You can feed alfalfa for several reasons. If you feed alfalfa with concentrate, you thereby extend the time it takes your horse to eat. Its high-fibre structure encourages chewing and thereby your horse's saliva production. In addition, because they chew better the concentrate is absorbed better. Lucerne is also naturally rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals, so for horses with increased requirements (e.g. sport horses) or horses with a sensitive stomach, it can also be a very good addition to the ration. Due to its high fibre content, Lucerne Mix is also a source of slow-release energy without making the horse nervous or hot.

The amount of alfalfa you should feed your horse depends on why you feed it. Do you feed it to ensure that your horse spends more time on its concentrate and chews better? Then at least 250 grams (one Hartog Feed Scoop) per meal is sufficient. Do you feed it to ensure your horse gets more protein and to increase the amount of slow-release energy in its ration? Then we recommend feeding 250-600 grams per 100 kg of body weight.

The calcium-to-phosphorus ratio in alfalfa is indeed skewed, about 5:1, while an ideal ratio for an adult horse is 2:1. However, this only hurts if you feed large quantities of alfalfa. Hartog adds barley straw to Hartog Lucerne Mix to help balance the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio. After all, what matters is the proportions over the whole ration and not proportions of individual components of the ration. In most cases, alfalfa is part of the ration and the calcium/phosphorus ratio is nicely balanced by the other roughage/rations. With an average ration of 10 kg of hay, 2 kg of concentrate and 2 kg of Hartog Lucerne Mix, the calcium/phosphorus ratio is still nicely balanced! If Hartog Lucerne Mix is a big part of your ration, you can balance it out with phosphorus-rich products such as cereals or bran. Want to know more about how much alfalfa suits your horse? Feel free to contact us!