# The Big Debate Over: Alfalfa does it make your horse hyper? Love to hear your thought



## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

I feed alfalfa to my western pleasure horse with his evening feedings and when I go to out of town shows... I certainly wouldn't feed it to him if I thought it made him hyper! 8)


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

All my horses get fed alfalfa and I have never noticed any of them being "hot" because of it. IMHO, if a horse is hot, then it is generally a training issue and cannot just miraculously _appear_ from being fed alfalfa. Sweet feed maybe, but that contains too much sugar.


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

Oh, there are two of these threads! I replied in the other one.

But briefly, I have always been a firm believer the it does not heat horses up. However I recently aquired a 20 year old tb gelding for my father to learn to ride on. This horse is VERY quiet, I can do anything on him, jump on him bareback and take him around the paddock, ride him with just a rope around his neck and get a dressage test out of him... he's a lovely old boy. But give him just ONE biscuit of alfalfa, and he is a raving lunatic!! He will gallop the length of the paddocking bucking and carrying on like a 2 year old! Without alfalfa, he serenely cruises the paddock nibbling grass. 

So yep, I'd say it can definately hot them up!


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

Just to add, I have always fed it to all my horses and never had an issue with it. This includes young breakers, ottb's and others. And not one has been heated up on it, but obviously there are certain horses that do react in such a way as above!


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## kevinshorses (Aug 15, 2009)

Maybe the mads can merge the two threads.


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

I'm not mad....  Where is the other thread? Can you provide a link? I'll try to merge....


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

I'd say it depends on the horse. My friend and I added alfalfa hay cubes to our horse's diets last year. Her Quarter Horse showed no personality changes whatsoever. My OTTB started acting loopy with 7 days. It was a noticeable difference and the alfalfa was the only change. I guess alfalfa is a lot like alcohol for humans. Some get quiet, some get angry, and other get silly.


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## skittle1120 (Oct 24, 2009)

Both of mine get alfalfa pellets and oats once a day to supplement their orchard grass hay and I haven't noticed it causing any problems....


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

MyBoyPuck said:


> I'd say it depends on the horse. My friend and I added alfalfa hay cubes to our horse's diets last year. Her Quarter Horse showed no personality changes whatsoever. My OTTB started acting loopy with 7 days. It was a noticeable difference and the alfalfa was the only change. *I guess alfalfa is a lot like alcohol for humans*. Some get quiet, some get angry, and other get silly.


Haha so is that why they like it so much???? :lol:


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

Ha! Special brownies for horses! Who knew? Honestly though, Puck acted like a cat on catnip. Just really goofy. I should have gotten it on video.


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## Production Acres (Aug 26, 2009)

"Alfalfa is the King of Forages"
For people raised in alfalfa country, these thoughts don't apply to you!

In the South, alfalfa is generally imported! As such, most people have not grown up with it; additionally, it is not common or inexpensive! Thus these are the impressions of a hay seller in the south.

Poor people - will take alfalfa or alfalfa mixes any time they can for the added protein they can get for their animals. They will take anything $3/bale or less.

Performance minded people who have been around quite a bit - use alfalfa as a tool. Some horses get it, some don't. Sometimes and certain times of the year, the whole barn may be on alfalfa, later in the year, only part of the barn.

Horse women with 1-2 horses - mostly pets! First words out of their mouths when they come in the barn - "I don't want anything with any alfalfa in it." This comes from several reasons. 1. the preception that alfalfa is more expensive, 2. "it ruins their kidneys", 3. alfalfa makes them hot, 4. "my horses are all insulin resistant" - high protein must mean high sugar - we cannot feed alfalfa.

BTW - 75-90% of our customers are women and we are very appreciative of their buisness. I am not trying to be derogatory. Interestingly, my daughter is 11 - very much into things equestrian. Likes to read the new "Black Stallion of the Windy Hills" type books. A lot of poor information is in these type books as the author is more romatic about the horse experience than they are a quality horseman. Additionally, the pony clubs often want nearly "tranked" horses for the young girls to ride and preach the anti-alfalfa propraganda to the little girls on these first mounts, and pretty soon you have a whole generation of people with a hesitation towards alfalfa.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

^^Thats funny. All my horses have always been fed alfalfa; I have never had a horse with a case of colic, founder, or insulin resistance (not since we quit feeding sweet feed anyway). I prefer alfalfa because it does keep my animals......um, healthy (chunky). When I get on a horse, I like to feel like I am sitting on a horse, not a toothpick. If they are out of shape, that is because they don't get worked enough, but I am comfortable knowing that when they do get worked consistently, they bulk up a ton of muscle mass, not just trim fat.


