[Lightningsrider]

Our neighbors have a Fjord X Appaloosa cross that we've gone to see fairly often. The other day, my mother noticed that they'd mowed her pasture and she was still on it. Is she more likely to overeat the cut grass or is it richer? Could it in any way cause here to founder? Thank you for all and any replies.

[Blistering Winds]

Cut gras = Hay

No difference really


HOWEVER< if the mower is leaking...you risk gas or oil residue on the grass clippings.

Sometimes, I'll cut, wait 24 hrs, then turn out.

The moisture content drops, which pulls some of hte origional sugars out...not much, but some.

[Blistering Winds]

Some horses may Choke....that is more of a risk in my eyes if the horse is use to being out on the grass.

And moreso from horses who get "turned out" every blue moon.

[Lightningsrider]

Thank you, everyone. I didn't think that there was a problem, but my mother was very worried about it. I swear, she's half in love with that horse.

[3WishesDun]

If the grass was really high....and the clumps of mown grass are laying in the sun getting hot...it can cause the horse to colic.

[Blistering Winds]

Fermentation.......if not cured properly,....can happen and cause colic.

But then....hay is cultivated, allowed to dry in the sun in long lines of "clump" and allowed to dry in the heat.

[MissBandit]

Originally Posted by Blistering Winds

Cut gras = Hay

No difference really

Sorry BW but that is an incorrect statement. You cannot compare grass clippings from a lawn mower to that of hay at all. The method in which the grass is cut is entirely different.

Grazing off of freshly mowed grass can cause issues, most deffinitely. They get a lot more of it in their mouth at once which can ball up easily and cause choke. They can gorge themselves on it and bring on laminitis or colic. If the grass has dried, then those concerns lessen. I would still worry about the impurities from gas/oil though.

As for the lawn/grass stems that have just been trimmed, they will flush sugars in an effort to come back from the 'attack'.

[Blistering Winds]

So, if the smaller, compact is so bad, then is chopped alfalfa that comes in bags that so many use bad? Many soak the cubes down and the cubes are now no longer, and remoisturized "hay" chopped up is there.

It comes down to...Your horse.

A horse that has been stalled, doesn't get turned out much, and is turned out on a fresh cut yard..yes...the hrose will gorge himself on the cut up hay and possibly cause issues. Can happen on a round bale on a hrose not use to one.

Put blister, a horse use to grazing around, eating here, there, and not going to be all giddy if turned out on a fresh cut yard....no issues since he knows to browse...and not gulp down everything in site as they dont' know when the next time they'll get out again.....

[MissBandit]

Grass clippings from the lawn mower, again, cannot be compared to hay or chopped alfalfa It simply is not hay.

Any horse can gorge themselves on a pasture topped with grass clippings.

Originally Posted by Blistering Winds

So, if the smaller, compact is so bad, then is chopped alfalfa that comes in bags that so many use bad? Many soak the cubes down and the cubes are now no longer, and remoisturized "hay" chopped up is there.

It comes down to...Your horse.

A horse that has been stalled, doesn't get turned out much, and is turned out on a fresh cut yard..yes...the hrose will gorge himself on the cut up hay and possibly cause issues. Can happen on a round bale on a hrose not use to one.

Put blister, a horse use to grazing around, eating here, there, and not going to be all giddy if turned out on a fresh cut yard....no issues since he knows to browse...and not gulp down everything in site as they dont' know when the next time they'll get out again.....

[Super Step]

The chopped alfalfa contains stems, more roughage. It is the entire plant above ground level that is harvested. Then this plant, once cured, is processed into bales, cubes or chopped and bagged.

When yard grass is cut, it is just the tops or new growth that is cut. Not much stem. While the toppings themselves can be considered roughage, they are a finer cut just by the mechanics in the way a lawn mower cuts. The lawn mower blade cuts from the top downward in a rotary motion.
A hay mower cuts from the bottom upward on a mature crop. By design a hay mower does not chop the grass but rather leaves the plant entire.

Lawn mowers usually discharge the cut grass to one side creating a windrow. The grass on top will cure while the grass underneath can mold.
Hay is not raked into a windrow until the hay is cured and ready to bale. The windrow is used only to gather already cured hay for the baler.