Soaked hay

[Lancelot]

My chap, when last weigh taped, was 530kg. At 2% forage he's getting 10.5kg hay per day.

If the hays soaked for 12 hours could I feed more than 2%? Does anyone know how much more if so?

He is fine weight wise but I wouldn't want him to put anymore on, just want to extend the time the hay lasts!

 

[Fruitcake]

Sorry, don't know what % more but have you tried an 'Elimanet'? I got one a few weeks ago for my horse to use overnight. It's basically a haynet with vertical strings added to make it last longer. Works so much better than double netting. My horse always has some left in the morning now.

 

[Lancelot]

Thanks Fiona36, i'll Google that now!

 

[abercrombie&titch]

could you mix it with a bit of oat straw?..... that stuff is like celery (takes more calories to chew than it contains!!) i feed it with well soaked hay and have never encountered any problems, just happy ponies with plenty to chomp on!

 

[Lancelot]

Ah ok, oat straw sounds possible. Is that quite palatable?

 

[abercrombie&titch]

Well my fatty eats it very happily.... that said she eats anything that stays still long enough for her to hoover up I guess if she was a fussy feeder she wouldn't be prone to such fatness!!! I know some people worry about it giving them colic as its quite dry, but feeding it with soaked hay probably helps... I mix a section of straw in with 3 sections of soaked hay in a net, so to be honest its probably damp too by the time she eats it - it seems to fill her up too, she'll eat, stop and snooze, then eat again if she has a mixed net, but if she just has hay she won't stop eating til the net is empty!