Can horses eat fecew grass?

Question

My husband heard somewhere that fescew was bad for horses, but my horse seems to chow down when he is in my front yard! Is it bad for him?

Answer 1

fescue grass in and of itself is harmless to horses. the problem lies with a fungus that can grow within the grass. not all fescue has this fungus but a lot do. good thing is the fescue fungus wont hurt your horse if the horse is not pregnant or nursing a foal. the fungus causes (in mares) an increased risk of prolonged gestation, abortion, stillbirth, dystocia (difficult birth), foal mortality, retained or thickened placenta, no milk, and mare death (in foaling, or from a retained placenta). you can redo your pasture with fungus free fescue but it is not as hardy nor does it do as well as the fungus infected fescue.

Answer 2

Ditto to mindy r 's answer. Endocyte in fescue is dangerous to pregnant mares. Good information on local forages is usually available from your local cooperative extension service (state funded research through the land grant colleges in your state) and from your local vet.

Answer 3

This grass i meant for lawn turf and pastures. There could be some unlying reason that it's not good for horses but i don't know of any. Call and ask your vet.

Answer 4

well i haven't heard of fecew but i have heard of fescue. fescue grasses are relatively hardy. they are less palatable to horses than some other types, so may be ignored if horses have alternative species to graze.