Grass and lameness

Here are some interesting statistics from the world of dairy cows, for anyone who still thinks that horses should be eating lush green grass(!)

DEFRA statistics report that on average, 20-30% of a herd of dairy cows is lame at any one time, and there are 20-70 new cases of lameness per year in every 100 cows.

And what do you think the primary cause of lameness is? You've guessed it - laminitis.

We already know that horses need a much higher fibre, low sugar diet than dairy cows, but it sounds as if dairy cows don't do much better on rich grass than horses do; if even dairy cows are suffering this badly, then its hardly surprising that so many horses struggle with sore feet even on pasture that is considerably "safer".