PLEASE HELP! Straw eating monster!

[Kellys Heroes]

We are putting a new bale of straw down every day for both our horses and as you can imagine, it's getting expensive!!
The minute we put it down, they're both nose deep, munching away. One is on hay and the other on haylage - both eat their nets eventually, but don't finish it sometimes - probably too full up on their bed! Both also have Happy Hoof twice a day.
And of course, what goes in....must come out...meaning twice as much mess!

Is there anything I can do to stop them eating their straw?? We have our straw made and delivered by our yard, so changing to a different straw isn't an option as is shavings as they are both so messy on shavings and that's even more costly.

K x

 

[Spendtoomuch]

mine likes to munch on straw but only fresh new straw, so I put the new stuff down first then the clean piles from muck out on top, also move banks to one side and put new bank then older on top off that! As long as you muck out properley the stuff on top is still clean but he doesn't get to new stuff, works for mine.

 

[mcnaughty]

Change to a bed they don't eat ;-)

On a more serious note - do not put anything on the bed to "put them off" eating it - that is unless you would be happy having the same stuff put on your food! It is utter madness to put jeyes and similar on a bed and just hoping the horse is sensible enough not to eat it ....

 

[Littlelegs]

Make an absolutely massive bed. First night they'll eat some, but by the second night (especially if you mix it all up well) it won't be quite as tasty & so on. So you basically just put loads of fresh on once a week instead of daily.

 

[teamsarazara]

Also agree with littlelegs I generally find just the first night they eat loads but if you mix in with the old they stop eating it pretty quickly.

 

[heebiejeebies]

There are plenty more bedding options other than straw or shavings!

 

[lpeacock]

FLYSPRAY! i do agree also mixing in old with new, but trust me fly spray works a treat!!!

 

[Tiarella]

The amount you're spending on straw, you may as well be on shavings/wood pellets.

 

[JillA]

Deep litter - or at least don't be so good at mucking out! If it a little soiled they won't eat it.
On the other hand, it is keeping them full of fibre, which isn't fattening and is way cheaper than keeping them supplied with hay or haylage

 

[Fransurrey]

Agree with Jill. If it's oat or barley straw, then I'd just put loads in and let em fill their boots. Was thinking of doing this with mine earlier this week, but it's true that they don't eat it after a day or so, haven't seen mine scoffing it anyway.

 

[Whoopit]

I've got one bed nibbler. He's gets a bale on a Saturday and thats it. If he eats it all and has nothing to cosy to sleep on, TOUGH ***KING LUCK! If my other can still have a huge bed with one bale then i'm not killing myself so he can eat a massive net of haylage and his bed. He can just go do one!

 

[noblesteed]

Mine's been eating his barley straw all winter. I've tried deep bedding, mixing soiled in with clean, less bedding, spraying it with left-over fly spray etc... Every morning the banks have been sifted through and the best stuff is gone.
I don't mind though, its included in livery costs and means he doesn't run out of forage at night. He will tuck into his straw before his hay. He's lost weight this winter (he's been overweight) so I am not too worried. I'd rather he munched straw than got bored and started doing worse!

 

[Kellys Heroes]

Haha thanks for the replies!

I'd never put anything on it to put them off 'cause whilst Pebbles would probably turn her nose up, Kelly would just eat and eat and she's got enough problems at it is

We do like having them on straw, I'll try mixing the bed in with some of the 'old' bankings tomorrow and see what happens then. They are generally deep littered but I must admit lately everything seems to be being taken out, not sure how that's come about!

K x

 

[Beau jangles]

Mine used to eat it all the time . I mixed up a spray bottle of vinegar , lemon juice and water and sprayed the clean straw , worked great and after about a week he got the idea and stopped eating it !

 

[curio]

i would just give up one of mine can clear a 6inch deep bed with a bale of hay in a night he even eats the soiled straw burying the fresh doesnt work and spraying just adds flavour, shavings, hemp etc hes too wet and will go through 4 bales a week
so he now gets 2 chaff bags of straw weighing 20lbs from a round bale and eight lbs of haylage at 12pm to see him through the night on mats and its all gone by 8am hje also gets 3 more nets through the day of 6 to 8 lbs and he still eats everything he just never stops or has an off button hes been like this all his life ive had him from 6 moths old hes now 16 yrs and everyday his stable is swept out at least twice often 4 times this year thogh ive rationed his hay and he is nicely losing the exess weight i have known him finish a 5ft round of hay/ hayledge given free access by himself in 7 days