Question about Spring grass/founder risk

brightlights

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Hi all,

I'm trying to figure out what my best option is for my 22yo broodmare and her 3 yo pasture buddy. They are both in very good condition, not obese, but should probably not be gaining any more weight. Both quite cresty as well. I've only just gotten the broodie sound and happy after adopting her in the fall. Her feet/legs were terrible (too long, abscessed, tendons strained, etc) and she'd spent a lot of time down on the ground. She's doing great now (considering) so I don't want to risk her. They're currently out on a fairly poached paddock. There is grass, but it's not super lush and probably not all that nutritious. They get quite a rich haylage 2-3 x a day + feed morning and night. Now that we've had the rest of our land fenced it's time to move these girls to a new field. My dilemma is whether I should cut the grass first, get some grazing muzzles, or maybe something I haven't considered?

The pasture they'd be moving onto was cut for hay last summer and hasn't been mowed since. It's probably only a week or two away in growth from being hay-ready again, but I don't think we can wait. I'm honestly not well-versed on laminitis but know it's a risk with lush grass. Is this still a risk this time of year? Would it be too rich for them to move straight onto? They have lived out and had the combo of haylage + less nutritious grass all winter, so not sure if that would have helped. It's not really feasible for me to bring them to the new field for an hour each day and acclimate them that way as the young horse has very little handling and it's a decent trek between paddock and pasture. I have sectioned off about 3/4 of an acre for them and could possibly mow it if that's best. I would plan to be reducing the concentrate way down as well. Any feedback/experiences would be appreciated. Sorry for the length of this, I'm a bit overwrought :rolleyes:
 

Midlifecrisis

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I would leave them where they are and then take the grass for hay in a few weeks time. Then turn them out on the cut fields for a few hours..say two to start with and gradually increase the time each day so their stomachs adjust to new grass. If ponies are plump now then reduce haylage or stop feeding it altogether and reduce or stop hard feed too unless desperately needed. Add in a bit of exercise if you can. These are just my instinctive reaction thoughts ..others may have a much better plan.
 

bubsqueaks

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I would do as above - proceed with extreme caution yes the grass is still growing like crazy due to rain sun rain sun - also join the facebook lami page to learn more as you really need to educate yourself in prevention rather than cure & take extra care.
 

tallyho!

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Don't be worried. If you know grasses and how they grow and change with type, sward height, age and soil health, you will be well on your way to having peace of mind with it all.

I had a laminitic horse and ended up educating myself on grasses and forage - never thought I'd find grass all that interesting! My husband was quite perplexed why I always had studies open on the laptop about DM, ADF/NDF/, CP content of grass :D:D

I assume this is your own land? How old is the grass there? Do you know when it was planted? What type is it? What variety? Fertilised? All this helps to know how productive it is in terms of protein, carbs and fibre it's producing, the older it is, the less productive it is. Having said that it could still be nutritious if the roots are long and the soil is fertile.

What stage of growth is it? If it's already gone to seed, it's growth stage will be dormant and it's highest in fibre - perfect for horses. Although most people will have kittens putting horses out on "all that grass"!! Well, firstly it's not all leafy sweet grass now, it's mostly fibre. The carbohydrates are well and truly stored for the next time it needs to grow. There you have a nice supply of high fibre, low carb grass to put horses on. The less green even better.

You'd think that heavily grazed grass (eaten to the roots) is better but it's the opposite. That's where the energy is stored. You need to get horses off grass when it's that short. Or when it's vegetating or elongating - when you want cows on there for fattening up.

Don't take my word for it though, do the research you need to do. Analyse the grass, send a sample off to D&H like I did or whoever does it in your area. Then you know for sure.

My paddock is almost ready for grazing. It's flowering and seed heads will appear in a week or so I think then, it'll dry off and they can go on. Standing hay in my eyes.
 

Carrottom

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I wouldn't mow it but would section off a much smaller area, about 60m x 30m with electric fence. Then you can increase the area every few days as they graze it down.
 

brightlights

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Don't be worried. If you know grasses and how they grow and change with type, sward height, age and soil health, you will be well on your way to having peace of mind with it all.

I had a laminitic horse and ended up educating myself on grasses and forage - never thought I'd find grass all that interesting! My husband was quite perplexed why I always had studies open on the laptop about DM, ADF/NDF/, CP content of grass :D:D

I assume this is your own land? How old is the grass there? Do you know when it was planted? What type is it? What variety? Fertilised? All this helps to know how productive it is in terms of protein, carbs and fibre it's producing, the older it is, the less productive it is. Having said that it could still be nutritious if the roots are long and the soil is fertile.

What stage of growth is it? If it's already gone to seed, it's growth stage will be dormant and it's highest in fibre - perfect for horses. Although most people will have kittens putting horses out on "all that grass"!! Well, firstly it's not all leafy sweet grass now, it's mostly fibre. The carbohydrates are well and truly stored for the next time it needs to grow. There you have a nice supply of high fibre, low carb grass to put horses on. The less green even better.

You'd think that heavily grazed grass (eaten to the roots) is better but it's the opposite. That's where the energy is stored. You need to get horses off grass when it's that short. Or when it's vegetating or elongating - when you want cows on there for fattening up.

Don't take my word for it though, do the research you need to do. Analyse the grass, send a sample off to D&H like I did or whoever does it in your area. Then you know for sure.

My paddock is almost ready for grazing. It's flowering and seed heads will appear in a week or so I think then, it'll dry off and they can go on. Standing hay in my eyes.

Gosh, this is a fantastic jumpstart of information for me. Thank you so much.

It is our land, we purchased this time last year and started moving our horses over before Christmas. The two in question came to us from 24/7 turnout nearby and adjusted here easily. Unfortunately it’s taken ages for us to get the bulk of our land fenced, so they’ve sat in our one finished paddock for months, and here we are.

I know the grass was planted ten years ago and the previous owner cut hay that first summer. After that, they would have mowed the field for appearance. They never had horses but may have occasionally had sheep. We cut hay last year and haven’t done anything since. Didn’t fertilize. I don’t actually even know what kind of grass it is, which is crazy. I know there’s a lot of rye grass where I am in Ireland, and googling would lead me to believe that’s what we’ve got.
 

brightlights

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This is what we're working with, if that helps. It's quite a bit taller than it appears here as I had to crop the photo. Would this qualify as "standing hay"? I would think so, but clearly don't know. Past time for me to start learning about grass-- better study up :oops:
IMG_9146.jpg
 

tallyho!

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Not yet, still flowering. Once the seeds start dropping (just twiddle one between your fingers onto your palm and if they fall loosely, they're ready to drop). Elongation or seed dropping are the lowest sugar. Seed dropping is highest fibre. Looks like meadow fescue and fox/dog tail. At least it's not ryegrass - hoorah!

Enjoy becoming a grassland geek...... :)
 

Carrottom

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Does the 3/4 acre need to last them all summer? If so I would definitely want to strip graze and poo pick.
 

tallyho!

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You can def strip graze. Ooh I’ve just remembered a great book... it’s healthy land, healthy pasture Healy horses by Jane Myers.
 

brightlights

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Not yet, still flowering. Once the seeds start dropping (just twiddle one between your fingers onto your palm and if they fall loosely, they're ready to drop). Elongation or seed dropping are the lowest sugar. Seed dropping is highest fibre. Looks like meadow fescue and fox/dog tail. At least it's not ryegrass - hoorah!

Enjoy becoming a grassland geek...... :)

Thank you! You have inspired me, honestly, to become such a geek :)
 

brightlights

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Does the 3/4 acre need to last them all summer? If so I would definitely want to strip graze and poo pick.

The 3/4 acre is to tide us over until the rest of the field has been fenced— hopefully tomorrow! I will probably move them back to that 3/4 acre once the grass is seeding and then open it up to the rest of the field after a few days, once I'm sure they're settled.

Thanks again, everyone, for the help :)
 

tallyho!

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I’ve just started following a lady on Facebook her page is Humble Hooves and does a lot of research into soil health... come join a whole bunch of grass geeks 🤣
 

brightlights

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I’ve just started following a lady on Facebook her page is Humble Hooves and does a lot of research into soil health... come join a whole bunch of grass geeks 🤣
Thank you, I'm in :D Feel like I've sinned against my poor poached paddock :oops: Much to learn!
 
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