Hi Dr. Getty,

I was wondering about your thoughts on chaffhaye. Specifically the alfalfa version. Is it something that can be used as a substantial portion of a horses diet? How much would you feed daily? The makers say 1 pound per 100 pounds of horse. It seems to have lower protein and calcium than fresh cut alfalfa. Maybe lowering the protein would help my horse be less fresh???

Pros? Cons?

This would be for may horse Cisco who we have discussed in the past. He is on alfalfa only as far as hay goes. He is doing great and still on the vit/min combo you worked up for us a few years ago.
I'm just looking at alternatives if we can't get good hay in the future.

As always, thanks for your time!

Angela & Cisco

Where are you from? Texas

Hi Angela,

Chaff, regardless of the type of hay it comes from, is virtually straw -- it has little nutritional value, if any and is sometimes fed as a "filler." However, I do not recommend it.

Feeding 100% alfalfa is not advisable since the protein and calcium content is too high to be fed exclusively. If grass hay is not available, try obtaining timothy hay cubes and breaking them into small pieces. The goal is to limit alfalfa to no more than half of the total hay ration.

If you were to feed chaff, you would be merely filling your horse's digestive tract with something indigestible to chew on and I doubt that is your goal. So, see what types of hay stretchers you can find and let me know.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO

Chaffhaye does not contain "chaff". You can find more information about it on their website:
www.chaffhaye.com

Where are you from? California

How did you locate this forum? Google Search

Hello Lynette,

Thank you so much for the clarification. This product is actually a haylage -- a fermented grass or legume and has similar nutritional value as the actual grass, with more moisture. Plus it is "predigested" so it provides more feed value.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO