How much hay to give a horse on box rest?

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LouiseG

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My horse is on a couple of weeks box rest at the moment with a leg injury. He is on full livery and is getting I think about 3 large haynets throughout the day from the staff, at night time when I arrive I have been giving him another 2 full ones before I leave as otherwise he would be standing all night without any hay at all. As long as he is munching he seems to settle, otherwise the cabin fever sets in... He weighs around 580.

On that basis what would be a good guideline as to how much hay he should be getting? I dont want him putting on weight, nor do I want him going out of his mind with boredom so any advice would be appreciated!! He is also getting increasingly grumpy and bit me last night for the first time ever!! We are not enjoying box rest!!

Thanks!
 
I gave ad lib haylage to my horse for the 3 months he was box resting. If you're worried about weight, could you perhaps use a trickle net or something to slow down his eating?
 
Hay : Ad-lib.

I would hang several nets (one on each wall) around his stall so that he has to move around a little to get them (presuming that he isn't tied up because of his injury?)

Boredom:

Also, stall 'toys', put a swede in his manger, throw some sliced up carrots/apples etc around his bed.

Give him a feed ball with grass nuts in it.

Is he spooky? If not, stuff a paper feed sack really tightly with carrots/apples/treats/grass nuts mixed in with hay, a lot of horses will spend ages beating up a sack to get food.

Pick him some grass.

Box rest sucks.

Is there no way he can have a stall sized pen made so that he can get out and pick a bit of grass without having the space to go loopy and damage himself?
 
You could soak the hay to reduce calories and feed ad lib if you're worried about weight gain, also a bucket of low calorie chaff can add variety.

If you can't soak it then 11/2 - 2 % bodyweight in small holed nets. :)
 
My 6yr old is currently on box rest following a bad cut to his hock.From experience I've found it's the owner who suffers more from the box rest most horses deal with it after a few days with no problem.

Box rest is box rest - don't turn out in small areas as they are more likely to be silly and you are making them walk to the paddock - the idea behind box rest is to imobilise the horse as much as possible.

Milo is currently getting two thirds of a bale of meadow hay daily plus free access to a mineral block. Picture of him is after 23 days box rest
Day23Yardedfor21days2.jpg


and the wound - the box rest has enabled me to keep the wound clean and reduce the movement of the wound edges
Day 1 and Day 23
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Day2311Aug2012.jpg
 
Thanks so much for all your comments!! Some brilliant ideas!!

Yesterday I ordered a Trickle Net, I also bought a Likit treat ball which lasted about 2 minutes before he kicked it and it broke!! I also bought a boredom buster lick so hopefully that will last longer than 2 minutes! Have stuffed some carrots in his haynets which he is enjoying!

Tnavas - oh what a nasty cut your boy has. So glad to see the improvement in his leg, these things take so long to get better...

Agree that box rest is box rest. He is not allowed to be walked in hand and even the few steps to a patch of grass might be enought to make him exciteable and if he goes loopy then all the recouperation will be for nothing.

Thanks again!! x
 
My lad had as lib soaked hay in a trickle net when he was on box rest. I had started him on 2% bodyweight in hay as per vet instructions but it was going exceedingly quickly and that left him stressed and box walking - which was not good for the laminitis recovery at the time.
 
I give as much soaked as he'll eat. He's 14.2hh, when he was last on box rest it worked out as around 4-5 per 24hrs. I would put 1 up in the morning and the yard would out another up around 2 ish, then he'd get around 3 (size dependent) for over night. All double netted to slow him down a bit, he rarely ran out.
 
Tnavas said:
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Box rest is box rest - don't turn out in small areas as they are more likely to be silly and you are making them walk to the paddock - the idea behind box rest is to imobilise the horse as much as possible.
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If the 'pen' is the same size as a stable what difference does it make, apart from usually being beneficial to the horse?

I am talking about pens attached to stables, or the horse actually living out in a covered pen here. Perhaps not always practical in some yards, or some climates, I understand that.

As always, every horse and his injuries has specific requirements and has to be treated as an individual and what works for one will not work for others.
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Unfortunately it is a minute or so walking to an area that could potentially be penned off for him, the other horses though are about a 5 minute walk to their field so that wouldn't be possible. I think mentally though an area where he could munch grass along side his chums would definitely be beneficial but unfortunately not an option :(
 
Enfys - unfortunately some horses the moment you take them out of the 'box' they hype up and the beneficial effects of the confinement is lost - even one hoon around the small yard can undo all the good work.

For two days Milo was walked a couple of hundred metres to a grass yard, his bandage would not stay in place properly as once in the yard he would spin around as there was too much stimulation.

AS long as they have plenty to see of usual yard activity then they tend to be OK. It's the owners that get stressed with the confinement.

When Tnavas bruised his pedal bone he was confined for two months and I was most surprised how he dealt with it being one of those horses that has to do laps of the paddock when anything changed. When he was finally turned out into the very big round pen he was sedated and still managed a buck or too. He enjoyed the constant attention of staff when boxed.
 
