I'm not Susan, and she can elucidate further, but
barley is one of the three main components in the common horse feed
called "COB"--the name itself comes from the first letters of the three grains
used in it, which are corn, oats, and barley. Barley tends to be a bit
"hotter" than oats, but we fed it for years because good, clean rolled barley
was readily available and good oats were harder to find in our area. (It
was pretty much the only grain we used to use when I was a kid.) You can
feed less of it than oats. Haven't looked at NRC charts comparing the
two for several years, but am thinking that mayhaps the barley is lower in
fiber, while being higher in carbs. Susan can no doubt clarify such
details. Barley in its unrolled state is harder to chew than whole
oats--pretty tough little kernels--so would definitely only feed it
rolled....
Heidi
PS: My mom makes a GREAT turkey/barley soup
with the leftovers of the Thanksgiving turkey.....
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, December 21, 2001 9:02
AM
Subject: RC: Barley
Since Burkhardt's 1831 essay claimed that
barley was the
staple grain fed to horses by the bedouin, I'm
curious:
Susan, what is the nutritional breakdown of
barley? Is
it commonly used in processed horse feeds
today?
The only barley
I've ever eaten is in Campbell's Beef
and Barley and
Scotch Broth soups!
Linda B. Merims
Masschusetts, USA