Nutritional assessment of forage quality

The term ‘forage quality’ encompasses the nutritive value, hygienic status and intake of the forage. The concept of ‘forage quality’, however, should be regarded in terms of meeting the specific requirements of individual animal, rather than solely as a descriptor of nutrient content and/or intake potential. Methods of assessing quality include chemical analysis of main nutrients, in vitro methods and in vivo studies. The nutrient content of fresh forage changes radically throughout the growing season, and such changes are reflected in forages conserved at different times of the year. Grazed forage alone can support the energy and protein requirements of all classes of horse for at least part of the year. Depending on the forage type and time of harvest, well conserved forages of moderate-high nutritive value may meet the energy and crude protein requirements of horses in moderate work and pregnant mares. Hygienic quality should always be considered in conjunction with nutritive value, and contaminated forages should not be fed. As forages should form the basis of all equid diets, and as their nutrient content is so highly variable, forages need to be analysed if they are to be incorporated into specifically tailored rations for horses.