medium size feed chunks that can fit inside treat roller?

paddi22

paddi22

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I've to rehab a horse that has to stay in a sand paddock and keep moving as much as possible. I've a hay roller which is working well. also have a treat roller (pic here) I want to give feed in a few times during day. Im just conscious I don't want to be feeding small chunks of feed and have the horse potentially eat the sand while picking them up off surface. also don't want to be giving a lot of sugary treats/fruit/veg all day, if possible would like a high fibre style feed that is in chunks and will fit through the roller hole. she will be getting balancer and medication in one normal feed during day, but just want something healthy she can roll around and eat safely off the sand. any suggestions appreciated!Screenshot 2024-03-05 at 17.21.17.png
 
oh thats exactly the kind of thing I was thinking of, thanks so much! any other suggestions welcome so I can mix up what she gets
 
The Bailey’s high fibre nuggets are a good size but not suitable for ems types. They don’t put the nutritional value on the bag but I rang up and it was 17% combined sugar and starch ( this is going back a few years so I hope my memory serves me right). I now use thunderbrooks hay cobs instead which come in at just under 10%. They are slightly smaller and currently smaller still due to some changes in production but the bag says that is temporary. I did recently look at some enrichment ideas and someone was using a large dog kong filled with smaller feed like grass nuts- they put the kong in a large tray/ feed bowl so the horse had to wobble the kong with his nose to get the food out. That would prevent them eating sand too
 
Melandmary said:
The Bailey’s high fibre nuggets are a good size but not suitable for ems types. They don’t put the nutritional value on the bag but I rang up and it was 17% combined sugar and starch ( this is going back a few years so I hope my memory serves me right). I now use thunderbrooks hay cobs instead which come in at just under 10%. They are slightly smaller and currently smaller still due to some changes in production but the bag says that is temporary. I did recently look at some enrichment ideas and someone was using a large dog kong filled with smaller feed like grass nuts- they put the kong in a large tray/ feed bowl so the horse had to wobble the kong with his nose to get the food out. That would prevent them eating sand too
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oh thanks for the info on the sugar/starch. that's very handy to know.

great idea about the king, will give that a go, could see that working well.
 
I had looked into doing similar instead of treats but had read of some stories of horses choking so have not gone down that route. I put the Hilton Herbals in his treat ball now which he loves. They are rather expensive but they aren't a "food", he likes them, and I feel good about giving them to him.
 
ecb89 said:
These must be soaked
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From Baileys' website:
  • A small number of Natural Meadow Cobs can be fed dry, if given as treat, by hand, for example, otherwise we strongly recommend they are soaked before feeding.
I assumed that only small amounts would be used in a treat ball
 
I’ve just bought a huge tub of Coligone treats that are apparently low sugar/starch and can be used in treat balls. Might be worth looking at!
 
cauda equina said:
From Baileys' website:
  • A small number of Natural Meadow Cobs can be fed dry, if given as treat, by hand, for example, otherwise we strongly recommend they are soaked before feeding.
I assumed that only small amounts would be used in a treat ball
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They are quite big. I wouldn’t risk it
 
Pure feed treats or just plain pony nuts. I would be uber cautious though having had a horse who was rather poorly after ingesting sand.
 
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