How much alfalfa for a young chin?

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Strong Chin

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Oct 20, 2016
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So from what I've read, some people seem to think feeding alfalfa is fine, some think it may lead to too much calcium/stones. Most seem to agree that it's at least ok to feed it to chins under a year old- but I'm not certain exactly how much a young chin should get.

Dusty and Spike are 6 and 7 months old (we've had them for 2.5 months). We've been giving them alfalfa cubes here and there, but they don't seem to "take" to them. They chew on them sometimes, but the cubes aren't exactly disappearing. I've just bought a bag of loose Oxbow alfalfa, and was wondering how much I should give? Would putting a small handful in each of the two hay feeders, mixed in with their timothy hay, each day be alright? Thank you!
 
I think it should be alright. It might be wise to not mix the hay, just you can tell how much Alfalfa they are eating compared to the Timothy.

I'm not an expert. I have heard, however, that too much Alfalfa is bad (I think it can cause gas build-up), but in moderation it offers good nutrition.

I hope this helps. : )
 
Growing chins, need the extra calcium and protein so they can have unlimited alfalfa. For adults it's a debatable topic, but for the most part if you feed a timothy based pellet food you want to feed alfalfa as their primary hay. If you are feeding an alfalfa based pellet food then you want timothy (or some other grass hay) as your primary hay but alfalfa is fine to give in smaller amounts. Basically you want to balance out the diet. Yes too much calcium is bad, but from what I've found those cuddle bones and mineral chews that some pet store say are so good and needed for them (they are not) cause much more issue and are commonly the cause of too much calcium, not the alfalfa hay. I'm currently feeding my guys timothy hay and something else (oat, meadow, orchard, etc), and alfalfa cubes, along with their oxbow pellets.

Mixing the alfalfa in with the grass hay is not a bad idea, it can encourage more hay consumption since alfalfa is tastier then grass. Just keep it balanced, with alfalfa pellets feed more timothy, with timothy pellets feed more alfalfa.
 
I agree with Amethyst. Those little guys are still growing so any extra nutrition would be great! Usually babies can be given unlimited amounts!
 
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