soaked vs steamed hay

curio

curio

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Is steamed hay better than soaked for a horse with a slight cough?

When steamed is it wet all the way through or just slightly damp?

Also if shook out are there still small bits flying about?

At the moment i have 1 on soaked hay due to his slight cough but steaming would be easier especially in the winter
we did make a steamer with a wallpaper stripper and wheelie bin it does 2 nets at a time but the hay still seemed quite dry in the middle of the net and really damp on the outside but it was hot all the way through his cough was also still slightly there so i gave up and started soaking it

if fed dry hay he tries to dunk it in his automatic water drinker making a total mess
so what would you do for him haylage is not an option as it causes him to scour very badly
thanks
 
I've only used a commercial steamer and that was great. It had the advantage of not making the hay nets heavy to handle like soaking does. Perhaps you didn't steam for long enough. Try a longer time or with a home made steamer doing it twice.
 
Back in the 70/80s , we used to seam the hay . It smelt so lovely we used to boil pans and kettles and use a metal dustbin . Soaked hay I do 1 hr hay is submerged . A quick spray with water will only mildly dampen it so still could have pores or microbes to irritate the cough. I would say get dustbin or plasters bath and soak it properly.
 
Steamed and soaked hay both help reduce coughing but you also need to look at the stable environment, ammonia is the worse culprit for most horses. How ventilated is the stable? What bedding is being used and does this soak up the urine or let it sit on the floor? Can you smell urine when you enter the stable?

If your horse doesn't need to reduce calorie intake then steaming would be better to swell the spores, just make sure that you shake up the hay well before putting into the net, loose hay steams more evenly than packed hay. Otherwise look at soaking in warm water for 10-15 mins.
 
stable is very well ventilated and i use shavings he wees all in one place so is removed every day
he needs the extra calories as seems to drop weight easily but is still maturing
when you steam your hay is it wet all the way through as mine still seemed to have dry spots even when done for over an hour but he much prefers the steamed to the soaked hay
maybe a kettle of boiling water poured in the middle of the nets then steaming it would work
 
Hi, i have an old horse with a slight cough & have also struggled with heavy nets of soaked hay :-( I was given this simple tip by a friend that has been doing it for years: As suggested already, i fluff the hay apart as i put it in the net, then put it into an old plastic feed bag, i then pour two kettles of boiling water over the hay in the bag & roll the top down. I leave it for about 20-60 mins & turn the bag over it if i remember. If i want to feed it after 20 mins i then fill the bag with cold water to cool the hay down. It seems to work for me & the old horse is happy & maintaining weight nicely. Good luck.
 
If your hay is still dry i the middle you may not be steaming for long enough or have too much hay being steamed at once. We normally soak hay but when the weather is bad we steam in a dustbin with a steam stripper. We now have a rack at the bottom of the dustbin for the haynet to sit on and this seems to ensure that the steam gets better distributed. We only steam a single haynet at a time. One haynet, steamed through, takes about 20-30 mins.
 
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I use a home made steamer, with a timer plug so it switches on before I get to the yard. It steams for an hour then sits in the steamer for another whilst I muck out/ride etc.
For a messy 'dunker' I always place a separate bucket by their haynet so they can dunk away without making their drinker messy!
 
yep im doing 2 nets as i decided the big cob could have his done as a prevention against coughing
both nets are steamed for an hour the idea is great as ive set it up with a timer so the hay is always ready to feed when needed the horses love to eat it and chose it over dry and soaked
i gave him a dunking bucket before but he just threw it around his stable or stood in it and broke it
this one throws his feed bucket at you when hes finished with it
and plays in the water to make a mess

ill try steaming it again as it was so much easier than the soaked nets. will try for over an hour and 1 net at a time
thank you
 
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