Equine Athlete

Eating greens

Benefits and drawbacks of alfalfa for horses

By Heather Smith Thomas

Forage is the most natural feed for horses, as opposed to grain, and should make up the bulk of every horse’s diet. Forage (as hay or pasture) can be divided into two categories—grasses and legumes. Grass hay can be anything from orchard grass, timothy, bluegrass, bromegrass, etc. to fescue and coastal bermuda grass, or some of the cereal hays (oats, barley). Legumes for horses are generally alfalfa and various clovers.

“Alfalfa is a perennial legume, grown in most regions of the U.S. for horses and other livestock,” says Krishona Martinson PhD (Equine Extension Specialist, University of Minnesota Department of Animal Science).

Alfalfa grown in drier climates often makes better hay for horses than alfalfa grown in wet climates because the hay dries more readily, according to Martinson. It’s easier to get harvested without mold. Alfalfa also grows best in well-drained soils rather than wet soils, since it originated as a desert plant. Too much soil moisture will kill it. “Another important factor for growing alfalfa is to have the correct soil pH—within the recommended levels and soil types,” says Martinson.

History of alfalfa

Dr. Ray Smith, Professor and Forage Extension Specialist at University of Kentucky, says alfalfa was one of the first domesticated forages, planted and harvested by early people in what is now Iraq-Iran several thousand years ago. They had discovered its nutritional benefits for horses, especially for horses being worked hard. “The main feed for horses of early armies in those regions was alfalfa,” says Smith.

“In its early development as a forage crop, much of it was grown under irrigation or partial irrigation in that dry region. In recent years, modern plant breeding has enabled this legume to adapt more readily to various conditions, including the more humid Eastern U.S., and alfalfa’s disease resistance has also been improved,” he says.

“When alfalfa was first brought to the Eastern U.S. in the 1700s from Europe it didn’t survive well— partly because of wetter soils and lower pH. The nutrient content of soils in high-rainfall areas wasn’t good; much of the nutrients leaches out of wet soils.”

By contrast, when alfalfa was brought to the Western U.S. in the 1800s during the Gold Rush in California, to grow feed for livestock, it did very well in that arid climate and soil types. “Use of alfalfa grew rapidly in the Western U.S. By the late 1800s and early 1900s, we began to learn more about adding lime to soils, to change the pH and make it more appropriate for growing alfalfa. Plant breeding was also beginning by the 1900s and plant scientists were able to develop alfalfa that could adapted to various soils in the U.S.” says Smith.

Benefits of alfalfa

“The biggest benefit of alfalfa for horses is that it tends to be more nutrient-dense than most grasses when harvested at the same stage of maturity,” says Martinson. Alfalfa tends to have more digestible energy, and more crude protein and calcium, and lower levels of non-structural carbohydrates.

Alfalfa is a good feed for horses that are underweight (since it is nutrient dense), or horses prone to gastric ulcers (since the extra calcium acts as a buffer for acid in the stomach). “It can also be beneficial to horses with muscle problems that are prone to tying up, or horses with Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS) due to the lower amount of nonstructural carbohydrates,” she says.

Horses with insulin resistance, Cushings, etc. can’t handle the high sugar content of some grass hays. Alfalfa is typically lower in sugar. For horses that are sensitive to the sugar content or carbohydrates in feed, a legume diet or mixed legume/grass diet will help lower the total sugar intake. Most owners of a sugar-sensitive horse realize the grain portion of the diet should be reduced or eliminated, since oats, corn and barley are 55 to 75% carbohydrates. But the forage component of the diet should also be evaluated. If hay is fed at 2% of body weight or more, that’s 20 or more pounds of hay. If the hay is 10% sugar, that’s a lot of sugar! It can be helpful to have hay tested, to see what the nutrient levels actually are.

The biggest benefit of alfalfa is for horse owners who want to keep their horses on a higher plane of

nutrition (such as hard-working athletes or lactating mares) yet reduce grain in the diet. Diets high in grain can lead to health issues, and grain also tends to cost more than hay. Alfalfa can be more economical, but price will depend on your location.

It is excellent feed for lactating broodmares, growing horses, thin horses, or any horse that has trouble keeping weight on, or a young foal that isn’t getting enough milk (an orphan, or a foal whose mother doesn’t milk very well). The alfalfa supplies the necessary protein. With growing horses, however, use caution in the amount fed, so they don’t grow too quickly or get too big too fast and be at risk for DOD (developmental orthopedic diseases).

