For those of you who feed Ad Lib Hay......

[Joyous70]

......................how much would you say you put out for your horse in a 24 hour period?

An idea on size of horse and whether theyre good doers or not, I just want and idea of amounts people feed.

 

[rhino]

Mine has about 12 - 14kg, 15.3hh wb (~525kg). He has the majority at night (8kg) with another haynet during the day - he is only turned out in the school at the moment due to injury. When they are out they have round bales in the field He is a pretty good doer but is 20 so can handle a bit more than he used to - doesn't have hard feed as such.

 

[ThePony]

I'm not v good at weights I'm afraid, but in 24 hrs ours prob get just under 2 slices of big bale hay each day. Both 16hh (ish!) medium weight hunter type, good doers. They would normally get less than this, but both are going into winter fitter than they have before, one is on hols now (plenty of self exercising going on though!) and the other is still competing SJ every/everyother weekend.

 

[Joyous70]

Rhino - could you tell me what would that be in slices off a small hay bale?

 

[rhino]

Rhino - could you tell me what would that be in slices off a small hay bale?

It varies too much to really tell (plus we use big bale) but is probably just under 1/2 a small bale per day. You can get a spring balance at a DIY shop to check weights - they are not expensive

 

[Mithras]

Mine eats just about a bale a day. Thats a small bale, about 8 - 9 partitions/slices.

 

[huntley]

I have one 16.2 3/4 bred out 24/7 at the moment and he has two slices (small bale) in the morning and the same in the evening - he has only just started having it in the morning as until a week ago he was not eating much hay at all. When they are in they probably have about 3/4 slices overnight.

 

[PonyIAmNotFood]

Average size 15.2 cob at rs gets a large barrow piled high with hayledge, 17.3 warm blood gets it really really piled in and squashed down. Not sure how much it weighs tho sorry but it fills a corner of the stable on the floor.

 

[kateknights]

Mine, a 15.1 m/hw coblet, about 1 small bale per day.

 

[Kat]

My 15.3 wbx is currently on 18kg of haylege a day. She is out during daylight on grass with no hay and has the haylage when she is in. She gets two hard feeds a day too, she is in fairly light work, hacking for an hour or so twice a week and then perhaps 3x half hour schooling sessions.

 

[fidleyspromise]

Two 14.2hh native good-doers, out 24/7.

My 2 eat an average of 3-4kg a day between them. When the snow is lying and they can't did for grass as its too solid, they then go up to about 7-8kg between them.

 

[haras]

Mine have a big round bale of hay put out and it lasts about 10 days or so.

I have a 14.3 arab, a 14hh veteran pony and a 11.2 welsh a on it, although the welshy has just been evicted to the next field as shes got too fat!

 

[whizzer]

16.2 poor doer TB, out all day & then has haybar full of haylage at night but not sure how much it weighs. Doesn't have a big appetite & haybar usually has about a third left in it in the morning. When he was on hay had 4 slices at night.

 

[**Vanner**]

14kg split into two used to keep my 15.1hh, 600Kg cob going all night and day.

He's on restricted now (was on 8kg whilst loosing weight) and is now on 10Kg a day.

 

[Joyous70]

Thank you to all of you who have replied I was wanting to check i wasn't being too mean with my hay.

I have 2 native very good doers out 24/7 (with not very much grazing left now) one 14.2 the other 13.2hh, they have 2 slices each in the morning and 2 each again at night with a small feed of unmolassed chaff & a tiny sprinkle of pony nuts (at the moment their weights are just about spot on)

 

[YasandCrystal]

my 17 hh WB has a bale a day

 

[xRobyn]

Thank you to all of you who have replied I was wanting to check i wasn't being too mean with my hay.

I have 2 native very good doers out 24/7 (with not very much grazing left now) one 14.2 the other 13.2hh, they have 2 slices each in the morning and 2 each again at night with a small feed of unmolassed chaff & a tiny sprinkle of pony nuts (at the moment their weights are just about spot on)

My normally good do-er is out for approx 7 hours a day, there's not much grass but must be something or he'd be hanging around the gate at lunchtime and he's not (yet!). He gets 4 slices of hay overnight (approx 8kg, but occasionally he'll get an extra slice) and a bucket of hi-fi lite (three big handfuls) and about 500g high fibre cubes. He is maintaining his weight on this so I'm happy and we get through approx 2-2 1/2 small bales a week.

ETA he's currently not in work though and looks like this: https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.ne...9593587327_633522326_9137705_1942877774_n.jpg (rugged in a no fill turnout with a fleece underneath).

