Hello Lisa,

Soybean meal is not as high in calcium as alfalfa, even though it is a legume. It generally contains approximately .30% calcium, comparied to alfalfa with approximately 1.20% calcium.

Soybean meal also has more phosphorus than calcium, like flaxseed meal does.

So, a calcium carbonate supplement may be appropriate, depending on the amount of calcium in your grass or hay.

If you feed some alfalfa hay, cubes, or pellets, you won't need to add calcium. And you may not need to add soybean meal, either, since the protein content would be sufficient, as well.

I wish I could give you a more specific answer, but I'm not able to without evaluating your horse's entire diet. I would be delighted to help you with this by setting up a personal phone consultation.

But in the meantime, have your hay and/or grass analyzed by sending in a sample to Equi-Analytical Labs -- www.equi-analytical.com and see if your pasture or hay has at least 3 times more calcium than phosphorus. Then you should be ok with a small amount of soy and flax.

All the best,

Dr. Getty [ }
Author of Feed Your Horse Like A Horse

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO