Relative sugar in grass in day versus night

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Morgan123

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Anyone have the figures for the approximate difference in sugar in grass in day v night?

I can leave my Big Fat Cob in during the day (8 hours) or during the night (12-14) hours. He's happier in at night and I reckon the fact he's in for longer - on soaked hay - would therefore be just as good as being in in the day. But not sure if I'm right! Any help appreciated.

thanks
 
I don't know the facts and figures but Lana is footy when turned out during the day whereas if she's only turned out overnight she's ok. If his feet aren't a problem then do whichever way you both prefer. Personally I find it easier to have them in during the day as there is less mucking out and you can be a lot more flexible with your timings. Ie if you want a lie in one day then he's not stuck in a stable, he just gets a couple of hours extra grass.
 
Yeh - my horse thinks being in at night is socially acceptable but he does NOT appreciate being in in the day. He's never been lami before but he's on restricted work at the moment and is piling on the pounds so I'm keen to do whatever I can do restrict grazing! That's interesting about your one being less footy. Hmm.

I can't find facts and figures anywhere!
 
Mine has a sugar intolerance which causes a skin condition. His rash was terrible earlier this year as the spring grass came through. He then ended up on box rest so was out in a small paddock (which is kept for this purpose so had a lot of good grass when he went in there) during the day and in overnight about 12/12 in out ratio). Within 5 days his rash had cleared up, so his sugar intake was clearly being restricted enough by this system.
 
The Frape book "Equine Nutrition and Feeding" has some figures, but you should also be able to find research data via Google Scholar.
frape states that fructans (which are one of the main water-soluble carbohydrates of concern with laminitis) vary with season, type of grass, and time of day, and cites one articlethat found highest levels in the leaves at midday to early afternoon (24-42% of DM), and in stems during the evening.
The grasses store sugars during the day (using energy from the sun) and then use it up during the night so presumably will be lowest by dawn.
:)
 
Thank you, that's interesting. What I can't find is anything about the relative levels - so is he better out at night even though this means being out for more hours!?
 
Those values were for the relative levels (at different times of the day). From what I've read, the actual levels depend on the type of grass in the pasture, as well as sunlight levels, amount of DM in pasture etc. You would probably have to keep getting the pasture analysed (as the levels change continuously) to be exact. The 24-42% value above seem to be for the same grass type at the same time of day, so there can be massive variation. The relative levels seem to apply to all grasses, in that the levels of soluble CHOs build up during the day (stored by the grass) and then decrease overnight as the grass uses them up. Note though that 'stressed' grass (e.g. frosts) can cause a sudden 'release' of fructans, so weather would also affect the relative and actual levels.
If this link works, then it will take you to Google Scholar with articles on pasture fructans. Those that have something down the lefthand column of the page (e.g. a link to a site or pdf) are usually those you can access for free.
https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&q=pasture+fructans&btnG=&as_sdt=1,5&as_sdtp=
You could also try some of the laminitis websites.
 
Morgan123 said:
Yeh - my horse thinks being in at night is socially acceptable but he does NOT appreciate being in in the day. He's never been lami before but he's on restricted work at the moment and is piling on the pounds so I'm keen to do whatever I can do restrict grazing! That's interesting about your one being less footy. Hmm.

I can't find facts and figures anywhere!
Click to expand...
Mine is similar, he doesn't like being in during the day and out at night - he much prefers to be able to sleep in his stable overnight. I don't think he gets much sleep when he's out overnight and is consequently grumpy. And also while I'm no botanist I think beyond the fructans thing there are other factors to consider which could change the sugar content of the grass and when it goes up and down - weather which is constantly variable every day, the amount the horses graze (I think grass actually grows more when cut more frequently so wonder if heavy grazing encourages growth? - I only base that on some information I got through work about wildebeest and grass in the Masai Mara, am sure the saliva is supposed to encourage growth but in return the grasses there have something in their content - silica maybe - that fights back - I could be talking cobblers but it was 15 years ago and I can't remember!). The relationship between grasses and grazers though is ancient :) What makes the difference for me is the amount of time on grass - so ideally I go for the longest period he can have in or out. There was some useful research into obesity in ponies by Caroline Macgregor Argo at Liverpool University:
http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc...wIqF2GsOVXseD5bqA&sig2=CVcojN6tcRPU_4t-XfPx5w
 
You may find some useful articles on http://www.safergrass.org/

There was also some research done recently by the University of Bangor, can't find it now, but they also found that it varied according to grass variety with some high yield ryegrasses having high levels round the clock.

The other thing to be careful of is what different yards consider night turnout. Some will turn out 4pm or even earlier and fructans are still really high in the evening, you really need to be looking at around sunset for the sugar levels to drop.
 
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