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Timothy and Alfalfa Hay Blog

    Justify Becomes the 13th Triple Crown Winner

    Posted on Jun 12, 2018

    Saturday was a historic day as Justify became the 13th Triple Crown winner with his victory in the Belmont Stakes in Elmont, NY. Conditions were perfect and the track was fast on Saturday as Justify became the second Bob Baffert-trained triple crown winner since American Pharoah ended the 37-year drought in 2015.

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    Topics: Hay for Horses, Timothy Hay, Race Horse Hay, Horse Nutrition, News

    Justify Wins the 2018 Preakness Stakes

    Posted on May 22, 2018

    The second of three races that comprise the Triple Crown ended in another win for Justify this weekend. Conditions at Pimlico Race Course were strikingly similar to those at Churchill Downs earlier this month, with rains leading up to the race, a muddy track, and the addition of heavy fog that made the 9.5 furlongs that much more exciting.

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    Topics: Hay for Horses, Timothy Hay, Race Horse Hay, Horse Nutrition, News

    Justify Wins 144th Kentucky Derby

    Posted on May 7, 2018

    Justify emerged as the winner of an exciting race on Saturday afternoon. The 144th Kentucky Derby was the wettest in history, with a 24-hour precipitation of 3.15” and a muddy track to show for it. Steady rain provided just enough unpredictability to cast a doubt on if this year’s favorite would come through victorious, but Bob Baffert-trained Justify proved worthy. Finishing with a time of 2 minutes 4.20 seconds, Justify was able to edge out Good Magic and Audible by 2 ½ lengths.

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    Topics: Hay for Horses, Race Horse Hay, Video, News

    Dubai World Cup 2018

    Posted on Apr 13, 2018

    Horse racing is one of the most popular sports in Dubai, and the Dubai World Cup is the one of the premiere events in the United Arab Emirates. Held annually at the Meydan Racecourse since 1996, this race boasts a purse of $10 mil USD and hosts more than 50,000 spectators a year. Horses travel from around the world to compete in this high profile event and competition is fierce for the first place finish.

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    Topics: Race Horse Hay, Horse Health, News

    Nationwide Port Productivity Concerns

    Posted on Nov 25, 2015

    Just about everyone in transportation and import/export is looking for an increase in efficiency, and the ports are usually where we look. There are many opportunities for improvement within the supply chain. As a US Top 40 Exporter, Anderson Hay has about 55 loads a day currently going to port, solely from our headquarters in Ellensburg, WA, one of our three plants. Along with thousands of others in the supply-chain, our everyday operations are directly   dependent on how smoothly things go at marine terminals.

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    Topics: Leading US Exporter, News

    Increase Alfalfa Hay and Other Forages, Improve Dairy Cow Health

    Posted on Mar 27, 2013

    Feeding Higher Forage Diets before Calving Improves Dairy Cow Metabolic Health

    Dairy cows are frequently afflicted with metabolic diseases after calving. The high incidence of disease is thought to be related to the prolonged periods of negative energy balance that commonly occur postpartum. The dietary energy requirements of dairy cows are at their highest levels at calving and immediately postpartum and in most cases, a cow cannot physically eat enough feed to meet her energy needs. For an unknown reason, this period is also characterized by a drop in dry matter intake. Therefore, during this time, the cow is in a state of negative energy balance (NEB).

    In an effort to reduce NEB, many dairy producers will feed cows an energy dense diet beginning three weeks before calving. However, this practice may lead to overconsumption of energy, which is subsequently stored as triglycerides (fat stores) in adipose tissue. During times of NEB, triglycerides are broken down into non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) that are used for energy. NEFA are transported in the blood to the liver where they are transformed into ketone bodies. Beta hydroxybutyrate (BHB) is the most common ketone body in dairy cows. While BHB is a highly available energy source, excess levels can lead to subclinical or clinical ketosis. Subclinical ketosis can decrease milk production and affect reproductive performance. In addition, surplus NEFA are repackaged into triglycerides in the liver, which accumulate, and thus, increase the risk of fatty liver. Metritis, retained fetal membranes, mastitis, milk fever, and displaced abomasum have been associated with fatty liver syndrome in dairy cows. Interestingly enough, cows that consume excess energy and are over-conditioned prior to calving tend to experience more extreme NEB postpartum and have higher concentrations of BHB than cows that were fed prepartum diets that met energy requirements.

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    Topics: Alfalfa Hay, Quality of Forage, Dairy Cow Milk Production, News

    High Quality Alfalfa Boosts Milk Production in Dairy Cows

    Posted on Oct 30, 2012

    There is no question that high quality forage generates greater paid premiums for alfalfa hay growers. Superior quality alfalfa hay fed to livestock also promotes maximum returns in milk and meat production. Alfalfa hay quality is directly correlated to age and maturity of a field at harvest because nutrient composition quality declines as the forage matures. Total tonnage yields are highest when hay is fully matured; however, nutritional value and digestibility decrease as the leaf-to-stem ratio increases with plant growth. Crude protein (CP) levels decrease as alfalfa ages, while fibrous components such as neutral and acid detergent fibers increase (Figure 1).

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    Topics: Alfalfa Hay, Quality of Forage, News

    Quality of hay affects health and performance of horses

    Posted on Jan 12, 2012

    All horse owners share a common decision that directly affects the health, performance and well-being of their horses: their choice of diet. Scientists have recently studied the effects of nutrition on performance horses and have created methods for feeding and management to increase athletic ability, minimize or delay the onset of fatigue, and significantly reduce horse injuries. The primary staple of a horse’s diet that is often undervalued is hay; the performance of your horse is ultimately determined by the quality of hay that it consumes.

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    Topics: Hay for Horses, Timothy Hay, Race Horse Hay, Timothy, News

    Why feed Alfalfa to horses?

    Posted on Jun 15, 2011

    Alfalfa has been fed to horses for over 2000 years. The cavalries of Greece, Persia and Romans relied heavily on alfalfa to keep their horses in prime condition for battle. Alfalfa is a great source of protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. As such it has a high feed value.

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    Topics: Alfalfa Hay, Hay for Horses, News