Safer alternatives to hay nets?

[Ample Prosecco]

I have always hated haynets and usually feed from the floor. But with Dolly needing restricted rations she has had a trickle net. It is tied higher than waist height with the bottom well clear of the floor and the holes are tiny. But somehow she managed to get her hoof OVER the net and through the strings at the top. The net is still full so she did it last night and was trapped all night.

Goodness knows how she got her leg up that high. She does get cross with it for slowing her down and I have seen her head butt it but not paw at it, or rear up on top of it!

She seems ok - not lame. But she must have been stiff, sore and scared. I don't want to use nets again. Or do I assume she won't do that again? Do horses learn from that kind of experience? I assume not as I don;t think they reason that way.

Hay feeders that slow down eating cost well over £200 which seems to be taking the horse tax to absurd levels. Any ideas. And vibes for no lasting damage please......

 

[Kahlua]

You could look at a hay pillow (something like the below), if she’s not shod? Otherwise I’ve seen the Haygain foragers and similar for sale at reasonable prices on Facebook marketplace and eBay.

https://www.equus.co.uk/products/elico-dawlish-hay-cushion

 

[FestiveG]

We bit the bullet and bought three of the bins when regulators, they are expensive but safe for use in the shelter provided they are firmly attached so they can't end up outside

 

[Boulty]

Look into nibbleze nets. They have a single string rather than a loop making it much less likely a horse can get tangled in them.

If unshod they can also be used on the floor like a hay pillow.

Alternatively a hay feeder with mesh or some kind of grille on the top to slow her down?

 

[Lammy]

I can say for mine at least that he has never learned his lesson from getting trapped in a haynet. So he is banned from having them. Thankfully doesn’t need his hay restricting so we just use a nosebagz corner hay feeder.
My friend designed a wooden hay feeder for her horse with a net on top which dropped down as the hay was eaten? I think she looked at buying something similar but they were quite expensive!

 

[Shilasdair]

Easy fix - tie your haynet to a loop of baler twine (small bale stuff) or one of the break loops for tying up.
That way your horse will just break it, and be free.

 

[Littlebear]

I have a hay bar (cost £40) and tie the net so it hangs inside x

 

[Xmasha]

I can say for mine at least that he has never learned his lesson from getting trapped in a haynet. So he is banned from having them. Thankfully doesn’t need his hay restricting so we just use a nosebagz corner hay feeder.
My friend designed a wooden hay feeder for her horse with a net on top which dropped down as the hay was eaten? I think she looked at buying something similar but they were quite expensive!

Same here. I removed all haynets after Pip got stuck, she is the worst for getting stuck and most certainly hasnt learned her lesson. We now have the nozebags but shes learnt that she can easily pull it off the wall aswell. But at least she cant get stuck.

 

[Willow1306]

You can get square, flat nets that attach to the wall via 4 x clips onto tie rings, so no string. Worth a look.

 

[SEL]

I have mine tied to half strands of baling twine since I had to cut out a small pony who got her leg stuck - she didn't learn her lesson either and it happened a few times before owners decided to feed from floor despite restricted rations.

So long as the twine is thin enough it will snap if they get stuck. I've had a couple on the floor in the morning and I think that's possibly from itching against them and rug buckles getting caught because there didn't seem any other damage. I get very cross if I'm away and yard staff tie directly to the metal rings.

Alternatively we set up a corner hay bar and put a net in that for one that needed to eat with head down after physio found a neck tightness, but was too much of a pig to have the hay loose.

A friend got her OH to build a wooden hay rack and puts nets inside that. Still slows them down but they eat in a better position than a net.

Hope Dolly is OK. Finding the small pony made me relieved to have sharp scissors nearby and means I always know where the decent penknife is nowadays

 

[Identityincrisis]

I have a hay bar with a tie up ring fixed to the wall at the bottom, i put the haynet in 'upside down ' and tie off at the bottom

 

[SoundTheBugle]

I fill a small holed net and have replaced the string with a heavy duty carabiner clip so there's nothing to get hooves stuck in, then leave it on the floor like a giant football. Only suitable for a barefoot horse, though.

 

[splashgirl45]

not sure if this link will work but looks like it might work, not cheap but not as bad as the easigrazer which is over £200

https://www.jsw4jumps.co.uk/shop/yard-stable/feed-storage/tear-drop-hay-corner-feeder/

 

[ycbm]

I replace strings with pram hooks, (huge aluminium carabiners) sold on ebay. Then you have a choice of hooking them to the wall either very low or higher, or just leaving them loose on the floor, as long as the holes are too small to get a hoof through.
.

 

[hoofprints1994]

Hope your pony is ok! Definitely a scary freak accident, though I have heard of it happening before. I always tie nets to bailing twine just in case as I'm paranoid!

Lots of good suggestions already. Is she shod? Filling a big trug with hay then putting a haynet over it and tying securely could be a good way to feed from the floor whilst still using the net, and as it is over the bucket there shouldn't be anything to get caught up in once the net is empty. Obviously only safe for an unshod horse though so sorry if that doesn't apply.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

I could cry. She is sore and the leg is a bit swollen. No lameness though so just cold hosing ++++ at the moment. The net was already tied to baler twine but it was obviously too strong. There's always something to worry about! Laminitis if she's too fat. Ulcers if she is left too long between haynets. And freak accidents on nets! She is shod all round. I think I will invest in a box of some kind. Cheaper than the vet anyway.

 

[HufflyPuffly]

Can you feed on the ground and mix with straw so adlib isn't adlib calories?

I cannot use haynets with mine either but even Topaz self regulates on ad-lib (she was a hoover when we got her), I've tried most alternatives but none have been very successful where shoes and daft horses are concerned...

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Any straw or special, edible straw?

 

[Ample Prosecco]

not sure if this link will work but looks like it might work, not cheap but not as bad as the easigrazer which is over £200

https://www.jsw4jumps.co.uk/shop/yard-stable/feed-storage/tear-drop-hay-corner-feeder/

This looks safe but I think she'd eat the hay very fast. It looks easy to get at. x

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have played around with clips etc with the help of the YO to see what we can rig up. But no arrangement looks foolproof. If she can rear and land on the net, then she could land on anything tied to a wall however you do it. So I have thinned the twine and tied the net to that- though if she does break the twine and the net falls there is the risk of her feet getting stuck! Not through the rtiny holes but the gap at the top. It feels impossible. So some sort of box/tub I think is the only way really. At £290.00...... Ouch! At least I have just had a birthday and everyone gave me money 'for the horses' (they know we too well!) I was hoping for bling but hey ho!

 

[brighteyes]

Swing the net from the rafters on a single 'rope' or chain, with the baling string breakaway somewhere in the fixing.. Harder to eat from and impossible to land on as it will swing out of the way.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Just bought an easigrazer. £290 for an elaborate plastic dustbin. Ouch. I'll now just pretend that never happened and pay with my eyes closed.

 

[Not_so_brave_anymore]

Are you already soaking the hay? Adlib soaked hay is working okish for my laminitis prone and ulcer prone mare (but I'm sure someone will be along in a minute to tell me that she'll get colic from dumping wet hay directly onto the floor!)

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

We use EAzigrazers and supplement the hay with plain oat straw chaff. Sadly atm there is no plain chaff to be had.

 

[Not_so_brave_anymore]

Just seen your update! Ouch on the price, but defo the safest option.

 

[splashgirl45]

for those who use baler twine, it is extremely strong and unlikely to break, you need to split it to less strands. i only used 3 strands when tying my horse up and it held just enough but if they pulled back it broke before the headcollar..