Do you weigh your haynets or just judge by eye?

no i just do it by eye as mine are on ad-lib hay, so not worried about giving too much and i know it is about the right amount as if i give them one more hay net for the same amount of time they still have most of it left in the morning (2 horses share 3 large, well stuffed nets, with small holes to slow them down)
 
I dont. When I started bring him in I gave him two slices from a small bale (14.2 pony) which was completely gone the next morning. So the next day I gave him three and it was all over the stable the next morning. So the next day I gave him two and a half and there was a bit left the next morning and a bit on the stable floor lol.

So I've stuck to two and a half slices since- unless I know he'll be going out later the next morning in which case he'll have a little extra.

My friend has a lami prone and does the same as above :) x
 
I did when I first brought them home to live, now I tend to shove as much hay in as possible, the small pony does have smaller nets though. My big horse is usually still eating from his morning haynet at 3pm but he takes his time and pauses for an hour or so at a time. Whilst the pony won't move from the haynet until it's all gone. I think he would eat as much as the 17.2hh given the chance :D
 
I did start weighing nets as I put my pony on a drastic diet but It doesn't take into account the moisture content of the hay/ haylage so I find it pointless.
 
How much do you feed your horses then. Mine are currently in 24/7 and I get through 6/7 bales of hay/haylage a week for a 17.2hh and an 11.2hh. Is that normal? My OH thinks I feed them to much
 
Foxy O said:
How much do you feed your horses then. Mine are currently in 24/7 and I get through 6/7 bales of hay/haylage a week for a 17.2hh and an 11.2hh. Is that normal? My OH thinks I feed them to much
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I think its normal when they're in 24/7 .

OP I don't weigh hay. I pick a suitable size net and stuff it completely. When using small bales I go by the number of slices. Unless you have a horse with a very strict feed regime for health reasons, I don't think it matters if they're fed slightly different amounts per day.
 
Always by eye
Only one has ad lib he's in so it's easy for him two large nets per 12 hours keep him going alone with his hard feed 3 times a day.
Fat 2yr olds get a slice each and no hard feed, very little grass... still fat as sin.
 
I weigh mine, he gets 10lb a night which I know he eats fairly quickly despite trickle nets, and he is fatter than the summer ! He is 15.3 cob.
 
Never crossed my mind to weight nets tbh! I buy small sized haylage nets and make sure they are packed full. That always seems to be a good amount to last overnight, they get fed from the floor during the daytime ad lib. If on weight / lami control then I double soak and rinse.
 
Foxy O said:
How much do you feed your horses then. Mine are currently in 24/7 and I get through 6/7 bales of hay/haylage a week for a 17.2hh and an 11.2hh. Is that normal? My OH thinks I feed them to much
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If in 24/7 then a bale a day is about right, if a little too little depending on hay or haylage and little pony

I use big bale haylage but weight wise I feed half a small bale a day each plus some in the shelter and mine are out 24/7. Mine are all 14.2. Its spilt over 2 feeds and there is always some left
 
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Weighed as the ponies are on strict diets. Not all slices of hay are equal!!

Find it quicker and easier to use an adapted trug on the scales then tip into nets rather than weigh nets. After a while you get pretty good at estimating weights but its only a few seconds job to double-check using my trusty trug.
 
I feed off the floor but at the minute feeding mine (two 16h and one 14.2h) about a bale and a half of hay with a couple of slices of big bale haylage (fed in two lots) so roughly 20 kg of hay and 15/20kg of haylage. They don't waste much and they tend to scoff the haylage quite quickly! I'll be upping the hay and reducing the haylage now though as my mare is a little too lively since I introduced the haylage a couple of weeks ago! They look quite well and have pretty much maintained weight.
 
Thanks that's helpful to know, I also feed two hard feeds morning and night and I had to cut that down due to him getting too excited
 
Mine is on ad lib, but I weigh nets to ensure there will be enough as she will easily get through 10-12kg of haylage overnight. Mind you she is a gutty baggage. It seems an awful lot when you put it up, but most of it's gone in the morning!
 
I weigh mine occasionally just to check what they are having - I use a fishing scale.

They have approx 10 kgs overnight, and if they come in earlier, get another couple of kgs to see then through to tea time.

They are both good doer cobs but hunt weekly so like to maintain their condition.
 
i just use the weigher to check whats in the net, so if she has left loads i give her less the next night. mine is a cushings horse so i have to be careful weightwise.....before she had cushings i never weighed the hay....
 
At the moment none of the horses are on restricted rations here. Both the lami prone horses were sadly PTS two months ago due to unrelated conditions. But when I was restricting their diets, then I weighed their haylage to start with (prior to soaking) and then, once I was used to what it looked like, did it by eye.
 
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