Feeding straw?

[Peglo]

Would you give your horses a haynet of straw to keep them going once their hay is done? I know my haffie had been eating her straw bedding even though her haynets not fully empty in the morning but I’m on the last of this bale and she will be on better hay soon. I’ve been feeding her a bit of good hay mixed in with the old and she goes mad for it so don’t think the one haynet (it’s already double netted) will last her the night. She’s chunkier than I would like so don’t want to up her hay if possible.

I’ve heard of horses getting colic from eating straw so just want to double check.

 

[Widgeon]

When mine (also inclined to chunkiness!) was in last winter I would give him a big pile of low-calorie hay and a big pile of his favoured straw. His bed was a different kind of straw that he wasn't quite so keen on. (I can't remember what either actually was, sorry) He often finished his favourite straw pile before he bothered with the hay. He had an automatic drinker plus water buckets so always plenty of clean water available, and he never had the slightest sign of colic. I'd say if you already know she's eating her bed, then keep giving her straw alongside the hay and don't worry about it. If the amount of straw she's eating was going to upset her, it would've happened already. Just my opinion.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

I have one who used to colic at the drop of a hat when he was on shavings but since moving him back on to a straw bed he hasn’t shown any signs of it. He always has plenty of meadow hay but chooses to eat the straw instead and after the initial worry I’m now happy for him to graze whatever he wants to.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

We use oat straw chaff to keep going those who don't need ad-lib hay. I donot want them standing around with nothing to eat.

 

[Cortez]

I've been feeding straw (and bedding on it) for more than 40 years and never had a colic.

 

[Peglo]

Thanks guys. That’s helpful.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

we used to see straw impactions in heavy horses in the winter, usually doing a cold snap. I feed oat straw to my natives and haven’t had any issues but during a cold snap I make sure they have movement and plenty of fluids.

 

[rabatsa]

I generally have a large bale of straw in a ring feeder for them all to pull at. Hay gets given in nets dotted around the barn. When I have ones that need more hay then I put the hay in piles in the barn.

 

[Red-1]

I did do, but we had an impaction in November, nearly lost the horse and had a £1,600 vets bill. No more straw for Rigsby!

 

[Peglo]

I did do, but we had an impaction in November, nearly lost the horse and had a £1,600 vets bill. No more straw for Rigsby!

sorry to hear that @Red-1 had you been feeding it for a while?

 

[Red-1]

sorry to hear that @Red-1 had you been feeding it for a while?

Yes, for a year, however that morning the outside water had frozen overnight, and there were some shavings in the inside water (horse has access to both). I suspect that compounded the problem.

He is fine now. I just felt a fool as the vet had already said that I was risking a compaction, feeding straw, and there I was, calling them out for a compaction after feeding straw.

 

[Peglo]

Yes, for a year, however that morning the outside water had frozen overnight, and there were some shavings in the inside water (horse has access to both). I suspect that compounded the problem.

He is fine now. I just felt a fool as the vet had already said that I was risking a compaction, feeding straw, and there I was, calling them out for a compaction after feeding straw.

glad to hear he is doing grand now. Good to know of the risks too. Thank you.

 

[Bob notacob]

There are many types of straw ,ranging from threshed ryegrass straw to wheat straw. A straw is a grass after it has seeded . There is a process that occurs in grass stems prior to seeding ,called lignification. Lignin is a woody substance produced to strengthen the cell walls. (trees are full of it) It is indigestible to horses ,even the gut flora struggle and fail. Wheat straw is very indigestible and highly lignified. A horse might nibble the odd bit but it is absolutely unsuitable for feeding. Barley straw has had bad press in the past due to the awns on the seed head, but modern combining deals with these well. Autumn barley is far less digestible than spring barley straw. Autumn straw is unsuitable as feed straw. Spring straw is kind of so, so. Wouldn't feed it to a sensitive horse. Oat straw is the best feeding straw and is low in lignin and comparable to low to medium energy hay. When problems arise ,it tends to be those horses that have not had ad lib fibre., The hind gut becomes lazy and unable to pass the larger quantity of undigestible fibre that arrives from straws and even autumn grass. The result is impaction. I strongly suspect that for a health gut ,a horse needs a high fibre diet supplemented with the odd fence rail and bucket of wood shavings

 

[laura_nash]

I was advised by a vet when I started feeding straw that it is usually fine as up to 50% of the forage (in his experience I assume, no idea what the basis was for that). I've been feeding it for years with no issues.

