1966-Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1966 May Voice RS | Page 62

SPROUTED GRAIN — SLOBBERING — FEEDING
IRON - CASTRATING BY THE "SIGNS”
Here are some recent questions relative to horses,
along with my answers:
Q. What is your opinion of sprouted grain, sometimes
called "green feed” or hydroponics, as a feed for
horses? (From an M.D. in Indiana.)
A. If 1 had enough money to buy equipment for sprout­
ing grain, I would buy my wife a fur coat instead.
Without doubt, sprouted grains will give an as­
sist when added to poor rations — and the poorer
the ration, the bigger the boost. However, with
our present knowledge of nutrition, efficient and
balanced rations can be had without the added
labor and expense of sprouting grain.
But before proceeding, let us describe or define
what’s meant by sprouted grain. According to
Webster, "hydroponics (or sprouting grain) is the
growing of plants, especially vegetables, with their
roots immersed in an aqueous solution containing
the essential mineral nutrient sales, instead of in
soil.” In plain, simple terms, then, sprouted grain
for feed is produced with water and chemicals, and
without dirt. It is not new; it dates back over 400
years.
Here is what the Michigan Agricultural Station
found in a study of sprouted oats as a feed for
dairy cows, as reported in the Quarterly Bulletin,
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Vol. 44,
No. 4, pages 654 to 665, May, 1962:
1. Increase in feed weight — The sprouted grain
weighed from 4.2 to 7.5 times more than dry
oats, but this increase was mostly water.
2. Comparative Analysis — In comparison with
the dry oats, the sprouted grain showed 61%
increase in fiber, 17% increase in crude pro­
tein, 15% decrease in nitrogen free extract
and 8% to 23% less dry matter.
o. Digestibility — The dry matter, energy, pro­
tein and TDN in the sprouted oats were less
digestible than that in the dry oats.
4. Yield of milk and butterfat — No statistically
significant differences in milk yield or butter-
fat production were obtained when sprouted
oats was compared with oats in a dairy trial.
5. Low energy dairy ration - When sprouted
oats was added to a low energy dairy ration
(one in which cows were fed only 1 lb. of grain
to every 5.0 lbs. of milk; instead of the usual
1:2/2 to 3.0), a small increase in milk prod
tion resulted. But, on this point, the Michi ^
State scientists reasoned, "Any form of
tional energy would have produced a simfi 1
result...............this could explain some of th*
results observed on farms.”
ne
6. Cost — The sprouted oats cost over four tim
more than plain oats, or similar grains.
GS
7. Conclusion — As a result of this experiment
the Michigan scientists concluded:
5
"The cost of sprouted oats was over four
times that of the original oats or similar grains
This high cost plus (1) loss in nutrients dur­
ing sprouting, (2) the decreased digestibility
of sprouted oats, and (3) no observed increase
in milk production when sprouted oats was
added to an adequate ration, indicate that this
feed has no justification for being included in
any modern dairy ration.”
I have reason to believe that the findings of
the Michigan study are applicable to hors