Hay bar solution

[Birker2020]

Hi. I have a hay bar fitted in the corner of my stable because I don't like nets overnight and my horse has neck arthritis so I try to limit the amount of time she eats out of a net to the couple of hours she's tied outside her stable.

Although my mare is 17.1hh she struggles to reach into the bottom of the haybar, therefore a lot of hay is wasted. It's only about three inches off the ground to allow the debris to fall out so isn't hung too high.

My partner said he would make an insert for it so that the hay can rest on top about a third of the way from the floor. But how on earth to you measure the inner circumference of a haybar though??

At the moment I use a tub upturned that I squish into the bottom of the haybar and pile the hay on top. However my horse thinks it's wonderful fun to pull out the tub by gripping it and pulling it out (eventually it rotates) and I end up with a tub on the floor and a load of hay uneaten on the bottom of the haybar. This happens whatever size of tub I use.

I did think about using bungees either side of the handles and clip them under the haybar somehow but I'm concerned should the bungee come off and whack her in the eye or break a tooth. She's very accident prone so whatever we use we have to make sure she's not going to get caught in it or get hurt by it. Any ideas?

 

[Birker2020]

Meant to say on another post someone has said that they sell a grill that sits on top of a hay bar.
Does anyone know where you can get this from? I've googled and can't find it.

 

[joelb]

I had exactly same problem with my 16.2 mare who kept pulling one side off the wall reaching the bottom. I tried an upturned tub too and she just flung that out. My solution was far simpler, I half fill mine with oat straw to raise the level, it gets refreshed as needed with no waste as it goes in her bed when I do a full clear out. Never had a problem since she stopped leaning in.

 

[Scotsbadboy]

I have three scaffolding planks screwed across a corner of the stable, the bottom plank has a gap under it for maintenance (sweeping out the dust and seeds) its not high, it keeps the hay in and it means i dont have to faff about with haynets. I feed ad lib though so i appreciate it wouldnt work for everyone's horse but it was a cheaper 'haybar' and custom made to height whilst also keeping the hay in one place.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Would she be better with a pony sized haybar?

 

[Birker2020]

Would she be better with a pony sized haybar?

Having been on Haybar website and seen what they have for sale I agree, I think she would be better off with a pony one, its just that I got my first one for £15 and the second haybar after the first was deemed useless for free.
Just wondered if there were any other way of doing it.

 

[Annagain]

Rather than try to measure, can you make a template with a piece of cardboard, maybe a thin piece like an opened out cereal box? Push it down to the level you want, bend it to get the fit about right then trim, put it in again and fine tune it before using it to cut the wood. You'd also need some method of attaching the wood securely but so that it could be removed to clean the bottom of the hay bar out.

Archie has a big hay bar and it's fine for him but Charlie has a pony one (I inherited it from the previous stable owner) and it's so much easier to deal with. It holds plenty of hay for him and I can reach the bottom to clean it out, unlike Archie's.