[austin]

Where does Perennial Peanut Hay compare to Timothy? Alfalfa? as far as helping lower risk of impactions? i.e., helping things move through the gut?

vs. Coastal and Orchard Grass which has a higher impaction risk?

my concern is impaction risk and with Timothy so expensive, would like to use Peanut hay instead (to supplement a grain and coastal hay diet).

[Real Rush]

Perennial peanut hay is very similar to alfalfa. Very high in protein and calcium, so take that into consideration when balancing your horses' feed.

[DianneEJ]

I switched 5 years ago from T&A to peanut with coastal because of my location and pricing, and my horse has done great on it! He loves it!

[cloudyandcallie]

I am NOT an expert on horse (or human or dog or cat) nutrition but........my childhood friend who went to school with me and who was in the same riding club and drill team with me is an expert on perennial peanut hay.

Google TBO farms. It's really Tebeau, but everyone says TBO.
Sue Haupt Tebeau and her husband Billy have a great farm and they raise perennial peanut hay in Kidare GA, just up the road from Savannah.

They also have a youtube video.

You can contact them for info on perennial peanut hay and it's benefits.

Right now, the last hay of the season has been delivered and it is green and leafy and Cloudy and Hattie and friends are eating it up. It's one dollar a square bale more than coastal here.

There are many varieties of bermuda hay. Alicia is fine, coastal is a little more stemmy, Tift 85 is a littler more stemmy and russell bermuda is even more stemmy. The finer the hay, supposedly, the more likely to have impaction IF the horse is not drinking a lot of water. Like in winter.

You can also contact the GA Dept of Agriculture station in Tifton GA for info on the varieties of bermuda hay. Some were developed there, e.g., Tift 85.

Perennial peanut has lots of leaves, and thick stems.

[bludejavu]

I am NOT an expert on horse (or human or dog or cat) nutrition but........my childhood friend who went to school with me and who was in the same riding club and drill team with me is an expert on perennial peanut hay.

Google TBO farms. It's really Tebeau, but everyone says TBO.
Sue Haupt Tebeau and her husband Billy have a great farm and they raise perennial peanut hay in Kidare GA, just up the road from Savannah.

They also have a youtube video.

You can contact them for info on perennial peanut hay and it's benefits.

Right now, the last hay of the season has been delivered and it is green and leafy and Cloudy and Hattie and friends are eating it up. It's one dollar a square bale more than coastal here.

There are many varieties of bermuda hay. Alicia is fine, coastal is a little more stemmy, Tift 85 is a littler more stemmy and russell bermuda is even more stemmy. The finer the hay, supposedly, the more likely to have impaction IF the horse is not drinking a lot of water. Like in winter.

You can also contact the GA Dept of Agriculture station in Tifton GA for info on the varieties of bermuda hay. Some were developed there, e.g., Tift 85.

Perennial peanut has lots of leaves, and thick stems.

I just spoke to Billy yesterday - how ironic to find his name on here tonight! I have fed perennial peanut hay very successfully to horses, 12 at the time I used it. Fed over a long winter and even my most colic-prone horse never had a problem with it and that is really saying something. I stopped feeding it because it was just too far to south Georgia from me and I couldn't find anyone local who carried it, but if it was closer to me, I'd feed it still. I will say though prices have gone up considerably for it, moreso than I was expecting even with present economic conditions. We are buying 65# bales of pure alfalfa tomorrow for $10/bale. I could not get the perennial peanut hay this year for less than $9/bale and they were no heavier than 55# (plus I had to go further). From what I've learned from Billy and a few others, perennial peanut hay is sometimes preferred over alfalfa by horse owners.