Feeding hay to two in the field

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Grumpymoo

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I currently feed hay to my two in the field and have one pile on the floor. However my shettie could do with loosing weight whereas my boys needs maintaining therefore I need to find a way to feed him more and her just a token amount to munch on.

I was think about putting a hay net in the tree or putting a tie ring on the barn wall that is along side the field so he can get it to it and she can't. The only problem with this he has a very solid muscular neck and I do not want him building those muscles further so would rather have him eating low down.

I am probably looking for a solution that doesn't exist but thought I would ask anyway!

Thanks :)
 
could you put hay in a wide but high sided tub that big horse with long neck could reach into but poor wee shorty shettie couldn't reach into?
 
DIY job:
Get 3 wooden pallets & stand on end - with sides vertical if you can as safer for little one's feet with the slats.
Tie all corners top and bottom with baler twine - so you have a triangle 'corral' with a hole in the middle.
Inside this, stand a couple of beer/milk-crates, barrels or similar.
Then put a trug or small water tank on top of crates & drop hay into trug.
(mine sits so the top of the trug is about 2 inches below the top of the pallets, if you get my drift?)

Means bigger one can get hay, little one can not only not get hay, but doesn't get all the seeds & short bits etc falling in their eyes & mane - which they do if trying to share the bottom of a hay-net.

Cheap solution & I have this set-up in the winter shelters too :)
 
Spread lots of it out thinly rather than in piles so that it enables them to mimic their natural graze, take a step, graze, take a step behaviour.
 
I was saving the grazing muzzle for the spring so was hoping she could be free through the winter as the field they are in doesn't have masses of grass.

The tub idea might work but he does like to pick up things and chuck them around if he can so will have to get something heavy that he can't move. We have various things around the yard that might be suitible so I will have a hunt :)

Thanks
 
I like the pallet idea! I'll have to see it I can get hold of some and ask hubby to create me one! How clever are you!?! Thank you very much.

I was going to to spread it around once I move them over to the large field (was going to make a track round the outside with small piles all the way round) but I can't move them till the big horses that are currently in there have moved onto their second winter field in December/jan time.
 
With the amount of grass in the field they are in currently she really doesn't need the muzzle it's just the hay that I am trying to stop her eating so definitely going to try the pallet idea. :)
 
Try getting lorry or tractor tyres and place them on top of each other to a height where big hoss can reach and little hoss can't.
 
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