char1304
Junior Member
northern ambition
Posts: 183
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Post by char1304 on Jul 11, 2014 11:51:16 GMT
My horse is in a patch at the moment and the field he is in is full of clover and he can not get enough of it . He eats it down to the soil . Is it good for them and why could he be eating it
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sarahk
Junior Member
Posts: 85
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Clover
Jul 11, 2014 11:58:42 GMT
Post by sarahk on Jul 11, 2014 11:58:42 GMT
Will make him fat, very high in protein and calcium, you may notice him slobber a lot more too and could make him Founder.
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char1304
Junior Member
northern ambition
Posts: 183
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Post by char1304 on Jul 11, 2014 12:10:37 GMT
Thank you I will bare that in mind .
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sarahp
Happy to help
Posts: 9,510
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Clover
Jul 14, 2014 7:02:05 GMT
Post by sarahp on Jul 14, 2014 7:02:05 GMT
I have lots of wild white clover in all my fields, and never had any problems from it. Yes, high in protein but that's not normally any problem to them, contrary to what is frequently said protein does not cause laminitis. As it's deep rooting its good at bringing minerals up through the roots from deeper underground than grass, and as it's nitrogen fixing will be a source of slow release nitrogen fertiliser for the grass. I believe red clover though contains oestrogen and can cause fertility problems for sheep if there's a lot of it, no idea about ponies though.
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Clover
Jul 15, 2014 9:37:59 GMT
Post by Kerbeck on Jul 15, 2014 9:37:59 GMT
All I know is Clover is very rich! 2 years ago I moved my two fell ponies to a farm with excellent grazing - overflowing with clover, they were both worked 6 days a week and were FIT! They were on a very sparce paddock but could I keep them trim? Nope! Nothing else in their routine had changed other than where they were grazing and they both had an extra 100kg on them! I have just moved them to another yard 2 miles away with no clover and they have already dropped a considerable amount of weight in 2 weeks!
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char1304
Junior Member
northern ambition
Posts: 183
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Post by char1304 on Jul 15, 2014 11:09:11 GMT
Thank you kerbeck . I am just bringing him back into work from a ligament injury so need to keep his weight down . He isn't over weight at the moment but I think I will watch whet I move his patch next
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