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Hiya,
Well, just my opinion (which is also that of the Cal Poly faculty), I
think it is the primary cause, but I agree with you that the magnesium
content of Ca hay is alot different from alfalfa grown elsewhere in the
country, so I don't want to incite some country-wide Burn The Alfalfa
Fields campaign. Just any old alfalfa won't cause the same enterolith
formation---it's the VERY high magnesium content in Southwest-grown hay
that contributes to the enteroliths. If you're paying $2.50 a bale in
your area, it can't be coming from California, so the magnesium content
is almost certainly closer to the NRC published figures, which are MUCH
lower. I think it's interesting that the incidence of enteroliths in
your area is low, even though the % of alfalfa being fed is high, so I
do think the high Mg content in SPECIFICALLY Southwest grown hay is a
big factor. I agree with you, maybe not the ONLY cause, but a primary
one, anyway.
If someone knew their alfalfa was being grown locally, then the concerns
about magnesium don't apply, at least not nearly to the same extent.
However, California grows and exports a LOT of alfalfa to other states
and countries, so it might be worth finding out where the crop was grown
if someone was planning on feeding alot of it. Obviously, here in So
Cal, we already know where it's coming from.
Happy trails,
Susan
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