Is fescue poisonous to horses?

Is fescue poisonous to horses?

What is Fescue Toxicity? Fescue is a type of plant native to many regions. It is safe for your horse to consume, unless it is contaminated by the fungus known as Acremonium coenophialum. This fungus grows and lives in contaminated fescue and when ingested by your horse, toxicity will develop.

What is the best grass to feed a horse?

Of the grass mixtures evaluated, horses preferred a stand of endophyte-free tall fescue, perennial ryegrass, Kentucky bluegrass, and timothy. However, over time, these pastures evolved to mostly tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass. Horses had less preference for any pasture mix with 30 percent or more orchardgrass.

Does tall fescue make good hay?

In Pennsylvania, Tall fescue has been used primarily for conservation purposes but is well suited as hay, silage, or pasture. It is well adapted to the soil and weather conditions of Pennsylvania (Table 1).

Is Kentucky 31 tall fescue good for horses?

Regardless of what type of horses you own or manage, Kentucky 31 tall fescue is not the best grass available and shouldn’t be included in your seed mixtures.

Is tall fescue grass good for horses?

Fields of tall fescue are easily established, tolerate close grazing, handle heavy horse traffic, and resist weeds, insects, and disease. Tall fescue provides plentiful yields and is low maintenance, flourishing under a range of management systems. Not all fescue is infected with endophyte.

Does fescue make good hay?

The hay of each maturity was then fed to 500-pound Holstein heifers. Not surprisingly, the early-cut fescue had the highest forage quality with a digestibility of 68 percent and a crude protein content of 13.8 percent (see table below).

Is fescue grass good for pasture?

Is tall fescue toxic?

The biggest issue with tall fescue is toxicosis. Endophyte-infected tall fescue produces ergot-alkaloid compounds, which can be a life-threatening toxin within the plant. Although the toxin can cause issues in cattle all year round, the biggest issues tend to stem to the summer months.

What kind of fescue is bad for horses?

Endophyte-infected tall fescue
Endophyte-infected tall fescue is toxic to horses.

Is fescue hay high in sugar?

Most cool-season grasses, like orchardgrass and fescue, can have high sugar content. Timothy and crested wheatgrass tend to be medium in sugar content, as are most warm season (native) grasses.

What kind of hay is best for horses?

Best Hay Types for Horses

• 1.) Alfalfa. Alfalfa hay is high-protein legume hay from the ‘pea’ family.
• 2.) Clover. Clover hay is the other legume hay suitable for horses but not as popular with horse owners.
• 3.) Timothy Grass.
• 4.) Orchardgrass.
• 5.) Fescue.
• 6.) Reed Canary Grass.
• 7.) Bluegrass.
• 8.) Bromegrass.

Is fescue good for hay?

Fescue, unlike many grasses, remains edible in freezing weather. By January, both hay and grass hold their lowest levels of toxic alkaloids that cause problems. Grass provides better nutrients than hay. More farmers using rotational grazing use fall stockpiling.

Is fescue bad for mares?

Mares that continue to eat fescue are at greatly increased risk of prolonged pregnancy and a difficult delivery of the overmature foal; thickening of the placenta leading to suffocation of the foal during birth; premature placental separation; and failure to produce colostrum or milk.

What kind of hay is not good for horses?

Clover and grass hay (different types of clovers like red, white, etc.) Prone to fungus. Protein and fiber-rich. However, they are prone to fungus, and red clover can cause excess salivation in horses.

Is all fescue toxic?

Ergovaline content of infected tall fescue often ranges from 100 to 500 ppb, and >200 ppb is considered a toxic concentration. Susceptible species from most to least sensitive are horses, cattle, and sheep. Endophyte-infected fescue that does not produce ergovaline has not caused fescue toxicosis.

Does fescue fix nitrogen?

Work done in Virginia showed that a 53% stand of red clover or 59% stand of alfalfa grown with tall fescue fixed enough N for a total DM yield of 4.7 and 5.8 tons per acre, respectively.