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## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

I used to feed my hard keeper a flake of straight alf. per feeding. It didnt make him hot one bit.

Its like saying you car will always go faster, just because it has more gas in it. It really depends how hard you push the petal ;-)

A horse with alot of excess energy-from food, will usually be a little hotter to try to burn it off. If a person skip meals, its sort of the opposite reaction. Over feeding any horse can lead to hyperness. I think you have to look at the whole feed plan, not just the alf. they are given. My horses eat grass 24/7 in the summer, which is very green and has lots of protein. They arent one bit hotter for it. They even get about a scoop of alf. pellets once a day, with no adverse effects.


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## 5cuetrain (Dec 11, 2009)

Me thinks that Alfalfa is a part of the total diet. We feed it to the horses who are working for a living as a protein boost.

We use the cubes as a reward for a good job done well. The horses think ist the best thing since sliced bread for sure. You can always tell who did good today--just look for the green lips!!


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## G and K's Mom (Jan 11, 2008)

We do now and have always feed up to 4-5 pounds of alfalfa to our horse's per day along with a grass hay. 

As Production Acres said it is the King of forage.


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

I love the stuff, have fed it to all my horses. If I want to ride in the morning I have always fed half a biscuit before I ride, it is much better for their digestion if you plan on exercising them soon than hay or hard feed it. 
However just this one horse I have not been able to feed it! He's certainly not over fed, he's in a large paddock with a 'girlfriend' and being the middle of an Australian summer right now there's not a hell of a lot of richness in the crckling, brown pathetic excuse for grass. But one biscuit of alfalfa/lucerne and it sets him right off!


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## paint gurl 23 (Jan 26, 2009)

I was always led to believe straight alfalfa hay/cubes wasnt good for our equines feet because of the high amount of sugar/richness? Someone told me that they cant process that high amounts of sugar or something...I dont feed straight alfalfa but have and if your horse is an easy keeper, you dont want to do this ... lol ... 
I do believe though that horses can get hot with a straight alfalfa diet, I have experienced it first hand with some of my horses while some dont react at all except pack on the pounds!


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## Production Acres (Aug 26, 2009)

paint gurl 23 said:


> I was always led to believe straight alfalfa hay/cubes wasnt good for our equines feet because of the high amount of sugar/richness? Someone told me that they cant process that high amounts of sugar or something


 
Sugar does not equal Alfalfa, nor does alfalfa equal sugar! 3 forage tests on alfalfa lying on my desk currently would qualify for "Low sugar" status and thus on that basis be accepable for "insulin resistant" horses. A forage test determines sugar levels in a hay, and that is the only thing!


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## Jubilee (Dec 15, 2008)

At the barn I used to work at we always fed our horses straight alfalfa or and alfalfa/grass mix. I don't think it made them hot at all. It is a very high quality, nutritious fodder, so you don't need to feed as much of it. I think that they only time it might cause problems is if the horse does not get enough exercise and is stalled all day. But a lack of exercise can cause a horse to become hot anyway. All of our horses would be turned out for most of the time and just came in to be worked and to eat. The only horse we had stalled all the time was our stallion. He was fed straight alfalfa and was worked four or five times a week. He was a stud, for sure, so he got excited at times, but he was the most laid back stallion I have ever known. I most certainly would not call him hot, and he was half thoroughbred!

So I am a believer in feeding alfalfa, but everyone has their own opinions. Oh, also, if you have broodmares it is the safest thing to feed them because there is no chance of getting fescue mixed in. Plus there are lots of nutrients in it for the growing foal.


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## princess warrior (Dec 28, 2009)

I have never heard or thought of alfalfa as being a problem in making horses hot. I feed it to my horses, a flake with each feeding, along with unlimited mixed grass hay,and plenty of grass in summer and lots of hard work. But I have been at clinics and shows where I have had people tell me Im going to wreak my horses kidneys by feeding alfalfa. I know my horses look great, alot better than most in my area, so I must be doing something right. Can anyone tell me for sure if it does damage the kidneys or not? Thanks


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## Production Acres (Aug 26, 2009)

If you are feeding way too much protein for the work the animal is doing, the kidneys will have to pull that extra nitrogen out of the body and thus they are runing more water adn nitrogen out of the body than "normal". 