I feed barley straw bales and oat straw chaff (can't get oat straw bales here). The barley straw is "feed" straw (the farmers here differentiate between feed and bedding barley straw, I assume based on cutting date or quality) and the oat straw is Top Chop Zero. I don't feed the barley straw adlib when I feed it, just a net a day. I feed the chaff in large trugs. The Top Chop Zero has some additions that they say help avoid compaction (linseed oil I think).

Mine live out with access to multiple automatic water troughs and we don't get freezing weather much (plus when it does occasionally freeze my old cob just bashes his way through the ice). They have a range of different forages (in winter they are often getting small amounts of hay, haylage, straw and grass) and the fields have a lot of opportunity for browsing.

 

[pistolpete]

Mine loved barley straw. Used to have it 50/50 with hay. Never drank a lot and was prone to colic but no colic while on straw. He doesn’t fry it any more. Wish he did as great source of fibre both less calories.

 

[Bob notacob]

Yes Laura ,but you live in Ireland where folk are rather more sensible ,and understand horses

 

[Cortez]

Yes Laura ,but you live in Ireland where folk are rather more sensible ,and understand horses

This is thoroughly true

 

[Peglo]

Yes Laura ,but you live in Ireland where folk are rather more sensible ,and understand horses

i was wondering where you were before you got the option of bedding straw and eating straw. Mention a horse here and farmers just roll their eyes.

Thank you @Bob notacob. Lot of good information there.

It is just about all barley straw here although have seen a field or 2 of oat straw. I will have a look at straw chaffs as well.

 

[ycbm]

Yes, for a year, however that morning the outside water had frozen overnight, and there were some shavings in the inside water (horse has access to both). I suspect that compounded the problem.

He is fine now. I just felt a fool as the vet had already said that I was risking a compaction, feeding straw, and there I was, calling them out for a compaction after feeding straw.

I do understand what you are saying and why you're reluctant to feed straw again.

But the only impaction colic I have known was also caused by contaminated water (the horse had crapped in it!) and I'm not sure it's right for your vet to wholesale condemn the feeding of straw when it's a lifesaver for people with prone-to-fat hungry horses.

Like Cortez, I stabled on straw for years and for years I've given straw as feed in the daytime and I've never had a horse colic. I'm going into livery soon and intend to choose straw bedding so that he has something to eat if he runs out of forage.

There must be millions of horses all over the world bedded on straw, how dangerous can it be?
.

 

[Red-1]

I do understand what you are saying and why you're reluctant to feed straw again.

But the only impaction colic I have known was also caused by contaminated water (the horse had crapped in it!) and I'm not sure it's right for your vet to wholesale condemn the feeding of straw when it's a lifesaver for people with prone-to-fat hungry horses.

Like Cortez, I stabled on straw for years and for years I've given straw as feed in the daytime and I've never had a horse colic. I'm going into livery soon and intend to choose straw bedding so that he has something to eat if he runs out of forage.

There must be millions of horses all over the world bedded on straw, how dangerous can it be?
.

This is what I told myself, until I was stood there with a very sick horse. Vet said I was risking an impaction, one happened, I felt awful. He is banned, for now at least.

 

[ycbm]

This is what I told myself, until I was stood there with a very sick horse. Vet said I was risking an impaction, one happened, I felt awful. He is banned, for now at least.

I get it, I'd probably feel the same.
.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I do understand what you are saying and why you're reluctant to feed straw again.

But the only impaction colic I have known was also caused by contaminated water (the horse had crapped in it!) and I'm not sure it's right for your vet to wholesale condemn the feeding of straw when it's a lifesaver for people with prone-to-fat hungry horses.

Like Cortez, I stabled on straw for years and for years I've given straw as feed in the daytime and I've never had a horse colic. I'm going into livery soon and intend to choose straw bedding so that he has something to eat if he runs out of forage.

There must be millions of horses all over the world bedded on straw, how dangerous can it be?
.

My Draft mare got impaction colic while she was eating long straw. She was fine when I switched to oat straw chaff. However I do wonder, with hindsight, if the colic happened at the beginning of her Cushings problem. She was eventually diagnosed by ACTH, which I am afraid is a bit of blunt tool, so might not have picked up the problem in the early stages

 

[Bob notacob]

The main difference between"feeding straw" and "Bedding straw" is that bedding straw carries vat and feeding straw doesn't.

 

[Cragrat]

The main difference between"feeding straw" and "Bedding straw" is that bedding straw carries vat and feeding straw doesn't.

A thousand years ago when I was younger feed straw was barley straw that had been undersown with grass, so it was mix of fine, green hay and straw - usually no more than 15-20% grass. Bedding straw was usually wheat.