how much hay?

zizz

zizz

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 January 2007
Messages
1,081
Visit site
Right guys this is aimed specifically at big cob owners. the owner of the 16hh shire cross at my yard has totally freaked that she is being fed a bale of hay a day and said she's to have no more than half a bale a day. bearing in mind that she is stabled 15 hours a day, out on gravel the rest with no hard feed and is a veteran is this in your opinion enough? (these are the smaller 3ft long bales btw). I personnally don't think this is enough, the 14.hh newforset x cob eats this a day so hows its supposed to keep a big girl like her going

ps shes not a good doer!
 
For a heavyweight horse of this height, I would suspect since you are using the short 3ft bales, the horse should be eating somewhere around 1 and a half bales to 2 bales each day.
 
I have two heavy horses (a 16.3 and a 17.2). Both are fed ad lib good quality hay. They easily eat a bale of hay each per day, plus hi fibre hard feeds (no cereals or molasses) and a balancer. They look in great condition with calm temperaments. Mine also go out in the field every day and pick at grass. I would think the shire x at your yard would easily need a bale per day - if she eats it all and is holding her weight, she obviously needs it! The only reason to cut her down would be if she is overweight.
 
definately the cost grounds, hays £2.50 a bale and shes moaning like mad about having to pay £20 a week livery. She moved from her old yard because YO was complaining that she wasn't looking after the horse properly!
 
[ QUOTE ]
definately the cost grounds, hays £2.50 a bale and shes moaning like mad about having to pay £20 a week livery. She moved from her old yard because YO was complaining that she wasn't looking after the horse properly!

[/ QUOTE ]

How long has she been at your yard and how is the horse looking? Are you the YO or another livery there??

So many questions
smile.gif
 
I would think that she would weigh at least 600kg and a rough rule of thumb is to feed 2% of bodyweight - as all her food intake is coming from the hay, then that amounts to at least 12kg of hay per day. Obviously if she is heavier than 600kg (and being shire cross she probably is) she will need more than that. If she is actually losing weight then she is best to have as much as she will eat.
 
been there about 6 weeks we are both liveries, I'm DIY she is too but she's supposed to help YO with housework for discount which shes done once. I do her horse in the mornings as a favour to YO while shes ill, who is a good friend. Apparantly she turned up at 8.30pm last night demanding to know who had been stealing her hay (I'm on haylage and the only other livery) and saying that the horse wasn't to be fed more than half a bale and that YO wasn't allowed to give her any treats - all the horses get an apple in the afternoon. went up this morning and was told this by upset YO then found very Sh**ty note saying not to feed horse, she could have one haynet in the evening.
The Horse was supposed to be for sale because she doesn't have the time for it but whether or not it is is another matter.
 
The way to get around this problem and it's one which I don't understand why more livery yards in England don't do this.........add all hay into the livery charges. Each horse is judged on it's size and build and then the price is set.
 
[ QUOTE ]
The way to get around this problem and it's one which I don't understand why more livery yards in England don't do this.........add all hay into the livery charges. Each horse is judged on it's size and build and then the price is set.

[/ QUOTE ] Which is great if you have a good YO, but a nightmare if not. I used to be at a yard with this policy and the YO went round at night removing hay from stables if he thought a horse had been given too much! Needless to say I didn't stay there long!
 
Ahh well you have to work the figures out on a 12 month basis like I do. In the winter it costs me to keep 25 horses on ad-lib hay and it covers their hard feed also......however I am the cheapest around for winter livery, but I am probably one of the most expensive for summer livery. I guarantee each livery that their horse will ALWAYS have sustenance, so even in the summer if we were to run out of grazing, the horses will always be topped up with hay.

I don't lose any customers as it would appear that I offer enough to keep my boarders 12 months a year.
 
Oh dear......
crazy.gif
. Some people should just not be doing this for a living - and I really wish they wouldn't as they give us good YO's a very bad name.
 
What about those livery clients that spoil it for the good ones?
There was a livery on our yard a few years ago who insisted that her horse had a 'fresh' haynet every morning even if the horse still had some left from the night before. Then when she came in the evening she would though whatever was left out of the two nets onto the muck heap and get more 'fresh'. All hay came from the same field and she didn't soak it so how was it any fresher?
crazy.gif

YO had a right problem with that one, eventually she went to torture some other poor YO
 
[ QUOTE ]
What about those livery clients that spoil it for the good ones?


[/ QUOTE ]

You "help" them find more suitable accommodation for their horses somewhere else.
wink.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top