have a higher percentage of sugars per millimetre of leaf, horses can't eat much of it, whereas they can stuff themselves on long grass, so at the end of a grazing period they will have consumed hugely more sugar from long grass.

So stick with the short grass, and if the horse is coping you can move the fence back a little bit every day. Sugar levels peak mid afternoon, so move the fence late at night when the sugar levels have dropped back down, or very early in the morning before they rise again.
Click to expand...

this is very sensible advice ^^
 
Also be aware of seed heads in long grass, they have the most concentrated sugar of all. If possible I would feed soaked second cut hay in a section of paddock with short grass, and let them onto the long stuff gradually when its resembling hay.
 
I keep my 3 on short grazing, approx 2 acres for the three of them (and cutting it down again now) we're talking nice and short and patchy :D it's quite cathartic being evil to them!

They wont get let out on the rested side until winter and even then we'll run the sheep through it for a long time, before they get let anywhere near it.
 
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