I have never seen a study that showed this would "ruin" the kidneys on the horse, nor have I experienced this phenomon!


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## princess warrior (Dec 28, 2009)

Thankyou, my horses really like their alfalfa, but I was concerned. Do you know what does cause kidney damage? I just lost a horse to that, but I suspected she had been through hard times before I got her. She was 24 yrs only. Once again I was told it was because I fed alfalfa, but I only had her 3 yrs! Her weight improved so much no-one knew who she was any more! So I was just wondering.....


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## Jubilee (Dec 15, 2008)

Princess Warrior, I have never heard that argument about alfalfa doing kidney damage. Too much of any one kind of food can be bad for a horse (I guess, except for just plan grass hay) but by your description you are definitely not feeding too much. I don't think it is the alfalfa that did your mare in. Kidney failure is a common problem in a lot of senior animals. They just stop working properly sometimes. Just a part of getting old. Sorry for you lose though.

Jubilee


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## ~*~anebel~*~ (Aug 21, 2008)

Alfalfa does kidney damage to older horses. I have seen, first hand, an older horse slowly die from his kidneys shutting down due to an excess of alfalfa hay and oats. He first foundered, and from there his quality of life deteriorated extremely quickly. Because of the "over-work" the kidneys were doing, there was a constant stream of urine from his stall to the drain in the middle of the barn no matter how high the shavings were piled in his stall. He was drinking nearly twice the normal amount of water than a usual horse and it was not even hot outside (about -10C). He could not stay hydrated, when he chewed his eyes moved in and out of his skull (a sign of severe dehydration).
The vet was called after weeks of the horse being in agony after he foundered (and still was being fed a diet of alfalfa and oats) and the decision was made to put him down. The horse could not walk, and for the last few days he would not eat or stand up and was not urinating at all. He lay in his stall and groaned in agony. The horse was not even 25 when he was put down.

Most older horses have some type of Insulin Resistance or Cushings. Because of this, no horse older than about 20 (in my opinion) should be fed any alfalfa. They should strictly be on a low protein, high fat diet. A horse who is actually bad enough to be diagnosed with either of these conditions, could potentially die from only a few meals of alfalfa hay.
Princess warrior, although it is not for sure that alfalfa was the main cause in your horse's death, it was probably at least a small factor. Next time you need to put weight on an older horse, please consult an equine nutritionist and have your vet run tests before putting the horse on a high protein diet, like alfalfa.

As far as making horses hot, it really depends on the horse. Just like people, they will respond differently. It is more the sugars in the hay that are going to send some horses off the handle hyper, just like some people, if you give them sugar they go bonkers. Other horses and people can handle the sugar just fine. It is an insulin thing.
My horse is fed a 30% alfalfa mix and also gets oats because he is in such had work he needs the energy provided by the alfalfa and oats. He responds fine to this and does not get hyper, it just gives him more clean burning fuel  For a pleasure horse, I would not feed excessive alfalfa or any oats. Some horses who respond badly to alfalfa can't have any. Just like any other thing with horses, their program needs to be individually tailored to them. Never treat horses as "this works for everyone" because it usually never works that way, and when in doubt, call a professional. Spending a few hundred dollars to prevent a few thousand dollar vet hospital stay, or having to put your horse down, is always worth it!


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## Cowgirl140ty (Jan 7, 2010)

Every horse is diefferent. My 3 yr old eats a flake each feeding and never seems to faze her. MY 8 yr old gelding on the other hand I have to be very careful about feeding it to him... or he can be a handful


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## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

Excess protein also causes kidney stones (at least in people.) Ponies may founder with alot of protein.


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## MangoRoX87 (Oct 19, 2009)

My mare is usaually nice and quite (she is 18). But once I gave her alfalfa to boost her for the days speed events, but I forgot I had to do reining first!! As soon as we turned down the middle of the arena to do a stop on the other end, boy she turned like she was turning the last barrel! She took off down that arena and I sooo did not expect it! She acted up the whole class and made me want to just screw the class and correct her....which I wound up doing lol


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## luvs2ride1979 (Nov 9, 2007)

Feeding Alfalfa to many horses over the years, I have found that it only makes some horses hyper when fed as their only source of forage, or the majority of their forage (over 70%). I have heard of some horses having a sensitivity to it, like a food allergy, and getting hyper on just a little, but I have not run across a horse like that myself.