“Many horse owners feed several flakes of grass hay and one flake of alfalfa,” says Krista Lea, Forage Extension and Research Analyst at University of Kentucky. “Horsemen can create their own mix, which can be more economical and easier to feed, especially if they have some horses that don’t need alfalfa and some that do,” she says. The feed can be matched to the individual horse.

This works better than trying to buy hay that’s a grass-alfalfa mix, since it doesn’t grow uniformly in a field. There will be some parts of the field with very little grass and some with more grass and less alfalfa. Buying a good grass hay and an alfalfa hay and feeding some of each, in appropriate ratio for a specific horse’s needs, is better. You can also use alfalfa pellets or cubes to add to a grass hay diet, for the same purpose.

Feeding a little alfalfa an hour or two before work or competition can help prevent gastric ulcers because the calcium can help buffer acid produced or splashed up into the non-glandular part of the stomach (where the lining is not protected by mucus) during work. Horses that tend to suffer from ulcers should be fed hay that includes some alfalfa.

“Another key to preventing ulcers in horses that have nutrient dense diets is to increase the forage (which increases chewing time) and decrease the concentrates. More chewing creates more saliva, which also helps buffer stomach acid. The only time you might run into problems with alfalfa is if the alfalfa was very rich and leafy with no stems at all or very fine stems, minimizing the need for chewing.

Even though you are getting the calcium, you are losing the benefit from increased saliva,” explains Lea. If you are feeding a lot of grain and leafy alfalfa you could still have ulcer problems because there’s not enough fiber to increase chewing time.

Horses that should not be fed alfalfa

“One of the negative factors is that alfalfa supplies more nutrients than needed for some horses, especially adult horses that are not working or only being ridden lightly,” says Martinson. “They tend to become overweight and this may create a number of issues,” she explains.

The easy-keeper, fat horse doesn’t need alfalfa, but there are other horses that do better with little or no alfalfa. Alfalfa is generally a good source of nutrients for the horse that needs a lot of calories, such as racehorses and performance horses. The exception might be a horse working hard in hot weather, since protein metabolism creates more heat than does metabolism of fat or carbohydrates, according to Dr. Stephen Duren, Performance Horse Nutrition. The added heat created by processing the extra protein can cause problems with heat dissipation and the horse might dehydrate (due to extra sweating because of extra body heat produced, and increased urination from the alfalfa breakdown/flushing from the kidneys) and be more likely to suffer heat stress.

“Extra protein cannot be stored in the body (like extra fat or carbohydrates, which can be stored as fat) and must be excreted. If a horse is fed more protein

Alfalfa is an excellent feed for some horses since it has more digestible energy, crude protein and calcium and lower levels of non-structural carbohydrates.

than he needs, some of it goes to waste and is broken down so it can be excreted. The end group of amino acids on the protein structure is chopped off, converting the balance to carbohydrates, which can be used as energy or stored as fat (helpful for a working horse or thin horse), but the unneeded nitrogen portion becomes ammonia or urea, which are both excreted in the urine (producing smelly urine),” says Duren.

A horse eating more protein than the body can use will also drink more water (to flush out the additional waste products). This creates more urine, with a strong ammonia smell. “This may be why horsemen in earlier years thought the kidneys were damaged by high protein feed. The actual detriment would be more expense and labor in providing extra bedding to replace that which is soiled by increased urination,” he says.

When buying alfalfa, look for leaf to stem ratio and whether the hay is clean and bright with no dust or mold. Square bales are generally easier to feed than round bales.

Another undesirable factor is poor air quality in a barn where too much protein is fed. “The ammonia in stalls can irritate air passages and make horses more susceptible to respiratory problems (which you certainly don’t want, in a performance horse). This is especially true with foals, since they are smaller (breathing air in the lower portion of the stall) and spend a lot of time lying down. Ammonia is heavier than air and tends to be most highly concentrated near ground level,” he says.

Feeding extra protein is wasteful, but aside from the disadvantage of more urine and ammonia in a barn, or more heat to dissipate during exertion in hot weather, the high protein diet in itself does not hurt a healthy horse. It can be detrimental, however, to a horse that already has impaired kidneys or a damaged liver. These horses have problems processing and excreting protein, and should always be kept on a very low protein diet. The kidneys must work harder to filter out and excrete the breakdown products of excess protein.

