How much hay do you

[Sags_Deer]

Feed To your stabled horses
Mine have some in the field when they go out
Come in around 2.30 to hay on the floor
Hard feed around 4.30
Then a massive haynet around 8

 

[HappyHollyDays]

My two have breakfast at 6ish and then go out with half a large bale slice between them. In around midday to be ridden or walked out and back to the same amount on the floor of their stables. Left until 6pm when they get tea and two haynets to keep them going through the night. Some mornings there is a little bit left, some mornings it’s all gone. I suppose in all they get 1 1/2 slices of a large bale each per day plus a mug of Pure Easy and sloppy speedibeet. You can feel ribs on both of them.

 

[ownedbyaconnie]

My 14.1 connie gets about 6kg during winter (in from 6pm-7am) and in summer maybe 4kg (in from 8am to 5pm).

if I could get less hay to last the night during winter I would give less (she weighs probably about 360kg ish) but I prefer to give more and give it on the ground than double net as she naturally holds a lot of tension in her neck so doing everything possible to loosen her up!

 

[ycbm]

My 16.1 lightweight gelding eats over 10kg overnight 6 - 9. My PRE mare has to be restricted to 7kg and then has ad lib barley straw which she only picks at.

 

[Surbie]

Tubby 15.3 cob has 8kg soaked hay, all gone by morning and he is losing weight.

But I went up at 11pm last night for firework watch and saw it was all gone by then so I need to figure something better out. He's in 5-8.

I gave him some wet top chop zero tonight and he hoovered it up first before starting on the hay.I think it might be too tasty!

 

[Red-1]

Rigsby is on a strict diet. No grass whatsoever, arena turnout. 10kg hay (dry weight) soaked, in 4 nets to eke it out.

He also has a evening meal, I mug (dry volume) soaked Speedy Beet, with 1 large scoop Top Chop Zero, with a selection of vitamins etc.

He looks slim and well, gorgeous coat, plenty of energy but not hot.

If it gets any colder or he works harder, he will need a bot more hay as he is quite slim (by design) now. I wouldn't want him any slimmer.

15.1 cob, 15yrs, ex lami, ems.

 

[spotty_pony]

They are all ad-lib but basically they have two massive haynets each overnight and in the day they are out and we still have plenty of grass so they don't have any during the day.

 

[windand rain]

When in they used to have a big haynet but never ate it all now live out 24/7 and dont get hay at all still strip grazing into foggage about 2 meters x 3 meters per day do not close off behind so the field is getting bigger and the grass grow behind when it is warm enough. Might last a month then they will get a small amount of hay in a small holed net

 

[Cortez]

My smallish (15.1h) good doers get 8kg of hay a day in four feeds, if they are not on pasture at all.

 

[AdorableAlice]

Is there a formula or calculation to use that calculates haylage weight to hay ?

This years haylage is holding a lot more moisture than last years which was more like wrapped hay so far easier to weigh.

 

[Cortez]

Is there a formula or calculation to use that calculates haylage weight to hay ?

This years haylage is holding a lot more moisture than last years which was more like wrapped hay so far easier to weigh.

Not that I'm aware of, but perhaps using volume instead? I have three sizes of haynets and I know approximately what each one weighs (when not overstuffed), so I don't have to weigh them every single time.

 

[AdorableAlice]

Not that I'm aware of, but perhaps using volume instead? I have three sizes of haynets and I know approximately what each one weighs (when not overstuffed), so I don't have to weigh them every single time.

Thanks, I only weigh for one horse at the moment and she doesn't have haylage. I was just curious, probably impossible to answer because the moisture levels are so variable.

Four of my five do have an off switch so I can ad lib at this time of year. The fifth has no off switch and simply stuffs until she pops given the chance.

 

[milliepops]

I don't weigh it. In general they get as much as they want, always some left whenever I get there and I chuck any scraps into their bed to be picked at. The exception at the mo is the one on ulcer treatment which has to be done on an empty tum, so she runs out early morning for now.

 

[PurBee]

Is there a formula or calculation to use that calculates haylage weight to hay ?

This years haylage is holding a lot more moisture than last years which was more like wrapped hay so far easier to weigh.

ive got a moisture tester so waxyfeeling heavyish haylage is around 40-50% moisture - basically i double the amount theyd get of hay.
Although the above doesnt work if its tetraploid ryegrass - its so rich nutritionally, proteins and carbs that feeding double hay forage weight they should get will possibly mean fat bloated horses. Ive always found feeding just ryegrass tricky, they never looked right on it, and they look fab on mixed grasses.
If your haylage is mixed grasses, you shouldnt have the issue of fattiness by doubling up the weight...but just to be cautious id start with 1.5 times the normal weight you give, and then just see how theyre looking and lessen it or increase if needed.

