Low-sugar hay for laminitis, EMS & PPID horses

Horses prone to laminitis, Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS) or PPID (Cushing's) need forage low in sugar and starch — the non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) that spike blood insulin. The widely used guideline is to keep total dietary NSC below about 10–12%. The catch: sugar content is invisible and varies enormously from one bale to the next, so the only safe way to know is a laboratory analysis.

Prime Hay knows the typical sugar, protein and fibre values of its hay and delivers carefully selected, low-sugar hay across Portugal and Spain, so you can plan for at-risk horses instead of guessing.

Why sugar is the number you can't guess

A bright, sweet-smelling bale can be the dangerous one. The same field can produce hay at 8% NSC one week and 18% the next, depending on grass species, sunshine, plant stress and cutting time. None of it is visible by eye — which is exactly why, for metabolic horses, the numbers matter more than the look.

What to look for in hay for a laminitic horse

• A confirmed NSC below about 10–12% from a recent laboratory analysis
• Mature, higher-fibre grass hay rather than rich, early-cut or high-ryegrass hay
• Consistent quality, so the ration keeps working
• Low-dust forage, since many metabolic horses are older or respiratory-sensitive

How Prime Hay helps

Our low-sugar French meadow hay and Alfalfa are carefully selected, double-pressed and low in dust, and delivered and placed at your stable. Our French meadow hay has a typical sugar value around 4.5% (dry matter). These are typical values and natural forage varies by harvest, so match the forage to your horse's needs, ideally together with your vet.

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