“We don’t recommend straight alfalfa hay for a racehorse, endurance horse or any horse working hard for long periods,” says Duren. “The extra calcium in the diet on a routine basis—from the alfalfa—triggers the parathyroid to think there is plenty all the time, so the body doesn’t absorb it very well from the digestive tract. If you couple this with hard work, where the horse is sweating for long periods and losing calcium along with the other electrolyte minerals in the sweat, this creates a calcium deficit. Some of these horses get the thumps, which is a diaphragm flutter associated with compromised function of the nerve that goes across it. For those horses, you should never feed alfalfa as the sole forage, even though they can benefit from small amounts of alfalfa, just like any other performance horse,” explains Duren. What’s best for a horse will depend on what he does for a living.

“Many performance horses can do a lot of work but since they are not working to the point of dehydration they can handle a higher percentage of alfalfa. In California there are many cutting, reining and other performance horses that eat a lot of alfalfa hay (because that’s the forage that grows best in that climate) and balancer pellets, and that’s their entire diet and they do fine.”

Another group that does best with limited alfalfa are horses with hyperkalemic periodic paralysis (HYPP), since alfalfa is often high in potassium. This is an inherited muscle disease, caused by a genetic defect. In the muscle of affected horses, a mutation exists in the gene that affects the muscle cell membrane which controls contraction of the muscle fibers. The muscle can become overly excitable and contract involuntarily when potassium levels fluctuate in the blood. This may occur if the horse hasn’t eaten for a while and then consumes a high potassium feed such as alfalfa. Hyperkalemia, which is an excessive amount of potassium in the blood, causes muscles to contract more readily than normal—with sporadic episodes of muscle tremors or paralysis.

“Potassium levels in forage are dependent on what the plants are pulling out of the soil, however,” says Duren. “Thus it can make a difference how and where the alfalfa was grown, and also whether it was fertilized with manure—which drives the potassium levels higher. If a horse is sensitive to potassium, rather than exclude alfalfa, I suggest having the hay

Misconceptions about alfalfa

Horsemen used to think that a diet of rich alfalfa could cause kidney problems in horses. “A normal, healthy horse can metabolize and excrete the extra protein in alfalfa just fine, if the horse has adequate water,” explains Smith. Horses that already have kidney disease should not have a diet high in protein (such as alfalfa), but the alfalfa will not cause kidney disease.

Another common misconception is the amount of non-structural carbohydrates in alfalfa. Cool-season grasses like timothy, bromegrass and orchard grass actually have a higher non-structural carbohydrate content (and sugars) than legumes. Horses with carbohydrate sensitivity that should not be fed grain include obese horses, individuals with laminitis, EMS, Cushings, and PSSM. These horses need their diet carefully monitored for the amount of non-structural carbohydrates, and can benefit from including some alfalfa rather than grain or cool-season grasses. Even a small portion of alfalfa can bring down the level of non-structural carbohydrates for those horses. A mixed grass-alfalfa hay is a good choice for horses that need lower levels of nonstructural carbohydrates.

Often these horses are overweight, however, so you just need to make sure the forage is mature, to bring down the

Alfalfa is most nutritious when it is budding but before it blooms.

overall total energy content. Otherwise the horse will be gaining more weight, which increases risk for laminitis, EMS, etc. Alfalfa with a fair amount of grass in it, cut at late bloom stage when the plants are more mature, would be a good choice for these horses. For horses that are overweight but otherwise healthy (with no non-structural carbohydrate sensitivities), mature grass hay is a better choice than alfalfa, due to the lower nutrient content.

“Another issue that is partly a misconception is that alfalfa aggravates respiratory problems in horses with heaves,” says Martinson. These horses tend to cough more when fed alfalfa, but this is mainly due to factors other than alfalfa itself. The irritants are dust and mold. Alfalfa can be dustier than grass hay unless moisture conditions at baling were ideal. Alfalfa leaves tend to shatter when too dry, and this creates more dust particles. Grass hay tends to have a bigger window of acceptable moisture content at baling.

“Mold formation is directly related to moisture content when baling. One issue with alfalfa—which tends to have more stem than grass—is that the stem takes longer to dry. Alfalfa might take 12 to 24 hours longer to dry than a grass crop, simply because it has more stems. Moldy grass hay or moldy alfalfa hay can both cause irritation of the lungs when mold dust is inhaled,” she says.

