# For those who feed round bales how long do they last??



## α CMa (Dec 5, 2018)

Wow. That's crazy!

When my barn had six horses, we used round bales in those hay hut feeders. It lasted about thirty days. We only needed about three or four round bales for fall and winter. However, they had a lot of pasture and were all getting grain twice daily, if that makes a difference (?). Five were easy-keepers. One was a hard keeper TB (not to stereotype).


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

LOL My husband put out the last of last years round bales for the cows last month, just to get rid of them ahead of the new hay coming in. Okay, I know you're asking about horses, but the cows... we have 15 cows, a bull, and five calves... ate an entire round bale in about 15 hours.


This after he muttered: They won't eat it. Don't know why I'm putting it out... we still have grass.


Yeah. They ate it.


For Trigger and Supes, a round bale lasts about three weeks, but Supes isn't much on hay these days. For the five in the 40 acre pasture, a bale lasts a little over a week, and that's with feed every evening. Pretty much all they do is stand around and eat hay all day.


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

1100# average. Four horses. 12 days with a nylon slow-feed net. 

It's been single digits most nights. Teens to 30s during the day. Timothy and native grass mix.


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

I can get 3 to 4 weeks out of one for my six horses BUT... I put it in the barn and remove the netting, then I peal the AM and PM feedings and serve them in piles. I don't allow them to stand in, lay in, poop in, and pee in my hay....


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## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

When I had my two quarter horses by themselves, they would eat a 900-pound round bale in roughly 2 weeks.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

1000lb average. Two easy keeper drafts 3 weeks. 3 quarters and 1 draft that are fed off the bale - no access 10 days to 2 weeks depending on temps. 2 drafts and 2 quarters - 7 to 10 days depending on temps. 2 drafts on 10 acres - 30 days.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

All get some sort of feed either a small amount to carry supps once a day up to some fed a full serving 2x a day. It depends on hard or easy keeper and if any pasture is available.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Length of time can be shorter for a type of grass they like to longer for a grass they don't like.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

We get about 2 weeks off of ours that weigh about 1100 lbs for three horses, but we don't free-feed--- we stand the bales on-end in the barn aisle and 'unroll' them and feed by hand. If we put them out to free-feed, they go through one in about 10 days with a slow-feed net, less without. When it's not cold or they have access to pasture, a bale will last 3-4 weeks.

Neighbors with 18 horses feed four half-ton rounds a week, no nets. Friend with two horses goes through a bale every 2 weeks. He uses slow-feed nets or they mow through a bale in four days.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Also, if your horses were thin going into winter, they will need to eat more to stay warm and gain weight at cold temps. That could be why they seem so hungry-- especially your paint. When I had several horses, I put the bale in the middle of the round pen in a feeder, and ran each group of horses on for a couple of hours twice a day, and when I ran each bunch back off before letting the next on, I'd fork hay they pulled out of the feeder over the fence so the group had a snack during the hours they were off the bale. It worked well, and may be an option if you don't want to fork it off and feed by hand.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Guess i can hope they slow down their eating of hay. There is no way to block off hay bale and let horse's into eat on it, just wouldn't work with current setup. They aren't gaining much weight black is the same pally lost some according to weight tape. So not going to restrict hay if it's 4 bales a month guess that's what they need. sounds like most are having their bales last longer than what my bales last. 

Not making a mess of it even though it's not netted. Black gets 6 lbs of feed daily pally 3lbs dailey plus hay,neither are fat pictures aren't real accurate, being horse's are fluffed up with winter coats. I was curious how long big bales were lasting other people's horses. A picture of what's left of hay bale was put out last thursday evening.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

I'm doing round bales putting my horses and my neighbors together on one and the other one I have for 2 others of mine who are not permitted free-choice.
I have mine gated off...so open the gate and give them 3 solid hours of nothing but gorging...take them off and close the gate.
Do allow access again for 1 hour mid day...
Then when I come in from work my chore is to go out and clean up the ripped apart and left on the ground loose hay...enough that I can feed my 2 enough loose hay now to last them for 4 hours of gorging at night...
If they were still on their pasture they would eat about the same amount as they have to work to graze where hay in front of them they just chow down on.
My horses are _not_ losing, in fact the one is gaining weight, the other is easily maintaining.
I will not do free-choice as it wastes it when they pull it off, drop it on the ground then step on , pee-on, poop-on and they aren't there long enough to try to sleep on it yet.
Covered every night with a large tarp to protect it as it sits behind my barn without shelter...when it rains the horses are fed square bales.
My last round roll, 1100 pounds when baled _{less once it sits from rolling}_ lasted me 4 1/2 weeks and no waste, none makes it a good choice but a lot of work for me to keep that no-waste thing going.
When my pastures are actively growing my horses have access for 10 - 12 hours a day at most so not much different than what feeding hay gives them.
I have no ulcer issues or health concerns...
I tried the free-choice and nearly lamed my horse he got so fat gorging.
My other guy who is harder to keep weight on is gaining with what I'm doing currently...go figure.
I've been able to cut-back a small amount on their feed and not have weight loss so something is agreeing with them I'm doing.:smile:

How much waste on the ground do you have...loss?
What kind of hay are you feeding and are you sure the bales are 1000 pound bales? 