By volume, my small 40ltr trug holds 1kg of hay, packed fairly loose. The 50% moisture haylage of 1kg weight is half filling the trug. This is ryegrass or timothy haylage, volume is half.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

My younger horse chunky 16.2hh gets 5kg of overnight soaked hay in a small holed haynet as they’re coming in quite early around 4-5pm he also has 2kg of haylage which he doesn’t normally get. He has a small feed of Pink Mash and chaff normally fed around 6.30-7am and around 5pm. If not going straight out he’ll have a small net of hay or haylage whilst getting ready to ride.

Old boy has two big feeds of Saracen Releve, Equi-jewel, micronised linseed, and a large scoop conditioning cubes. He’s not been eating his hay very well so I’ve just swapped to haylage at 5kg per night and gradually increasing it as I can’t afford wastage as he has a tendency to completely mix left over forage it into his bed. But he’s eating it which he wasn’t with the hay.

Grass is still ok on current paddock so not feeding hay during day.

 

[Boulty]

Fergus is overweight & being a Highland has no off switch left to his own devices! He has 4.5-5kg of hay overnight (he gets a bit more when it's freezing) either split between 2 small trickle nets / Nibbleze nets or 1 larger net & a hayball. He's in from about 6ish til about 7ish. No hay fed in field due to one of the others he's out with having special requirements. He normally has a small amount left in morning & doesn't seem overly hungry. (Well no more than normal!) Of course if I floor fed him he'd probably eat an entire bale in a night & be massively obese hence the trickle nets to regulate him!

 

[Lady Jane]

You don't all mention weight of hay? My 16hh 7yr WB (out of work) gets 16kg/day split into 3 small mesh nets to try to make it last. Minimal feed (coffee cup grass nuts split in to two) to mix with balancer. Gets turn out but virtually no grass to eat at the moment.
In the summer with overnight turnout and good grass will get maybe 3kg/day - again split to make it last.
He is an eating machine.......

 

[meleeka]

My 16hh gets a Shires black and red net full up overnight. I don’t weigh it but I’d estimate around 15kg. My 14hh cob gets around 8kg with another small holed net to last the night and the smaller ones get around 6kg. They get around 5kgs each in the morning which is put on the hard standing in nets. I might actually weigh them and see if my estimates are wildly out, but they all look ok weight wise.

 

[Pinkvboots]

In this cold weather I tend to give them ad lib hay so 2 big full nets if they are in overnight, no idea of weight as I don't weigh but they are heavy.

 

[Shysmum]

Ad lib hay, via shires large haynets. Not put on any weight so far.

 

[Kamikaze]

Robin gets as much as he wants. He has 2 big nets and I make sure he has some left. When I measured how much he eats it is about 13kg. He is also getting about 2 kg on the floor. Not strictly allowed but he likes it and was dropping a bit of weight. He is 16.2hh 650kg and when worked it out is it just slightly over the 2%. That is in 3pm to 9am. He will also get a small amount in the field now everything is frozen and covered in snow. He is also getting 3 meals of conditioning fiber and linseed as he was a) dropping weight and b) being treated for ulcers so I needed something in tummy before going out and lunch as a top up. He has gained again so I have stopped the linseed apart from a little at night.

 

[PapaverFollis]

My routine has all gone to pot with the weather causing ice surfaces so my free range ponies are now in stables overnight and getting carefully led out to the fields for day time turnout! Not done this for a while.

Current haying routine for the big dollops (15.1 chunk and 16.2 chunkier)... First thing they get about 1kg with breakfast. Not very precise. I'm not very precise in the mornings 😴

Turnout until mid-afternoon/sunset time.

Come in to mooch pen with left over hay mixed with straw from beds spread out in field shelter to nibble. But mostly they snooze at this point.

5pm ish. Into stables for tea and approx 4kg hay.

10pm ish. Another 4kg hay put in.

Planning to do this for a week and see what happens weight wise. Been sorting out the routine for a few days and noone has ballooned yet and this lot do balloon overnight if they get too much!

They are bedded on oat and barley straw so they have ad-lib forage. Just not hay.

26 year old Welsh A gets a 4kg net at 5pm and still has some left in the morning. But I think she really likes the straw!