Does anyone double net using small holed nets?

Casey76

Casey76

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My mare is driving me to distraction.

On a morning (between 5and 6am), the YO gives her a small net (Shires Greedy Feeder haynet (1in holes) ) of haylage - approx 3kg. Turn out is at 10am onto an individual paddock which is well grazed, but still with plenty of grass. Bring in is at 5pm.

She gets 5.5kg of hay also in Greedy Feeder net on an evening at about 7pm. - but she will finish her hay before midnight.

Tartine is a very good doer, and is overweight, which is why she is getting weighed hay; but I'm finding it very difficult to balance between giving her enough hay to keep her eating all of the time and keeping her weight down.

She is ridden almost every day, though in the school 5 days out of 6, as I don't hack; but she is ridden until she is puffing and sweaty - lots of trot and canter work.

My YO already thinks I'm cruel and unusual using the Greedy Feeder nets (holes are so small!), but the only thing I can think of is to double net. She is an expert at eating from them, and actually seems to prefer eating from the net than from the floor (if given a choice, she eats from the net first).

My youngster, who also gets weighed hay, always has some left on a morning/evening, so I know Tartine is just a gannet, and it's not me being too stingy with the hay :/
 
I recently brought a haynet which comes double netted. It was about £12.50 but I'm afraid I can't remember what brand it was or anything else. I don't use haynets in my horses stable as she has the annoying knack of pulling them down and tramples them in her bed and I worry about her hooves getting caught in the mesh but it's really good for shows and keeping her quiet if she is standing on the yard. I'll have a look now to see if I can find one.

ETA: They are called Elim-A-Nets :)
 
I found most horses will have finished their haynet before midnight, I wouldn't worry about that too much esp as she's getting another at 5am...For shifting the pounds, have you tried soaking your nets first ( for approx 2/4 hours, then hang up to drain)? This removes more sugars from the hay, might help and also look at ( if any) feed you are giving her ie sugar /molasses content and try a very low or non at all sugar/molasses content. Also check out the percentage of hay she should be getting in comparison to her weight..can't remember off the top of my head for weight loss, but it will be written somewhere on internet! And make up her 5am net ready for YO to give so you know exactly how much she is eating..
 
There was another thread in a similar vein. I have never been able to give my small ponies enough hay that they have some left in the morning. Hubby and I were talking about it this week and reckon that if they had half a bale in a greedy net they would still eat it all by the morning! I know that we should be feeding them adlib 24/7 but I think the risk of lamininits is worse than the risk of ulcers so I am afraid mine are going to have to go hungry at some times in the early hours of the morning.
 
Micky, she isn't on any hard feed at all. She gets a cup of Baileys Lo Cal balancer at feeding time (actually we have quite a lot of horses/ponies on the yard who only get balancer).

5.5kg is just over 1% of her body weight, which combined with the approx 3kg of haylage, and the estimated amount of grass, comes to less than 2%, so theoretically she should be losing weight, slowly... hmm... unfortunately not, though she is maintaining and not getting any fatter.

When she was getting hay twice a day I did do both nets; but when we changed onto morning haylage for winter, the YO kindly offered to do nets for me (normally the haylage is just given on the floor) as we (owners) don't prepare it at all.
 
I wouldn't worry tbh and I'd not double net something like a greedy feeder net (I have them for the ponies). Unless you can split her hay and give her a late night portion (which I do now they are at home).
 
I have one trickle net hanging up, but low down, a trickle net loose on the floor tied in a tub trug, and a tub trug filled with chopped straw. He gets 5kg of hay split across the nets and 2kgs of straw. That means he usually has a mouthful of straw left and a tiny bit of hay, and hes not gaining weight. Hes also out muzzled.

A trickle net hanging up lasts him a couple of hours max
 
Mix it with straw. She will still have fibre to keep her gut active but straw is calorie negative. Just so long as it is clean and not dusty.
 
I have the same issue. Mine does ok standing with nothing for a while. It's his nap time. I would not worry personally. As long as they are not getting enough. Mine eats then naps. He is not one to eat, nap, eat. He will eat until nothing left. Then settle for a doze.

I use the greedy feeder net.
 
Casey76 said:
My YO already thinks I'm cruel and unusual using the Greedy Feeder nets (holes are so small!), but the only thing I can think of is to double net. She is an expert at eating from them, and actually seems to prefer eating from the net than from the floor (if given a choice, she eats from the net first).
Click to expand...

Your YO would think you were even crueler if you let her get laminitis or put extra stress on her joints because she was overweight!
 
I have found with my very greedy horse who has about 4 slices of hay each night steamed and fed in a greedy feeder that if he has some hay loose on the ground first i.e. one slice (or whatever is leftover from the night before) that he eats in a far more sensible manner and always seems to have hay left over in the morning. If I just feed him out of the haynet, its always entirely gobbled up. No idea why though unless he fills himself up with the hay on the floor first.
 
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