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Is your hay suitable for horses? Steve Foster, extension educator with the University of Nevada-Reno, offers these guidelines for evaluating hay:

• Horse hay should be 10-17% moisture and about 10% crude protein. Crude protein is not likely to be a limiting part of the diet except in lactating mares, foals or performance horses, which require higher
  levels.

• Hay with an acid detergent fiber (ADF) value of 30-35% is good for horses. The lower the ADF value, the more digestible the nutrients in the hay. Hay at 45% or more ADF is of little nutritional value. Neutral detergent fiber (NDF) levels should be 40-50%, and most horses won’t eat anything above 65%.

• Equine feed analyses provide non-fiber carbohydrate (NFC) estimates to help select feed for horses that show sensitivity to starches and sugars and measure digestible energy (DE) in the hay. For a light working horse, DE should be about 20 Mcal/day, and most hays range from 0.76 to 0.94 Mcal/lb of DE. Calcium and phosphorus ratios can vary among
  different types of hay. An adult horse in a maintenance phase should have a calcium-to-phosphorus ratio of 3:1 to 1:1.

• Rained-on hay may be fine for horses in spite of the color. Green is ideal but overrated. Green is an indication of Vitamin A content and means that the hay has not been rained on prior to baling. Actually, rained-on hay (unless it received a lot of rain over several days) is only slightly lower in nutritive value than hay that was not rained on. That loss in value is usually due to more leaf loss due to more handling to dry the hay for baling. If it isn’t moldy and it tests okay, it should be fine to feed because horse owners should be supplementing for the vitamins that tend to be lost in rained-on or older hay, anyway.

Contact your local extension agents for help testing hay! It only costs about $10

Did you know that when you go to renew your horse trailer tag, or your boat tag or your construction trailer, etc ANY TRAILER in North Carolina, you have the option of purchasing the PERMANENT TAG for $75 for a lifetime.  That’s what I did.  A good bargain on a trailer you plan on keeping forever.

Dear Members, Please turn in your Nutrena Proof of Purchase labels to raise money for our saddle club.  The staff in the show trailer will accept them at the next horse show.   You turn in the Proof Of Purchase seals…we’ll do the rest.

http://www.cqha.com/pdf/NutrenaClubSupport.pdf

Horse Trailer Inspections:

A trailer whose gross weight is less than 4,000 pounds does not need to be inspected in NC (NC statute 20#8209;183.2 (a)).

Horse Trailers and Weigh Stations:

House Bill 425 states: A privately owned, non-commercial horse trailer constructed to transport four or fewer horses shall not be required to stop at any permanent weigh station in the State while transporting horses, unless the driver of the vehicle hauling the trailer is directed to stop by a law enforcement officer. A 'privately owned noncommercial horse trailer' means a trailer used solely for the occasional transportation of horses and not for compensation or in furtherance of a commercial enterprise. Approved July 2003.

North Carolina Equine Industry Economic Impact Study May 2009

- Total annual economic impact - $1.9 billion
- Federal, state and local taxes paid - $196 million
- Equine-owning households or operations - 53,095
- Acreage in equine operations - 2.1 million
- Average number equine per operation - 5.8
- Total number of equine - 306,210
- Total number of jobs - 19,183
- Expenditures on goods and services - $1.4 billion
- Expenditures within home county - 72%
- Expenditures within state - 90%

Did you know that it’s time to renew your Horse Council Membership.  They renew every January.

For $37 for adults (and there are other ages/group coverages available) you will receive a membership to the horse council as well as a One Million Dollar Personal Liability Insurance Policy covering body/property damage that could occur when it involves a horse.  Please call the Horse Council for the particulars.  I buy this policy every year!

Their number is:   910-854-1990 and their website is www.nchorsecouncil.com

This is a new ordinance at Carolina Beach allowing horseback riding on the beach between
October 1st and March 31st.    Here is the link to the ordinance:

Carolina Classic Horseman's Association
139 Country Place Road
Wilmington NC 28409
(910) 799-9257 * (910) 352-2923