“Any time you bale hay at more than 17% moisture, you have risk for mold. Hay over 19% moisture will always mold,” says Martinson. It’s a narrow window, since baling too dry will cause leaf shatter and dust. People who are good at growing alfalfa try to bale it within that narrow window of ideal moisture, to reduce the risk for mold, yet hold the leaves on the plant so there is less leaf loss (since most of the nutrients are in the leaves) and less shattering/dustiness.

analyzed. Not all alfalfa hay will be really high in potassium, but you have to test it to find out,” he explains.

“When feeding alfalfa to young horses, limit sweet feed or pasture, and closely monitor/measure their growth rate,” says Lea. “The key to growing a healthy horse is consistent, steady growth, avoiding growth spurts. If you want them to grow fast, you need to make sure they don’t grow too fast, and you want the growth to be consistent instead of sporadic,” she says.

Some horses with unpigmented skin should not eat alfalfa. “These horses may be prone to photosensitization--which can be caused by black blotch disease—a mold that causes black blotches on the undersides of the leaves of legumes including alfalfa,” says Martinson. “Horses ingesting this mold may experience excessive sunburn—which most seriously affects unpigmented areas of their bodies,” she says.

“The thickening/reddening of those areas is easily seen, but liver damage from the toxins in the mold could be a more serious issue. Dark-skinned horses would also have the liver damage, but without the signs of photosensitization,” she explains. The

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HEADAWARD WINNERS SubheadPTF recognizes student polo players

THE POLO TRAINING FOUNDATION recently announced its interscholastic and intercollegiate award recipients. The annual awards are given to both male and female participants that showcase exceptional qualities at both the interscholastic and intercollegiate levels.

The Interscholastic Female Player of the Year is Catherine Stuek; Interscholastic Player of the Year is Matteo Chaux; Intercollegiate Female Player of the Year is Shariah Harris; and Intercollegiate Player of the Year is Morgan Palacios.

The Polo Training Foundation also awarded scholarships to three aspiring polo players. The scholarships were established in 2010 to encourage and promote the attainment of higher education goals based on evidence of a high-level of academic achievement during high school or college. This year, scholarships went to Cipiriano Echezarreta, Grace Mudra and Lea Jih-Vieira. Both Echezarreta and Mudra are attending Texas A&M as freshman, while Jih-Vieira is a sophmore at Cornell University. Congratulations to all recipients.

Catherine Stueck

Interscholastic Female Player of the Year A senior at Garrison Forest School, Stueck is a member of the Maryland Girls’ Varsity Polo Team, coached by Kelly Wells. She won three National Interscholastic Championships in the past five years on the team. Stueck has served as a member of the PTF Junior Board for the past three years. She was its president last year and chairman this year. She plays in New York in the summer and participates in PTF tournaments in Florida in the winter. She plans to continue to play polo in College.

Shariah Harris

Daniel J. Wallace Jr. Intercollegiate PTF Award winner A former Interscholastic Female Player of the Year, Harris got involved in the sport through the Work to Ride program. She has played throughout the world, including Nigeria, Argentina and England. A recent Cornell graduate, Harris is currently enrolled in a program to become a registered nurse with a BSN. She hopes to work in an emergency room one day. She also plans to stay connected to Cornell’s polo program and says polo will always have a spot in her life.

Matteo Chaux

Interscholastic Player of the Year

As a member of Gardnertown Farms’ varsity team in Newburgh, New York, Chaux made it to the National Interscholastic Championships twice. He was team captain this year when nationals were canceled due to COVID-19.

In 2019, Chaux participated in PTF’s England exchange program, which was one of his favorite polo experiences.

Chaux is attending the Fashion Institute of Technology, studying women’s fashion design. He plans to play polo in the summers.

Morgan Palacios

Intercollegiate PTF Award Winner

Palacios is a recent graduate of Cornell University where he played polo while earning a bachelor’s degree in agriculture. He calls college polo one of his favorite experiences. He plans to attend graduate school, and pursue a career in sustainable architecture. In the meantime, he plans to continue in the sport and help the I/I program so he can help others explore the world of polo and the amazing opportunities and experiences that surround the USPA I/I polo program.

TEAM TONY Club raises money for former player

THE OAK BROOK POLO CLUB in Oak Brook, Illinois, held the 4th Annual Team Up for Tony Benefit Aug. 30. The day included double-header polo matches. This year, $50,000 was raised from tournament fees and donations from the greater Chicagoland polo community as well as event spectators.

