Equine Farm Manager · Fact Sheet
Annual Forage Planning at a Glance
How much hay the herd needs, by cutting and by month; whether the hay on hand meets every horse; what it costs per calorie; and what is still left to buy.
01What it calculates
- Every horse counted separately by weight and class: easy keeper to hard keeper, senior, insulin resistant, in work, broodmare, stallion, or growing.
- Grazing by horse: each horse's grazing system sets an editable month-by-month pasture share.
- Body condition built in: the latest BCS from the worksheet flows into the plan and its advisory checks.
- Month-by-month demand after pasture and feeding waste, with the heaviest month flagged for storage.
- Daily pounds per horse for this month, split AM and PM, on a printable barn sheet.
02What it tracks
- Hay library by cutting, each with its own bale weight, inventory, analysis, and cost.
- Auto cutting selection: each horse is fed the best-fit cutting in stock, with low-sugar hay reserved for insulin-resistant and easy-keeping horses.
- Feeding log: one tap logs today's feeding from the chart and draws down bales on hand.
- Have vs. need by cutting. A surplus in one cutting does not cover a shortfall in another.
- Cost three ways: per bale, per ton, or farm-grown cost of production, compared in dollars per megacalorie.
- Value of testing: import lab results as XML or PDF, and see what the test changed in tons and dollars.
03How a farm uses it through the year
| Season | Use it to… |
|---|---|
| Before buying | Size the year's hay by cutting, not just total tons. Set the feeding window and read still-to-buy and the quality target. |
| During haying | Add each cutting as it comes off the field and watch the shortfall close. |
| When lab results return | Import them. The plan, cost per calorie, and sugar warnings update. |
| Before winter | Check the heaviest month against what the barn holds. |
| Every day | Feed from the printed chart and log it, so inventory stays true. |
| For records | Print the comprehensive farm report or the daily feed chart from Reports. |
04Numbers to know
Feeding waste
- Slow-feed net ~6%
- Manger or rack ~12%
- Round bale with feeder ~15%
- On the ground ~20%
- Round bale, no feeder ~30%
Hay quality checks
- DE outside ~0.40–1.10 Mcal/lb is flagged
- ESC + starch under ~10% for IR horses
- Untested hay assumed 90% dry matter
- Calcium at least equal to phosphorus
A planning tool, not a ration
Confirm diets for insulin-resistant, senior, broodmare, and growing horses against a current forage analysis and with your veterinarian or an equine nutritionist.