ETA 2. Obviously his isn't ad lib, but I was replying to your other reply. It's tough with good do-ers and 'ad lib'. He looks fat in that photo, I promise you can easily feel his ribs but he is a Cob so lovely and fluffy

 

[Clodagh]

It isn't ad lib unless there is always some left over, and not just what they have walked//pooed/peed on. You probably realise that! Only being pernicerty as the heading stated ad lib.
My 16hh mare would eat a bale a day ad lib, my two youngsters who live out eat half a bale between them (small bales)

 

[Nudibranch]

At the moment my 13.2, 8 month colt (to make 16.3) who is growing fast, plus a 13.2 fatty and a shetland, are getting 1/2 a bale a day but they are out 24/7 on decent grazing and the colt gets sugar beet and Suregrow too. They don't finish it when it's mild or dry; I put more out if the weather is bad.

 

[helencharlie]

My 16.hh tb is out during the day and in at night. He gets approx 1/2 a small bale of hay a night. He may leave 2 or 3 slices if I am lucky. If he has to stay in then he would get through approx 1 small bale of hay a day. There is a good article in this months Horse with the amounts of hay that a horse needs in it.

 

[Joyous70]

I think that i could easily give my boys 4 small bales in a day and there still wouldn't be any left they are such greedy boys

But on looking at what other people are feeding, i think im getting it about right its taken me over 12 months to get my 14.2hh's weight down and i don't want him to put it on again or loose too much weight either, theyre not hanging around at the gate, only when they see me coming with the "tuck truck"

 

[xRobyn]

I think that i could easily give my boys 4 small bales in a day and there still wouldn't be any left they are such greedy boys

Ditto! I'm keeping mine in on xmas day, will be giving him half a bale between about 10am-5pm and expect him to have eaten it all! Ad lib is ideal, but not always the best option, especially with horses that put on weight just looking at grass in the spring! Mine has had lami previously so keeping him slim in winter means he has a bit of room for when the new grass comes through (when he will be muzzled and on soaked hay as well as being worked 6 days a week (if he's back in work by then ). It's tough.

 

[blood_magik]

I must have my calculations wrong

The average weight of Jerry's haynet is 7kg and he gets at least 4 of these daily if he's in plus he gets two hard feeds and he's looking a bit thin to me

 

[4faults]

My 17.3 WB is having 6 slices from a small bale per day. Although she does have them double netted as she is verging on porky

 

[mystiandsunny]

I just fill the net (haylage net, med sized) - there's always some left over. I guess about 2 large slices?

 

[Cuffey]

Every horse is different and every situation different.
My 16hh ISH is offered 4 flakes of small bale hay overnight, he very rarely eats up
He is going out into 10 acres with only 1 pony for company during the day as the sheep are now off, so I think he is often not very hungry when he comes in.
If weather is so bad he does not get out (land floods and the other day the yard was too icy to safely put out) then he would eat 6-7 flakes in a day.

 

[Ladydragon]

......................how much would you say you put out for your horse in a 24 hour period?

An idea on size of horse and whether theyre good doers or not, I just want and idea of amounts people feed.

In a 24hr period - more than I'd like to think...

Our 15.2 TB eats about the same as two elephants... Well, maybe a slight exaggeration but certainly way more than the 15.3 heavy weight cob on the yard...

He's out from about 9am - 3pm every day and at night has a massive hay net and a normal large sized one... Pretty much clears the lot bar for a bit of waste on the floor... He also has two meals and is still managing to drop a bit of condition...

The grass is still pretty good and he's warm enough...everyone else in the yard (bar the big cob who has the same nets as the TB but doesn't empty them) manage with a medium or large hay net over night...

 

[TigerTail]

Adlib is when there they always have some left - otherwise its measured.

Mine are getting 2 small bales a day - thats between 3 16 hh's.

 

[glamourpuss]

I'm glad I've read this thread because I give my boys around 13 kg of haylage a night (out all day from 7am-4/5pm). People on my yard have commented on how big my haynets are & how they've always got lots left over.....urm yeah they're on ad-lib & I don't want them finishing their haynets & standing eating nothing from 7pm
The left overs are put into the field for them to pick at over the day.
My pony is permently on a diet. She gets 5 kg of hay mixed with oat straw & triple netted so it lasts her all night,

 

[fidleyspromise]

Originally Posted by fidleyspromise View Post
Two 14.2hh native good-doers, out 24/7.

My 2 eat an average of 3-4kg a day between them. When the snow is lying and they can't did for grass as its too solid, they then go up to about 7-8kg between them.

Blimey, 4kg each during the snow . . . . mine would curl up and die if they only had that amount !

They have been on ad-lib hay for a month now but they aren't greedy. I put 2 hay-hutches out = 15kg and all I have to do is top them up now and then.

Last week I didn't put fresh out and at the point I was going to give in and take the old stuff away (although there was nothing wrong with it), they ate it over 2 days which were miserable.

I put fresh out and yesterday, 6kg went out but they are picking at it and I suspect still finding grass which is madness as its a small paddock they are in.

Considering one's a Highland, she is not a fan of hay and will eat it if she has to, but prefers her grass. In the midst of winter, they'll gradually start to eat more hay and then as spring comes in, they'll stop and go graze again.