The funds were raised for Tony Sekera, a longtime player who fell off his horse after it stumbled while stick and balling near Aiken, South Carolina, in June 2017. He broke is C4 and C5 vertebrae and was left paralyzed from the chest down. At the time, Sekera, then 69, said it happened doing something he loved so he couldn’t have regrets. Sekera started playing in the Chicago area in 1986.

The club has raised a total of $150,000 over the past four years for Sekera’s long-term care. USPA Central Circuit Governor Bob McMurty and Oak Brook Polo Club President Jim Drury presented Sekera a check after the polo matches.

HOLD YOUR HORSES Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover canceled

THE RETIRED RACEHORSE Project’s annual Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium has been canceled for 2020. Originally scheduled for October in Lexington, Kentucky, an expanded version of the event is planned for Oct. 12-17, 2021, with separate classes in all 10 disciplines, including polo, for both 2020 and 2021 entries.

“This was a decision that was not entered into lightly,” said the RRP’s executive director Jen Roytz. “We went to great lengths to look at the feasibility of putting on the event from various perspectives, including preparedness of our competitors, current sponsorship commitments, the cost and steps necessary to implement COVID-19 risk management protocols for an event like ours, and what changes we would need to make to the event to comply with state and venue regulations. We also explored various ‘what if’ scenarios with our legal counsel, insurance company, and board, and what their impacts could be on not only the event, but our organization as a whole.”

Trainers who entered this year’s makeover will have the option to retain their registered 2020 horses to compete in a special division at the 2021 makeover or withdrawal and use their entry fee for a 2021-eligible horse.

Bob McMurty and Jim Drury present Tony Sekera and his wife Cindy Engdahl with a check for $50,000.

Joel Baker, sitting top left, led a discussion on knock-ins, throwins and field strategies.

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LEARNING THE ROPES Professionals lead PTF clinic in California

THE CENTRAL COAST POLO CLUB in Los Osos, California, held a Polo Training Foundation clinic this summer. Organizers had to be creative, making accommodations for COVID-19 restrictions.

The goal of the clinic was to benefit existing intermediate to advanced interscholastic players so it was limited to players with a minimum of two year’s experience. This allowed for minimal hands-on instruction as the players could care for their own horses or those they leased. A limit of six players allowed for participants to scrimmage in teams of three in the arena, or with a professional, teams of four on the grass. Professional player Tomy Alberdi worked with the participants the first day. After speaking with them about their goals and questions they had on plays, swings and strategy, they mounted up to do drills, then played a scrimmage. The day finished up with more discussion about strategies for throw-ins and team communication. Joel Baker worked with the students on the second day, beginning with discussions on knock-ins, throw-ins and field strategies before moving on to practice on Baker’s grass field.

Participants continued with more discussion the third day, this time with the help of Andy Maze and Todd Randall, with an emphasis on open shots, passing and respect for the right-of-way. It was the first time playing on the grass for some players and highlighted skills they needed to continue to work on.

Tomy Alberdi, second from right, worked with participants on the first day.

VIRGINIA IS FOR POLO LOVERS Fifteen students benefit from summer clinics

THE VIRGINIA POLO CENTER and The Polo Training Foundation were safely able to conduct two interscholastic polo clinics despite restrictions brought on by the global pandemic.

In July, nine students attended the clinic taught by Bill Matheson, Lou Lopez Jr., Jess Schmitt and Danny Scheraga. The clinic started off with a cavalry-style drill team exercise, followed by riding for polo, hitting and strategy sessions, including video review. Of course, scrimmaging was the highlight every day.

To follow recommended guidelines, students observed social distancing and wore masks at all times when not scrimmaging. Food was served in box lunches rather than the usual buffet style and hand sanitizer was available almost everywhere.

In August, 20 students originally registered however Northeast states started requiring travelers from 34 states, including Virginia, to quarantine for 14 days. The requirement saw all but eight participants and one instructor unable to attend. This created an opportunity for some young talent to shine as instructors. Agustin Arellano and Kylie Sheehan joined Bill Matheson, Jess Schmitt and Lou Lopez Jr. in instructing the clinic. With the low student-to-instructor ratio, each participant received plenty of oneon-one instruction. The participants again enjoyed drills, strategy sessions and scrimmages.

The PTF was thankful to the instructors, students and parents for persevering in these difficult times.