Hay or haylage for a fatty

[nikanita]

As the title really. What is the best for fattys over the winter? Usually I share large bales of haylage with a friend, she feeds hers 2 thirds while I feed 1 third. We normally pay £30 a bale. have been offered hay at £2.50 a bale and wondered if I would be better feeding that this year, I struggle keeping her weight down and I think she came out last winter slightly larger than I would have liked.

Advice appreciated.

 

[TigerTail]

Hay - soaked if necessary to make it less sugary

 

[jenni999]

Hay is better as it has less protein etc.

 

[Shay]

Hay is generally better to keep weight down - or you could even go to good quality oat straw. But poor quality haylage can contain less calories etc than good quality hay so the final answer will also depend slightly on what sorts of quality you have available to you as well!

Haylage also has more water in it which might be a benefit if we have a severe winter and pipes etc freeze. The last thing you need to be doing on a cold night is trying to chip your soaked haynet out of an iceberg! (Bitter experience....)

 

[lachlanandmarcus]

If you can soak it, hay is better, since it will be lower in protein and pony should keep weight off better. Oat straw also useful as its lower energy than unsoaked hat and the same or a bit more than soaked hay. But dont feed it to anything with choke/colic/any other eating issues and dont feed it as more than 50% of ration as it is very low in protein and minerals (hence why alfa is used to balance it in a lot of chaffs).

I fed low cal haylage and my pony put on weight and ended up with (mild thankfully) lami. I wouldnt risk it with a good doer.

 

[PandorasJar]

Hay.

I do 50% haylage, 50% hay for normal/poor doers.

Only hay to keep system running on good doers