Horse eating straw bed - any soft alternatives? And how much hay should I give him?!

[ellerslie83]

I'm only used to keeping horses at grass, but as my boy is lame atm and suspected of having a bit of lami, he's having to be in half the day on a nice thick bed - which he starts eating - so is there an alternative bedding that will be soft - and not cost the earth that he's not going to eat?

Also, I'm not sure how much hay to give him over the course of the day without it being bad for his current condition and the fact he needs to lose weight....e.g. how many slices of hay could I give him while he's stabled overnight? - The rest of the day being spent in a quarter of his normal field with very short grass.

He's about to start bute and a magnesium supplement which will be given in as little speedi-beet as possible, but he's a very hungry big cob (15.3) so I don't know what else I can give him?

 

[L&M]

For lami cases I would use a deep shavings bed as an alternative to straw.

Re the hay, first of all soak it as will help reduce calories. If he was mine, and in for half the day, I would just give one slice in a small holed net.

A good way of working out how much a normal horse would need is to feed it 2.5% of its bodyweight. This allowance would include hay, grass and hard feed. For a lami prone/overweight horse this can be reduced to 1.5%.

You can use a weigh tape to estimate the horses weight and a small spring scale can help weigh his hay nets (I find the average slice of a small bale of hay is around 2kg)

Hope you get him sorted!

 

[NaeNae87]

Sawdust.
It's soft, absorbant, Doesn't cost the earth and he won't eat it. Mine are both on it as are the ones at work. I have even slept in it while I was keeping an eye on a sick horse. Very comfy

 

[kaiserchief]

If there is any suspicion at all of him having laminitis, I would have him in 24/7 on a thick shavings bed (the entire stable covered, not just half!) and fed on double netted soaked and rinsed hay with bute or Danilon as required in a feed of speedi beet.

I definitely would not turn him out, even on short grass (which is usually richer than long, coarse grass) until the vet has x-rayed and expressly stated that laminitis is not your problem.

Good luck!