Missouri Fescue for horse hay????

Tx Jim · Nov 1, 2011

Is Fescue that's grown in Missouri good for horses??? I just had a gentleman call me wanting to sell me an 18 wheeler load of rd bales and I know nothing about it? Is it common for it to contain endophyte or ergot? Thanks,Jim

LAA · Nov 1, 2011

Short answer is it has a good chance of being endophyte infected if it is not one of the endophyte free cultivars, percentage of infection depends on conditions under which it was grown and harvested, hot and dry equal higher percentages. The main danger to horses and cattle is lowered fertility and possible spontaneous abortion plus if heavily infected hay is fed as sole ration they will lose weight instead of gain. All that being said what part of Texas are you in? You can still buy grass hay in many parts of Louisiana for a reasonable price, sure, there are plenty of opportunists out there but also people that do not believe in gouging just because they can.

Tx Jim · Nov 1, 2011

30 miles south of Ft Worth in the newest formed town in Texas named Coyote Flats.

old · Nov 1, 2011

In Missouri Fescue is a farmer bane. It wa planted here because it would grow when other grasses would not but has gotten to the point no one wants it or wants very little of it. It is ok to feed to horses if it also has a good mix of other stuff in it. It has been known to cause a problem with mares and causing poor milk supply and also a problem with grass tetna. But then I have only live in Missouri for 31 years and been fighting fescue for years and been getting less of it and more of a good mix of grasses and clovers

Tx Jim · Nov 2, 2011

Thank you for the replies. I guess I'll keep getting the Missouri Brome that my horse hay clients having been buying from me. I sold a bale of Brome the other day to a man with mules. He stated his mules were usually skeptical of something different. That it would probably take them several days to start eating the Brome. He came back in a week for 4 more bales. I asked him how long it took the mules to start eating the Brome and he stated "5 minutes". Thanks again,Jim

PS: The Brome I'm getting is coming from Belle,Mo. Old how far do you live from Belle?

old · Nov 2, 2011

I have heard of Belle but not sure where it is. Lots of them small towns in Missouri that have names but if you drive in and out of them you only know you did because of a sign saying you did. Like Hugo which is about 5 miles from me there is a sign and an old build or 2 and that is it. I feed horse and was selling my mixed hay to a guy and his horses ate the hay all the way down to the ground and left little if any of it but the guy lost his place to the lender due to the fact the bank sold the mortgage and that company upped his payment

Missouri Fescue for horse hay????

Tx Jim

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