Does your horse eat peacefully from a haynet?

My horse Physio (fully qualified and reputable) told me that there is now firm evidence linking use of hay nets to arthritic changes in the neck and strongly advised that we discontinue their use immediately. One of the horses on the yard that had been 'under par' for a little while went to the vets for a work up and guess what - arthritic changes in neck - he had only been purchased a few months before so the cause is unknown but try standing and doing the same repetitive movement up and back with your head and see how long it takes until you're uncomfortable - not long!

I still use them on occasions - times when a horse is unsettled and likely to trample his hay into his bed etc. but generally I feed straight from the floor and on the whole they clear it all up by morning without much ending up in their bed. I am a tidy freak - but not so much so that I will feed my horses in a way detrimental to their well being..
 
Just to make u feel that bit better, I used to feed hay from the floor, but due to the mess started to feed from nets, large holed nets as he's on the slender side and don't want him struggling to get his food from a small net.

I still get hay strewn stable in the mornings. All be it to a lesser extent.
 
Found it, it's called a hay ball but the only pics are of it suspended, maybe it's not meant to go on the floor? I'd probably not let something accident prone have it on the floor.
 
Cortez said:
D'you know, I've hung an awful lot of haynets for Grand Prix horses............they didn't seem to be adversly affected, and certainly had no problems with bulging under necks. I really think there are more important things to worry about than a few tugs on a haynet.
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Agree - I wouldn't get hung up about it! :D
 
Cortez said:
D'you know, I've hung an awful lot of haynets for Grand Prix horses............they didn't seem to be adversly affected, and certainly had no problems with bulging under necks. I really think there are more important things to worry about than a few tugs on a haynet.
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No doubt, but horses are conformed to feed from the ground for numerous reasons, wind integrity being the most crucial.

Each to their own, but you will find the vast majority of racing yards and all studs feed from the ground. There are also studies that have shown abnormal dental wear in horses fed exclusively from haynets.

I am not saying do not use haynets. Four of my horses are eating haynets right now, three are eating haylage from the stable floor.
 
Lulup said:
My horse Physio (fully qualified and reputable) told me that there is now firm evidence linking use of hay nets to arthritic changes in the neck and strongly advised that we discontinue their use immediately. One of the horses on the yard that had been 'under par' for a little while went to the vets for a work up and guess what - arthritic changes in neck - he had only been purchased a few months before so the cause is unknown but try standing and doing the same repetitive movement up and back with your head and see how long it takes until you're uncomfortable - not long!

I still use them on occasions - times when a horse is unsettled and likely to trample his hay into his bed etc. but generally I feed straight from the floor and on the whole they clear it all up by morning without much ending up in their bed. I am a tidy freak - but not so much so that I will feed my horses in a way detrimental to their well being..
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I agree with this ^^ My horse had a problem with stiffness which never got better - had physio under sedation and could not put his head to the floor easily, he also used to graze and eat with his forelegs in odd positions - his neck was totally seized and also had soft tissue injury behind his left shoulder, we deduced to stop using haynets - he had an elimanet - to get him to stretch his back and neck properly and guessed that the tugging action had given him what would be called an RSI in humans!! He is much, much better now and will only ever have a haynet with large holes in the trailer now. When I first started feeding him from the floor he was a glutton,but now he has calmed down with it all and eats sensibly, he has a little barley straw mixed in and a swede or other root veg mixed with his hay to slow him down too. My physio noticed the connection too and she is one of the most respected physio's in the south.
 
A.A I do the same for the reasons you state. Horses aren't meant to tug and worry at their grazing, and often, due to the layout of a stable, they will tug in one direction only. Mine eat from the floor, near the door, so they have a view and feel safe. I've observed that they prefer it this way and I aim for contentment!
I've about the research on necks too - it just confirmed a gut feeling, for me:)
 
I have seen someone on the net who has built a wooden manger which fits a bale of hay (although I suppose you could make any size you wanted) and then made a mash to go over it so the horse was eating from the floor but still being trickle fed
 
Agree with AA haynets are dangerous and rubbish for muscles. I'm quite lucky as both my boys aren't greedy so I can chuck a lot of hay on the floor and they won't gorge but pick at it. They never make a mess and always have some left. I've also found they actually eat slower from the floor then from a net.
 
We tie our Haynets in hay bars this works really well , the greedy ones on diets get it a trickle net but as the net is low they are using them in a good position then I have a full range of nets and I choose the right size hole for the horse depending on how I want the horse to eat.
With horses all the time you have to make choices so you have to choose what's most important for each horse I would rather use a trickle net and make the forage of a horse on a diet last as long as possible than put on the ground and have it finished in half an hour I would give priority to wieght control and slowing the eating so the horse has food for a long as possible over the neck thing.
Our nets in the hay bar system gives you lots of choices so you can fit the feeding speed to each horse, with my fatty it means when in hard work at this time of year he can have haylage lite all the time he's in which is great .
 
