Horsetalk.co.nz Wheat straw put to the test in a dietary study in horses
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Wheat straw may be beneficial for horses with low energy needs, but more research is needed, researchers say. File image by ratexla (protected by Pixsy)
Good quality wheat straw provided at half the daily forage ration for horses with low energy requirements may be beneficial for their welfare, the findings of fresh research suggest.
Anna Jansson and her fellow researchers, in a study published in the journal
Animals, investigated straw as an alternative to grass-based haylage for horses.
They explored the effects of straw on the metabolic profile of horses involved in the experiment, examined their energy intake, assessed their behaviour and checked whether the diet resulted in gastric ulcers.