Re: RC: Re: hydration and hay type

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

One of the strongest arguments I've seen against feeding straight alfalfa is
an epidemiological study out of UC Davis study that observed that of all the
horses presented for colic surgery that then resulted in the removal of
enteroliths, 95% of those horses were fed more than 50% of their ration in
the form of alfalfa.

I've lost two good horses to enteroliths, too---one before I knew any
better, and the second before I could fix the problem.  When I used to work
at an equine hospital in California, we had a storage room just packed full
of enteroliths that had been removed from alfalfa-fed horses.  I think our
record was one the size of a basketball that weighed close to forty pounds.

Susan G


> > A few years ago, I was at Oregon State University teaching hospital with
one
> > of my horses who had injured her leg and I saw a horse (an Arabian) who
was
> > recovering from surgery to remove an enterlith. It resembled a large
> > cantelope and was hard as a rock.
>
> anyone who is feeding straight alfalfa would change their tune and educate
> themselves after a beloved horse dies a horrible and painful death from a
> rupture by an enterolith. I was boarding at the time and had no say about
> what was fed to my mare. She died in the most painful way imaginable-it is
> still very hard to talk or write about. The enterolith was as big as a
> softball. No horse under my care will ever be fed alfalfa again.
Especially
> when there is great grass hay to be found.
> Tiffany
>
>