I feed 1.5-3 lbs a day of alfalfa pellets to my horses as their "feed". Their forage is free choice bermuda with local grasses mixed. Switching from "horse feed" (and I tried all kinds!) to alfalfa pellets with a vit/min supplemened has actually CALMED DOWN my one "hyper horse" and improved my mare's "focus" during ring work. Her heats also got better. 

The different types of horse feed was the cause of my horse's hyperactivity. The sugar and/or starch content found in most grains and feeds is MUCH higher than alfalfa hay or pellets. Sugar and/or starch does a lot more to "hype up" a horse than alfalfa, IME.

Alfalfa is high in digestible energy, or calories, but they're "good" calories from fiber and protein. A horse will more readily use these calories for constructive energy and muscle building than sugar or starch calories. 

Living out in California, I fed primarly alfalfa hay to my horses, with just a little bermuda for "lunch" (to keep them from getting bored). My horses then were in heavy training and showing. Using Alfalfa hay allowed me to feed almost no feed, and keep them in good weight.


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## equine fanatic99 (Oct 1, 2009)

LOL makes Smarty and Dusty feel freash... veeery freash....


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## Production Acres (Aug 26, 2009)

~*~anebel~*~ said:


> Alfalfa does kidney damage to older horses. I have seen, first hand, an older horse slowly die from his kidneys shutting down due to an excess of alfalfa hay and oats. He first foundered, and from there his quality of life deteriorated extremely quickly. Because of the "over-work" the kidneys were doing, foundered (and still was being fed a diet of alfalfa and oats)


Your statement could have also been "Alfalfa destroys horses's feet", and it would be equally out of place as you stated the horse was *fed an excess to the point of founder.* And based upon the same scientific mindset, you could also say "Omolene 200 causes damage to horse feet", and that could be the headline to a major newstory, and like a lot of newstory's you just put in small type or leave out the fact that you fed 25# per day to the horse, thus abusing the product. 
Drinking a glass of wine per day will not probably damage your liver; drinking a case of milwalkie's best every night will damage your liver!




> Most older horses have some type of Insulin Resistance or Cushings. Because of this, no horse older than about 20 (in my opinion) should be fed any alfalfa.


 Insulin resistance is a sugar issue. Many alfalfa hay samples will actually have low sugar results, not high sugar!


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## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

> Insulin resistance is a sugar issue. Many alfalfa hay samples will actually have low sugar results, not high sugar!


Ive alway thought it had alot of sugar, its really green and vibrant and smells very good. I always thought it was simmilar to grass. It has a different kind of sugar- fructose, where as grain type feeds usually have sucrose (molasses.) Most animals proces fructose easier because its more natural then alot of sucrose we see today. Thats why fruit and veggies are easier on your body then processed sugars (and higher on the food pyramid.)


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## luvs2ride1979 (Nov 9, 2007)

I agree with Production Acres.

Alfalfa does not do kidney damage when fed properly. If a horse already has a kidney issue, then sure, excess protein in ANY form can cause issues. However, that does not mean it will cause issues for a normal healthy horse, of any age.

Also, the combination of high levels of Alfalfa and Oats has shown to be not the best, considering the protein content of both, the digestible energy of alfalfa combined with the starch/sugar of the oats, and the Calciumhosphorous (CA) ratio of both. A senior horse with questionable health should definitely NOT have been on that diet.

*~*~anebel~*~* your post should have been, ignorant owners who do not care about the health and well being of the horses cause kidney failure (and founder)... ;-).


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## luvs2ride1979 (Nov 9, 2007)

sillybunny11486 said:


> Ive alway thought it had alot of sugar, its really green and vibrant and smells very good. I always thought it was simmilar to grass. It has a different kind of sugar- fructose, where as grain type feeds usually have sucrose (molasses.) Most animals proces fructose easier because its more natural then alot of sucrose we see today. Thats why fruit and veggies are easier on your body then processed sugars (and higher on the food pyramid.)