One does the other will chew them to pieces so I gave up a long time ago, they both have there hay on the floor, I like my horses to have soaked hay I have mixed it with straw and fed easiest way is shake up all the hay and straw while dry mix it all up then put in nets and soak, its harder for them to pick out the straw so most is eaten, I hate haynets with a passion not good for the topline and my old mare used to get a bad back from eating from a haynet, so they only have them when traveling now.
 
Mine has such a large holed haynet that even with his extra large sized head, he can stick his whole nose in one 'hole' in the net - the hay doesn't need tugged out with any force at all. I don't tie it high enough that he stretches up to reach it at all either (but certainly higher than his feet). A fair amount falls out of these big holed nets, but then they eat that stuff from the floor.
 
My cob used to attack and devour a double netted haynet in 1 hr, since he is now using a haybar, he eats gently and picks out less hay to eat and it lasts him much longer, happier horse.
 
teasle said:
The feeding from the ground slow feeders sound a good idea but would they not still cause the horse to tug on them ?
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They do, but it looks like a lot more natural action than tugging at a haynet hung at mouth height. They don't make the "upside down neck" shape, they tend to pull it outwards more than upwards when their head is down. I would prefer to feed it free but I keep three together in a barn and I have one which pees in it to stop the others eating it if I do!
 
My two are dreadful with haynets! The mare doesn't have the best neck in the world and she tends to pull upwards quite forcefully when she eats from a haynet, so she really works the muscles on the underside of her neck (which really really don't need any encouragement!). And the gelding windsucks on his, which is a horrendous habit! So they both get fed off the floor when they're in, although they usually live out. At the moment they are in at night because of the snow, so I've just been feeding a bit more than usual when I leave the yard at 5pm (as they can't find much grass in the field atm!), and then my YO puts more hay in for them later on. If I didn't have such a nice YO I'd probably try a hay bar to see if it slowed them down a bit. Mine are also really tidy, and don't trample their food into their beds (food is for eating, bed is for sleeping :D)
 
Thanks for all your replies- time to read all through again and ponder with a cup of tea! It went on the floor tonight and I cleared the area at the front of bedding to leave a pile so will see in the morning how much was wasted. I have to make do with what i have got till the ice clears from the farm track but will look into slow ground feeders.
 
Cortez said:
Ahem, he's a horse; I don't think a bit of vigorous eating is going to damage him.
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Yes actually it is, he is going to develop completely the wrong musculture under his neck. IMO, OP is right to be worried.

A trug will be fine, the handles are too small to get a foot stuck, most trugs are quite squashy. It's not really much different from having a wter bucket in the stable. The other solution would be a haybar.
 
I only use them when no alternative i.e travelling. My horse has a haybar and rarily runs out of hay! A pony we used to own who has a gorilla tug clipped to the wall was put back on haynets by her owner - she then developed sore shoulders and stress marks. Back to gorilla tub and stress marks have gone!!

I would never use haynets for everyday use again!!:)
 
I also do the 'most of the hay in the haynet and a bit on the floor' trick. It adds variety and my boy likes to swap between the two. During the day, I tie his haynet at head height so he isn't constantly eating with his head in the air.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
Yes actually it is, he is going to develop completely the wrong musculture under his neck. IMO, OP is right to be worried.

A trug will be fine, the handles are too small to get a foot stuck, most trugs are quite squashy. It's not really much different from having a wter bucket in the stable. The other solution would be a haybar.
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I must say that I havn't found this to be true at all; I've hung many a haynet for a Grand Prix dressage horse with a completely superb neck.......
 
I'd sooner put hay in a net where it'll last a couple of hours, than on the floor where it'll last 30 mins, and be trampled into his bed (which he won't eat once hay is soiled).. plus if you're watching his waistline, it's better for him anyway, making him work for his feed.
 
Cortez said:
I must say that I havn't found this to be true at all; I've hung many a haynet for a Grand Prix dressage horse with a completely superb neck.......
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Well I've bought far too many haynet fed horses with upside down necks who have developed far better musculature with us where they only get haynets for travelling, to want to risk it. I prefer my horses to feed as naturally as possible, for the benefit or their necks, backs and teeth. I really can't see the point of doing anything which is going to make riding them correctly more difficult.

Not that I would use a haynet anyway, they are nasty dangerous things, if you ask me!
 
Well clearing an area of bedding at the front of my matted stable and leaving the hay on the floor meant that the stable was not strewn with wasted hay so that worked well.

I will investigate slow feeders - most seem available in the US - there is one I foun for sale here but it was over £ 200 so msy need to look at a home made version.

Thank you all for your replies and advice. Odviously where people disagree the person asking for advice will choose one option. Can I just say how much I value the replies from the people whose advice I have not chosen to follow. I really value debate and it all helps op s to make up their minds and I hope that you will still post replies on my threads.[/I]
 
ellie11987 said:
I wouldn't be worried, it might just be a change for him if you normally feed from the floor? mine is a violent eater, shes just too greedy! :rolleyes: she tugs at the haylage and almost wallops you with her head. can't feed her haylage from the floor though as I end up with a yucky straw and hay bed! :(
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Mines exactly the same :D
 
What about a trug with a wire mesh lid that drops down as the hay is going down, might have to get a friendly welder to make something for ayou.
 
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