Turkmen horse breeders, studying new methods for complete horse feed, intend to introduce technology for the production of green hydroponic feed - sprouted grain, which can be offered all year round.
The introduction of this method will make it possible to solve issues of feed production in general for livestock farming without special financial costs, to increase the productivity and competitiveness of both Ahal-Teke horses and other types of farm animals and poultry. Nuryagdy Ketchikov, a laboratory assistant at the veterinary department of the Research and Production Center for Livestock and Veterinary Medicine at the Turkmen Agricultural University named after S.A. Niyazov, spoke about this on the pages of the “Neutral Turkmenistan” newspaper.
Such “live” food does not depend on climatic and weather conditions; it can be produced in the required volumes in each farm, which will help diversify the diet and improve the health of dairy cattle, poultry, and sheep, he notes.
This technology permits you to obtain green fodder with a full cycle in just seven days - from sowing seeds to producing young shoots all year round indoors without soil based on hydroponics.
Experts believe that adding green feed to the diet for three months brings the horse into the best physical shape: the incidence of respiratory diseases, colic, and intestinal ulcers is reduced, because unlike dry mixtures, sprouted grains do not contain dust, and the content of vitamins and minerals is in an easily digestible form helps improve digestion.
Thanks to the antioxidant activity of vitamin E and the presence of water in the feed (up to 80%), this supplement promotes rapid recovery of sports racehorses after heavy physical exertion, permits for faster removal of toxins from the body, milk production in lactating mares increases, and improvement in skin and hair is observed. According to experts, green hydroponic feeds can replace up to 60% of the diet of roughage and concentrated feeds. It is recommended to give up to 10 kg daily without load, and up to 20 kg during racing.
In addition, hydroponic green food exceeds the best hay in energy intensity by two times, in protein content by four times, and in carotene content by almost an order of magnitude, notes N. Ketchikov.