Grass Hay has actually shown to have higher levels of sugar in many instances than alfalfa. 

Good articles: 
Sugar in grass and hay
Better grass and hay for horses with laminitis


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## princess warrior (Dec 28, 2009)

I just read a study I found and I have to agree with Production Acres. It is finally good to find out for myself the answers and that my gut feeling was right. Balance is the key and K.I.S.S (keep it simple simon). I know that I look after and feed my horses exceptionally well , Buttons was an amazing first horse for my daughter and we were devastated to lose her, I did everythig I could for her, and for the 2 other horses I lost in the last 16 months, 1 to a stroke and 1 to lameness, I spent thousands of $$$$ and lost my georgeous paint... Dont tell me Im ignoant. Thankyou Jubilee for your kind words.


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## princess warrior (Dec 28, 2009)

I just read a report that AQHA has done a study on alfalfa and found that feeding it to horses, esp performance horses , it can help with stomach ulcers as it coats the stomach. Benefical to all horses. Read it on AQHA.


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## HalterHorsePaints (Oct 17, 2009)

ok i should know a thing or 2 about alfalfa 
1.does not make ur horse hyper
2.is very beneficial for their coat
3.alfalfa is less in sugars than T/A
4.fed to many breeds with no sighns of hot headedness
5.fed to my horse and shes a tank weighing in at 1200lbs aka shes an halter mare.


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## princess warrior (Dec 28, 2009)

Great, thanks for more good info.


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## Gidget (Jan 19, 2010)

I feed my horse alfalfa and it does seem to give her a bit of spunk. If you have an arab I would not feed alfalfa because they can be high strung/hot already because it's their nature. 

I suppose it does depend on your horses level of energy...if you horse is already hyper I wouldn't. 
I'm switching over to grass hay once spring comes around.
I am also giving vitamins to my horse and I think that helps her with having a bit of energy when asked to run.


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## xxBarry Godden (Jul 17, 2009)

Down in Andalusia in hot southern Spain - there is very little grass - except perhaps in the 2 -3 months of winter when the rains come. In the place of hay they feed alfalfa - it is all they can get. They thrive on it.
However almost all the horses are Andalusians or Arabs both breeds used to the climate and the vegetation and of course alfalfa. 

In the UK I feed my Irish horse a mixture which contains Alfalfa - she can get hyped up quite easily but I suspect green, green, grass is the culprit rather than the mixture.

It is logical that a horse breed emanating from a hot climate region might seek out vegetation similar to that which its forbears had been fed upon as and when a horse of that breed was moved to a cold climate region. 

That same horse might be especially vulnerable to weeds growing in a cold climate area ie yew and ragwort. But has any research work been done on this topic?

I deliberately did not buy an Andalusian from SPain for keeping in Britain because of the British climate and the lush green vegetation. I was told later by a breeder than Andalusians bred in Britain soon acclimatise - but do they? 

Measuring hype in a horse is difficult. We quickly blame diet and with good cause - but are we right to do so. Some folks swear that rolled oats are heating feed - others say that in measured quanties oats are good. But when I fed my cob Joe oats he became uncontrollable. 

I have a sneaking feeling that breed matters. But who knows? 

B G


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## Jessabel (Mar 19, 2009)

I've never heard of it making them hyper. It's a lot richer for them than grass hay, though. My horses would blow up like butterballs if I gave them straight alfalfa. :lol:


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## UnrealJumper (Nov 24, 2009)

A horse of ours is allergic to alfalfa (he's 29 now, been without alfalfa his whole life) When he was first bought as a two yr old, he was allergic to alfalfa. He had the nastiest reaction, that almost killed him!!! My mom's boyfriend had his hay guy turn one of his crops into an alfalfa free zone, and he would buy that for his horses. Well soon after that people found out about it and the hay guy ended up turning ALL of his hay fields into alfalfa free zones. He's one of the most popular sellers now!! But from his experience he has found out that an alfalfa is not always that beneficial.

I know of another horse who has been eating alfalfa hay alll its life, the horse got really sick last year and as soon as it was taken off of alfalfa it gradually started to get better. Maybe there is something alfalfa does to horses?


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

I have all of mine on alfalfa/grass mix, and no one is 'hot'...they have a healthy amount of energy, but not anywhere near what I would consider hot.


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