Hay Bar

[Green Bean]

Hi, for anyone with a hay bar or equivalent, I have a concern about the finer hay bits / seeds left behind which are quite dusty and my horse doesn't eat them. How do you clean out the container to put fresh hay in, without having to double over and scrape it out a handful at a time? Reading the installation guidance, it sounds like to can be installed up to 4cms off the ground - does mean there is an opening at the bottom?

 

[doodle]

Hole at the bottom so seeds etc fall out.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I rested one on a brick on its side while I screwed it onto the field shelter.
All the small bits come out, I scrape the floor out a couple of times a week.

 

[hopscotch bandit]

You see I didn't do that with mine - my horse who is very accident prone would get a leg stuck under it or some other body part.

So I opted instead to lean over and pull the bits out of the bottom. It doesn't take long.

 

[Red-1]

I fitted mine with a gap big enough to get a full swiping brush head under, so about 9" off the floor. There is a gap at the bottom, so the seeds fall out, or any that are caught can be rushed out from above.

As the gap is so wide at the bottom, and the Haybar so narrow anyway, I don't think she will get caught up.

 

[JillA]

And when you have taken out all the seeds and dust, don't forget to keep them to spread it on your paddocks in late winter - come spring they will germinate and grow to cover the bare patches

 

[Starzaan]

I made my hay bars. They are boards with a hole cut in for a handle, that slide into the corner of the stables, secured by batons either Side. This enables me to take out the hay, then remove the wood so that I can sweep out any dust and seeds

 

[Bob notacob]

They are awful things .If you dont clear out the crap you think the horse still has hay . Bob has his hay in a big pile on the floor and takes great delight in shovelling it about with his nose .He loves to do this and I wouldnt begrudge him a bit of wasted hay .Yet he eats almost everything .The stuff he leaves (and has deemed unfit for consumption),even if I mix it with the next days hay,will again be left (with a stern note to the hotel manager).Seriously ,I wouldnt have a haybar for love nor money(Both of which I could do with)

 

[tankgirl1]

I have a kids garden rake, £1.99 from B&M which is perfect for clearing out the hay bar!

ETA - the scraps either go in the field or get added to the straw bed (but not on the banks)

 

[emfen1305]

Like hopscotch, mine would find way to get stuck underneath so i just added a tyre bucket to the bottom of mine and emptied it most days and then anything that got caught at the sides was cleaned out at the weekends! They are supposed to be off the ground though!

 

[Maryann]

Mine are about 8 inches off the floor so I either push the rejected bits out of the bottom with or fork them out with the muck fork. I got them - and a haygain steamer - when I found myself with 6 horses to do and a full time office job. Ten years on, the steamer and the hay bars are still in perfect working order and I wouldn't be without them. Although I only do 3 horses now, and work part time, the thought of going back to soaking hay and filling haynets feels like going from doing laundry in a machine to hand washing.

 

[Leo Walker]

Mine has a builders sack clipped and suspended just off the ground. Saves loads of mess, much, much cheaper and surprisingly robust so far!

 

[skint1]

Mine has a builders sack clipped and suspended just off the ground. Saves loads of mess, much, much cheaper and surprisingly robust so far!

Leo Walker please would you post a photo if you can? I am thinking of haybar type solutions and this sounds great idea!

 

[Leo Walker]

This isnt mine, but here you go. Mines attached with the clips you get to hold water buckets to the wall with. No idea what they are called! Like tie rings but with spring clips instead of rings. My stable is solid brick walls so it was the easiest way to do it. One has twine on as well so it would snap easily if needs be. I have a slightly smaller bag that I fill with hay and then tip it in as I find that works best for me and my set up.

 

[Myloubylou]

Genius

 

[tda]

This isnt mine, but here you go. Mines attached with the clips you get to hold water buckets to the wall with. No idea what they are called! Like tie rings but with spring clips instead of rings. My stable is solid brick walls so it was the easiest way to do it. One has twine on as well so it would snap easily if needs be. I have a slightly smaller bag that I fill with hay and then tip it in as I find that works best for me and my set up.

How polite would your horse have to be ?? I can just imagine a pony in a bag if I tried this ????

 

[Leo Walker]

How polite would your horse have to be ?? I can just imagine a pony in a bag if I tried this ????

Shes currently a very rude thug and has indeed climbed inside the bag, only once thankfully. I think because its not solid theres nothing to rub on or pull against, so it doesn't seem to get damaged. They are about a fiver to replace if they do, which is a lot less than the actual hay bars that she has previously broken. I'll be honest though, I didn't expect it to last the night! It did and so far, so good! I'm really pleased with it.

 

[hopscotch bandit]

I got my hay bar for £15 as it was second hand and had a rip in it so its held together with loads of really strong gaffer tape. But it does the job brilliantly. I put an upturned tub in it which I wedge in and put the hay on top so my horse doesn't have so far to reach inside.

 

[NLPM]

Mine would definitely be in that bag ? I've found N in buckets more than once. Looks like a good idea though - mine rub on haybars so I think they're all on borrowed time (haybars, not the horses!).

I put a rubber feed skip at the bottom of my hay bars and just grab that and empty it out. Gap under the haybar itself for sweeping out.

 

[Leo Walker]

Mine would definitely be in that bag ? I've found N in buckets more than once. Looks like a good idea though - mine rub on haybars so I think they're all on borrowed time (haybars, not the horses!).

I put a rubber feed skip at the bottom of my hay bars and just grab that and empty it out. Gap under the haybar itself for sweeping out.

you might be surprised. Mine is an idiot and wrecks everything but the bag has lasted a couple of months so far. Much longer than any haybar!