stupid question about hay !!!!

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wistavon

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some of you may have read about robbie (when is it time to say goodbye) in vets forum . it has been suggested that i cut-up his hay so it is easier for him to eat. i set about this task this afternoon with my kitchen scissors(only thing i could find and you should see the blistors!!!!) anyway dear little robbie has cut hay too eat . but please someone tell me what they use. maybe i should get shears of some type or am i missing something really cheap and easy. my hay is good quality so dont want to buy bags of cut hay.god this makes me sound so thick but other than shears cant think what else.help!
 
why not get a bag of readigrass or graze-on? it should last him a long time, it's ready-chopped up small, very palatable. you could soak it first too if that makes it easier for him. (if you've not used it before, it is dried grass like hay, but it is dark green and smells much nicer than hay, and the horses love it)
 
Food processor?
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I really dont know to be honest, apart from the bags of readigrass etc, but they are pricey, espec this year.
 
What about one of the ordinary forage replacers? Most horses can eat Hi Fi Lite by the binful...mind you, palatable it ain't. But my golden oldie would eat Mollichaff Veteran Chaff til the cows come home...it's a short chop oat straw forage replacer and is packed full of mint and nettles and other antioxidants. Smells divine. £6-ish a big bag. You'd need to talk to the feed line to check its calorie content but is very palatable and I haven't met a horse yet that doesn't tuck in with gusto! You can damp it with water or with sugar/Speedi beet.
 
You'll be there forever with the scissors, either use a hay replacer i.e Hi Fi etc or you could chop up the hay using a garden shredder. Just put a large bag over the end & throw the hay in the other & it should work & fill the bag.
 
didnt think of the garden shreader and ive got one so think i will give that a go.thanks. robbie loves his hay and would be sad if he couldnt tuck into that. bit worried about some of the other hay replacers as he is a laminitic so will have to look into those a bit more. but thanks for suggestions god i did feel thick asking this but was suffering from brain strain at the time,what with the old boy not being well.
 
I remember trying to cut hay with scissors for my old mare who couldn't chew very well. I soon gave up after all the blisters and bought some sort of chaff. A chaff cutter would be ideal I suppose.
 
I had a laminitic veteran with poor teeth and I used Spiller's Happy Hoof as a hay replacer - it is Laminitis Trust approved and much easier than cutting up hay! Ponies seem to love it too.
 
not sure about cutting up the hay but just wondered if you have tried grass nuts as I have found they are great for older horses with eating problems
 
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