Timothy, Alfalfa, Bermuda, or Teff: Which Hay Fits Your Horse?

Last updated: October 5, 2026

By: Miles HenryFact Checked

Choosing hay sounds simple until you’re the one standing in front of timothy, alfalfa, Bermuda, and teff bales trying to figure out what your horse needs. Whether you’re feeding your first horse or thinking about changing hay, it helps to know what separates one type from another.

In this timothy hay vs alfalfa hay comparison, I’ll also cover where Bermuda and teff fit, what to watch for in each bale, and how to match the forage to your horse.

Timothy vs. Alfalfa vs. Bermuda vs. Teff: Quick Comparison

These are typical values, and individual lots can vary a lot. The protein ranges come from UC Davis Alfalfa Symposium data comparing timothy and alfalfa at different stages of bloom and from New Mexico State University’s guide to selecting forage for horses.

Timothy Hay for Horses

Timothy is probably the grass hay most horse owners recognize first, and there’s a good reason for that. It’s a cool-season grass that’s usually soft, palatable, and moderate in protein and calories, which is why it’s a common all-around choice for adult horses in light to moderate work. How mature it was when it was cut makes a big difference, though, since early-bloom timothy runs noticeably higher in protein than late-bloom hay.

Timothy has two drawbacks worth knowing. Outside the regions where it’s commonly grown, it usually has to be shipped in, so it often costs more than local hay. And as a cool-season grass, it can carry more sugar than people expect, so it isn’t automatically the right pick for a metabolic horse. Judge it by how leafy, clean, and fresh it is, not by the cutting number alone, and the same checks I use for choosing hay for your horse apply here.

Timothy Hay vs. Alfalfa Hay: Which Is Better?

Neither is better across the board. They do different jobs. Alfalfa is a legume, and it’s generally higher in protein, calories, and calcium than timothy. That can make it useful for growing horses, nursing mares, hard keepers, and horses with higher energy demands. It doesn’t mean every horse in those groups needs an all-alfalfa diet, or that every easy keeper has to avoid it. As a UC Davis review of horse hay points out, alfalfa’s reputation for being “too rich” is overstated, since its makeup isn’t far from lush spring pasture except for calcium. What matters is matching the amount to the horse.

The calcium difference is one of the big things to understand. Kentucky Equine Research notes that alfalfa often runs over 1 percent calcium, with a calcium-to-phosphorus ratio of about 3:1 to 6:1, much wider than grass hay. An all-alfalfa forage program can work for some horses, but if alfalfa makes up most of the forage, have the whole ration evaluated, including phosphorus, trace minerals, calories, and workload. Alfalfa has also been studied in horses with gastric ulcers. In a Texas A&M study, horses fed alfalfa hay had lower ulcer scores than horses fed Bermuda hay, and the researchers suggested alfalfa’s higher calcium and protein may have helped buffer stomach acid. It can be a useful feeding consideration, but a suspected ulcer still needs your vet’s input.

For a lot of horses, the answer is both. Feeding grass hay with some alfalfa is a practical middle ground that adds calories and protein without leaning entirely on alfalfa, and the right proportion depends on the horse’s condition, workload, the rest of the diet, and what the hay tests. In some regions, alfalfa can also carry blister beetles, which are toxic to horses, so buy from a grower who knows how to manage them. If you’re leaning toward alfalfa, it’s worth understanding the pros and cons of alfalfa hay and how alfalfa fits a performance horse’s diet.

Where Bermuda Hay Fits

Bermuda is a warm-season grass and the workhorse hay of the South. It’s widely available, usually cheaper than timothy or alfalfa down here, and fine for maintenance horses and easy keepers when it’s good quality. Quality is the catch. Bermuda varies a lot depending on variety, fertilization, and how mature it was when it was cut, and older, overgrown Bermuda gets coarse and stemmy fast.

There’s one real caution with coastal Bermuda. Coarse, poorly digestible coastal Bermuda has long been associated with ileal impaction, a type of colic in the small intestine, but the hay itself isn’t the whole story. Veterinary researchers point to poor hay quality, low water intake, sudden hay changes, and tapeworms as likely contributing factors. So buy good-quality hay, make sure your horses drink well, introduce new hay gradually, and keep tapeworm control in your parasite plan. A quick check is to grab a handful and squeeze it. If the stems feel stiff and poke your palm, that’s a warning sign the hay is coarse.

Teff Hay vs. Bermuda

Teff and Bermuda are both warm-season grasses, but teff is an annual that’s replanted every year, while Bermuda is a perennial. Teff has caught on for easy keepers because it’s often low in sugar and starch, and when it’s cut at the right stage, it’s fine-stemmed and soft. That doesn’t automatically make it better. A soft, leafy Bermuda bale can suit a horse better than a mature teff bale, and horses that have never eaten teff sometimes need a little time to accept it. Depending on where you live, Bermuda is also usually easier to find from local growers.

Hay for Easy Keepers and Metabolic Horses

For a horse with insulin dysregulation or a history of laminitis, the tested sugar and starch content matters more than whether the bale says timothy, Bermuda, or teff. As a general pattern, Oregon State University Extension notes that cool-season grasses like timothy tend to run higher in sugar than warm-season grasses like Bermuda and teff, but it also stresses that species alone isn’t a reliable guide. Hay analyses don’t all report carbohydrates the same way, so ask your vet or an equine nutritionist which numbers matter for your horse.

If the only hay you can get tests too high, soaking may help, but results vary a lot from hay to hay, so it isn’t a dependable fix on its own. If you do soak, drain the water off and feed the hay promptly. The University of Kentucky’s look at soaking hay covers the trade-offs. A slow-feed hay net also helps an easy keeper stretch its ration over the day.

Switching Between Hay Types

A mare of mine once dropped 75 pounds over six weeks, and my feeding notes showed the loss started right after I changed hay suppliers. Those notes helped my vet get to the problem a lot faster, and the experience is why I don’t treat a new load of hay as interchangeable with the last one.

For most healthy horses, I’d mix the new hay in with the old over about 7 to 14 days, and watch manure, appetite, and body condition as you go. Go slower, and talk with your vet, for a horse with a history of colic, ulcers, metabolic disease, or ongoing digestive trouble. A sudden switch, even between two good hays, can upset the gut, and so can a change in how much you’re feeding. Weigh the hay instead of counting flakes, too, since flakes from a new supplier can weigh very differently, and base the daily amount on how much hay a horse needs rather than habit.

Timothy, Alfalfa, and Bermuda Hay FAQs

I don’t think there’s a best hay. I want clean, good-quality forage that fits the horse in front of me, and I want a forage analysis when the horse’s diet depends on getting the numbers right. Around here, that often means Bermuda, but local and affordable doesn’t automatically mean right for every horse.

Miles Henry

About Miles Henry

Racehorse Owner & Author | 30+ Years in Thoroughbred Racing

Miles Henry (legal name: William Bradley) is a professional horseman based in Folsom, Louisiana. He holds Louisiana Racing License #67012 and has spent over three decades managing Thoroughbreds at premier tracks including Fair Grounds, Delta Downs, and Evangeline Downs.
Expertise & Hands-On Experience: Beyond the track, Miles has decades of experience in specialized equine care, covering everything from hoof health and nutrition to training protocols for Quarter Horses, Friesians, and Paints. Every guide on Horse Racing Sense is rooted in this “boots-on-the-ground” perspective.
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