Feeding straw in field

[minigal]

Eeeek this is a winter topic - so sorry!!

Last winter I fed my ponies adlib big bales of haylage, they got through 1 big round bale a week (little grass) this resulted in fat ponies and was extremely wasteful (they live out and seemed to enjoy pooing and weeing on haylage as much as eating it.)

I want to be a bit more organised this year and so have will be feeding hay/haylage out of feeders on my hardstanding. I am worried about them having periods of time when they run out so thought about providing some straw for them to pick at.

My questions are - how do you know which straw is ok to feed?

And is there going to BE any straw around this year?! Crystal balls at the ready!

 

[SJcrazee]

I leave oat straw in a feeder for mine to pick through and they have a slab of hay each and a feed twice a day in winter (natives) they winter through very well and come into march nice and slim! I've been doing this for years and have had no problems at all, the one thing that MUST be provided when feeding straw is a constant supply of clean, fresh water.

 

[Serenity087]

Oat and Barley straw is okay to feed.

Dorey ate barley (sold locally as "feed straw" out in a field a couple of times - but I'll save it for extreme lack of grass as she's not the biggest fan of straw...

 

[canteron]

On advice of the vet I give my laminitic a net of barley straw to pick on in between meals, so I am hoping they know what they are talking about and it is OK!

However, I wouldn't count on straw being cheap this year - the stalks on the crop are so short that there will probably be less to go round!