434 Kansas State Board of Agriculture. 



a cloud of dust whenever handled in bulk. If fed dry, even when mixed 

 with other feeds, a large amount of this dust is continually getting into 

 the air passages of the horse. The mucous membranes lining these 

 passages are tender and easily irritated, and the use of dry alfalfa meal 

 for any length of time may cause serious irritation and inflammation of 

 the respiratory tract. This objection may be overcome by wetting the 

 alfalfa meal, but to prevent souring or molding this wetting must be 

 done immediately before feeding. This is a task involving no little time 

 and inconvenience, especially in winter. 



Another objection is the fact that one does not know what kind of hay 

 he is getting when it is bought in the form of alfalfa meal. Most mills 

 are putting out a very good quality of meal, but wet, moldy and even 

 rotten hay is sometimes ground into meal. It has been claimed that much 

 less is wasted in feeding alfalfa in the form of meal than in the form of 

 hay; but if the hay is properly fed very little, if any, will be wasted. 



Experience has shown that when alfalfa hay is available alfalfa meal 

 is not a desirable or economical feed for horses and mules. 



ALFALFA PASTURE FOR HORSES AND MULES. 



The advisability of pasturing alfalfa is a question upon which horse- 

 men do not agree, but after a careful study of the question it would 

 seem that as a general practice, under average Kansas conditions, pastur- 

 ing horses and mules on alfalfa is not to be recommended. Some of the 

 more important reasons for this conclusion are as follows : 



First. More feed can be secured from an acre of alfalfa in the form 

 of hay than in the form of pasture. 



Second. The general practice of pasturing will kill the alfalfa plant 

 unless special precautions are observed, and we are all more or less prone 

 to neglect precautionary measures, especially if they involve very much 

 work or inconvenience. Some of the more important precautionary 

 measures that must be observed if alfalfa is to be pastured are: alfalfa 

 must not be pastured while the plant is young or immature ; close grazing 

 must always be avoided; horses should be removed during the middle of 

 the day, as they will congregate in groups at this time and kill out large 

 areas in fighting flies, giving foxtail and other plants an opportunity to 

 secure a foothold from which they will spread very rapidly; pasturing 

 heavily in the fall leaves the field bare and unprotected, as well as pre- 

 vents the catching and retaining of the snow and rain. This is a very 

 important consideration, as the moisture caught and retained during the 

 fall and winter months has a decided influence upon the yield the follow- 

 ing season. 



Third. Pasturing horses and mules on alfalfa involves some risk and 

 danger from colic and indigestion. To minimize this danger a plentiful 

 supply of water must be provided, so that the horses may drink often. If 

 this precaution is not observed the horses will fill up on alfalfa and later 

 gorge themselves with water. This often results in colic. Usually the 

 attack is rather mild, but not infrequently it becomes very serious. An- 

 other precaution that should be observed for the sake of safety is the 

 rack or stack of straw or coarse hay from which horses may eat at will 

 when pastured on alfalfa. 



