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Discussion on Close-cropped pastures - any risk of too much sugar?
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Member:
Mwebster
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Posted on Wednesday, Oct 4, 2006 - 10:28 pm:
Dear DrO,
I'm wondering whether close-cropped pastures are "stressed", and produce higher-suger forage? Currently, we don't do any rotational grazing, the horses are on their 3/4 acre individual pastures all year round. We give them some hay also during the warm months, and of course hay pretty much free choice during the winter months. But we aren't really doing much to "maintain" our pasture at this point, since: 1) don't have really have any bare spots (except where they roll) and, 2) the horses are all easy keepers, so I figure if our pastures were lusher or longer, we'd have an even bigger problem keeping them trim. (I don't want to lock them in, and besides, they'd just make up for reduced hours by eating faster, I suspect).
But is it possible that stressed pastures are actually higher in sugar content/calories than healthier pastures with lusher/taller grass? Are stressed pastures "more fattening"?! Are they less nutritious in terms of vitamins/minerals? Maybe I should get our soil tested, and also get our grass tested while I'm at it?
Thanks for any thoughts on this,
Melissa
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Oct 5, 2006 - 8:00 am:
Horses do not grow fatter on short stressed pastures vs a lush green pasture. It is said that stressed grasses produce higher percentages of the non-structural carbohydrate fructan. Fructans are sugars that are not digestible by the horse but can feed the bacteria in the large bowel and may be part of the pathogenesis of founder in some horses. Larger percentages of fructans may be generated in relation to other sugars but this is not a nutritional benefit to the horse and most importantly there is much less plant mass to produce either.
DrO
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Member:
Mwebster
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Posted on Friday, Oct 6, 2006 - 8:14 pm:
Thank you DrO very much for your reply, and (as usual) the great education!
Best,
Melissa
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