It's funny with my boy as he is good as gold for the staff and then I arrive and he is like ENTERTAIN ME!! And he doesn't leave me alone for a minute, think he is even fed up with haynets by night time as he goes out of his way to be a cheeky little monkey! I definitely think they are more resilient and adaptable than us!
 
For more ENTERTAINMENT! cut nettles and thistles and put in one of those big rubber buckets, he can kick the bucket around and then munch on the greenery, the thistles take a while longer to eat as care must be taken! Nettles are very good for horses.

I have also heard that a nice big branch of gorse hung from a suitable place is fun. Apples sliced up and put in the water bucket encourages drinking ( and splashing). All these things give him changes from just a "boring old haynet".
 
Rosie is on box rest at the moment, she gets a morning haynet, an afternoon haynet and 2 haynets over night. She also has her feeder ball with spillers high fibre cubes always available. And two feeds a day. Shes really not enjoying it at the moment as she has an eye ulcer she has to be shut in the dark but I found the best way to keep her calm is to distract her!
 
Tnavas said:
Enfys - unfortunately some horses the moment you take them out of the 'box' they hype up and the beneficial effects of the confinement is lost - even one hoon around the small yard can undo all the good work.

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Oh yes, I am quite aware of that, I have actually nursed a fair few horses , haven't killed or crippled one to date. I am not such a numpty that I don't appreciate that.

What did I say in my previous post? Oh yes - As always, every horse and his injuries has specific requirements and has to be treated as an individual and what works for one will not work for others. Think that just about covers what you so kindly pointed out :)
 
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My pony is on box rest due to broken splint bone and vet said he should have 6 kilos of soaked hay over 24 hours which to me just did not seem enough to keep him entertained. He is on fully livery at a rehab yard because he would not settled on box rest on his normal yard he normally lives out and is not a big fan of stables and jumped out after one night in.

At the rehab yard is has a grid up and seems more settled they are small gang of them all on box rest so they have company and they are giving him ad lib non soaked hay because he refused to eat the soaked hay and also he is not eating that much anyway and we want him to stay calm, turns out he is not a great hay consumer though he is very greedy for grass. He does seem to like his salt lick though. He also has a treat ball.

For your horse you are probably looking at about 10 kilos of hay in 24 hours if you want to maintain his weight. What hard feed is he having could you swap him to a low cal balancer and then you might be able to up his hay ration?
 
Some posters are not seeing the real picture or the real problems that a box resting horse faces. Forget the boredom, take the human feelings away and concentrate on keeping the gut mobile. Soak the hay and keep it available at all times. Double net/trickle net if the horse is a greedy feeder. Old hay or even poor quality (not mouldy) hay, well soaked, will keep the horse chewing, the gut mobile and the bowel working.

OP, make a point of knowing how much muck your horse produces and keep a very careful eye on what is produced each day, it is a crucial guide to a box resting horse's well being and a very early warning that all may not be well.

It does not matter if the horse loses top line or muscle mass, it's a fixable problem when he returns to work. The picture is of a horse after 50 weeks in a small barn. He was fed adlib well soaked hay, bran mashes and small amounts of soaked pony nuts plus a balancer. His top has completely gone.
Leoretirestoday772012005.jpg
 
Alice has hit the nail on the head, it's all about the gut.
You have to ensure he never runs out for prolonged periods, you'll have ulcers to deal with as well as anything else.
 
Pale Rider said:
Alice has hit the nail on the head, it's all about the gut.
You have to ensure he never runs out for prolonged periods, you'll have ulcers to deal with as well as anything else.
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I have been to hell and back with that horse in the picture. He was a very successful M/W show hunter until being seriously injured. He has now gone into a tiny paddock with a shelter. For anyone about to turn out after a very long time inside, don't think it will be plain sailing. The change in environment has massive effects on the horse's system, even though it was carefully managed. In 3 weeks he has had a chill with a temperature of 104, gut pain and 2 septic feet.

Forget what your horse may be thinking - he isn't, he lives in real time, he isn't thinking -'god, I've been in here x weeks'. Just concentrate on his physical well being, the big one being his gut mobility.
 
Enfys said:
Oh yes, I am quite aware of that, I have actually nursed a fair few horses , haven't killed or crippled one to date. I am not such a numpty that I don't appreciate that.

What did I say in my previous post? Oh yes - As always, every horse and his injuries has specific requirements and has to be treated as an individual and what works for one will not work for others. Think that just about covers what you so kindly pointed out :)
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No need to get defensive and rude
 
When mine was on box rest he had an unlimited supply. His net was huge but he had access to it all day and would eat at it as and when he liked :) plus his treat ball...
 
At the moment he is getting a haynet at 7.30am, 1pm, 2 haynets at 4.30pm and another 1 at 7.30pm I think! Does that sound about right?! He also gets a morning feed and an afternoon feed of chaff/supplements/danilon. I've ordered a trickle net. Treat ball he destroyed within 5 minutes from kicking it about his stable! Does all that sound about right?
 
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