A quick question for everyone... (Dissertation research!)

[lynds81]

Hi, thanks for having a look at this, I am trying to get a rough idea on this before I start the bulk of my dissertation research... I don't need detail, but a quick answer to each would be fab.

So....

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.

Thank you so much - very much appreciated!!

 

[floradora09]

1) Grass and Hay

2) Grass- he's a live out so that's fairly self explanitory, and hay partly due to cost/convenience/always have but also did try him on a bit of haylege but it was a bit rich really.

3) I'm not going to include livery prices here, but in the summer I spend on hay about £5 a month and in the winter anything around about £40?

 

[brown tack]

A) grass, haylege
B) cost included in livery price
C) it's included in livery

 

[Ali2]

Grass and Hay

Yard only allows daytime turnout so grass during day and hay at night. Hay because its available on the yard and bought in a large batch from one source so I can sample it, get it analysed and get a bespoke mineral balance to my forage. Haylage is also available on the yard in the winter but in too small a quantity and from varying sources so I can't get a decent analysis done on it.

Hay costs per calendar month are £36.83 in height of summer and £73.67 in depth of winter.

 

[Cuppatea]

haylage
make it ourselves. Easier to keep than hay.
Not a clue on what it would cost sorry! we have many horses in with a massive variation in how much they eat. Would i have to work it out on how much it costs us to make a bale or how much we sell it for....?

 

[AFlapjack]

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc
Hay and grass

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?
Grass- He is turned out during the day.
Hay - doesn't require haylage as he's a native good doer. Convenient to buy as easy to source and relatively cheap.

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.
Approximately £35 for hay in winter. Grass is included in livery.

 

[badgerdog]

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc

Grass/Haylage

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?

Grass - lives out 24/7 Haylage - it's what the livery yard make themselves

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.

Pay £5 per week on top of my grass livery, for haylage when I need it and ad-lib in winter.

 

[xRobyn]

1) What forage do you feed your horse?
Hay and grass

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage?
Cost and I soak the hay as he is a good do-er

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)?
£32 in hay (at the moment), approx in winter. £25 livery (grass + stable). He's out 24/7 most of the summer.

 

[schneeko]

1) What forage do you feed your horse?
Pony - hay and straw (no turnout)
Horse - haylage (in winter)/hay (in summer) and grass

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage?
Pony- laminitic and escapes from fields so can't be turned out
Horse - to keep weight on in the winter and to manage weight in the summer and grass because it's a horses natural food

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)?
Pony - (in 24/7) about £40 a month in hay and about £10 in straw
Horse - (out for about 10 hours a day) £20 in haylage and grass is included in livery

 

[Tammytoo]

Forage - Grass and Hay.

Why - I have a good source of hay, so never bothered with haylage. (If you only have 1 horse the haylage goes off in summer before you can get through a large bale and the small bales are too expensive.)

cost - £35 p.m. summer, £75 in winter (in at night all year round)

 

[Keimanp]

1) What forage do you feed your horse?

Grass and Hay

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage?

Grass is natural and free and the hay is to suppliment the lack of grass that we have availiable in Winter

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)?

They live at home so the grass is free! Hay is bought in for the Winter and this year it has cost £675 for enough for the pair of them (big one will get 80%, little one 20% so average of £45 per month for the big one and £11.25 per month for the little one)

 

[Dancing Queen]

So....

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc

Grass during day
Hay at night

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?

Grass - out during day
Hay - at night, easier, cheaper, lasts longer and horses prefer hay.

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.

£50 per month per horse on hay alone.

 

[JFTDWS]

grass and barley straw or grass, straw and haylage depending on horse.

I don't use hay as I'm allergic to it. The two on straw are good doers so I can feed more straw than I can hay or haylage. The other one need more calories so gets additional haylage. Those on straw probably cost about £25 a month, the one on hayage maybe £40, give or take. In summer, virtually nothing.

 

[muffinmunsh]

Grass in summer on 24h turnout. Hay (steamed) in winter. Haylage makes them too fat, hence now steaming (horse has copd)
Cost ca 36 per week ... 6 bales at £6. Horse is 17'2 and on ad lib hay

 

[Theocat]

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc

Grass plus hay or haylage as provided by yard.

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?

Out during day in winter, 24/7 summer. Yard provides hay / haylage.

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.

DIY livery £25/wk summer includes grass plus enough hay / haylage for nets for tie-up etc. £10/wk supplement in winter for adlib hay in field and at night in stable.

 

[misterjinglejay]

1. Grass, hay and Hi Fi (for supper)

2. Always have, he does well on this mix - he's retired

3. 1 bag of HiFi last a month - so £10 for that; grass - DIY livery - £40 per month; hay - bale is £3.00, and we get through about 2 per week - £24. So all in all about £75 per month.

 

[solly3066]

Hi, thanks for having a look at this, I am trying to get a rough idea on this before I start the bulk of my dissertation research... I don't need detail, but a quick answer to each would be fab.

So....

1) What forage do you feed your horse? As in hay / haylage / grass / straw etc

2) Why do you use that particular type of forage? Convenience, cost, make it yourself, dietary requirements, always have etc?

3) How much (roughly) do you spend per month on forage (per horse)? Not including hard feed.

Thank you so much - very much appreciated!!

Two horses, both live out 24/7.

1) Out at grass. Feed grass pellets, Alfa A, haylage ad-lib
2) One horse has had ulcers in past. Prefer to feed forage-based diet rather than cereals.
3) Large bale haylage @ £35 each, average 3 per month. Alfa & grass pellets, about £30/month.

Hope this helps! Good luck