So unless my math and calculator are really messed up...:frown_color:
500 pounds of hay per horse in 7 days = 71 pounds of hay consumed a day_ is ridiculous!_
If your horse weighs at optimum weight 1000 pounds, 2% is 20 pounds of hay to feed...now add a additional 2% _being very generous_ for winter warmth factor and you still are at 40 pounds per day per horse...you're feeding near double that very, very generous amount _*AND*_ feeding hard feed on top of that...
Offering blankets to ward off some of the cold and calorie burning needed to stay warmth...
The equation of numbers doesn't add up to me, not at all..
If you were feeding average square 50 pound bales you would be feeding 3 full bales per day for 2 horses...just no way do they need that.
Be careful what you feed as where you are your hay is rich in nutrients...some of the best quality found in the central and eastern United States...
:runninghorse2:....
_jmo..._


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## α CMa (Dec 5, 2018)

There are a lot of factors contributing how long hay bales last. It honestly depends.

I have noticed that by having some sort of "block" (hay hut/pen/net/etc...), it allows the bales to last longer, due to less waste (trampling, "going", laying, etc....)


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## COWCHICK77 (Jun 21, 2010)

Our roundbales weigh about 1400#, native grasses.
I have three horses on a bale 24/7. I dont use the slow feeder nets because of having shoes on my horses for the majority of the year. Also dont have a hay ring. So they do waste some of it by it getting spread around and them making a bed out of it. 
Right now it's in the teens and single digits at night, twenties during the day so they're eating a little more.
One of those bales lasts me almost 2 weeks.
I have 5 Corriente heifers that weigh about 400# and same bales last them the same time.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Bales are grass hay when they were bailed they weighed a 1000 lbs maybe they are a bit less now i don't know. They are wrapped tight so not sloppy lose baled hay. Waste is less than a half a wheel barrel full most times there is no waste, what is shown in picture will be gone when next bale goes out tonight when hubby gets home.

So if bales weigh 900 lbs that's 450 per horse per week, so 65 lbs a day. Hay was rained on and put up late, due to rain and more rain this summer,so not sure how good hay is. Some has smelled a bit musty ,outside of bale is weathered looking but they eat it all. I could fork off the next bale and hand feed it. 

Yes they are blanketed had a period of time they weren't. Had to get straps repaired. They don't adjust short enough, so too loose on both boys.


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## COWCHICK77 (Jun 21, 2010)

65# a day per a horse seems like an awful lot. 
I figure mine probably eat 25-30# a day, each as I have no pasture and they are on the bale 24/7 which the math calculates out about right when I figure how much they waste. 
I think the typical figure is 15-20# per horse?


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

rambo99 said:


> Yes they are blanketed had a period of time they weren't. Had to get straps repaired. They don't adjust short enough, so too loose on both boys.



You can layer fold the straps to a shorter length closest to the off side of the blanket and either use safety pins or duct tape them in several spots.
There should be no "stress" really to adjusted straps if done correctly...
_just a thought..._
:runninghorse2:...


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Didn't put out bale instead we set it in horse barn. Will peel it off to feed. Will see how that goes my guess is they will be with nothing to eat, a lot of the time.

I have no way of weighing hay being fed so a good guess. There was no hay left I gave them a garden cart full each. Will check them at 11:30 pm. 

Thanks for tip on the blanket straps.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Rambo are you sure some's not blowing away? If they're eating every skerrick in that time, I'd say the hay's too rich! ;-)

When my 3 horses were on f/t 5x4 rounds, if I netted it it would generally last about a month. If they didn't put too many holes in the net! If I didn't net it, it would last from 2 days(plurry things'd climb on it!) to a week, with lots wasted, trampled, pooed on...

Now I have 6 horses & unnetted in a feeder ring, it lasts about a week, with lots pulled out & wasted - don't know how much cos we have big winds here... If I net it, it lasts them well over 2 weeks.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

@loosie we get winds not sure it's blowing the hay away, at least i don't think so. how big were holes on the hay net you used?? was looking at round bale nets 2 inch holes or 1- 1/2 inch holes. Pretty sure mine would make bigger holes in net to make eating hay easier.

Hand feeding hay i can see now will not work, they have the hay i put out almost gone in 2 1/2 hours. Mine don't climb on the bales they just eat and eat and eat. I just don't get it they weren't going through the hay that fast last winter. Have plenty of hay so not a big deal if they snarf a bale down a week. They aren't wasting a blade of it eating everything which wasn't the case last year,last bale wasn't even in the feeder...still no waste. 

It's not great hay just average grass ,hay is not even green it's brownish colored and ok smelling not great.


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

We set out the first round bales of the season on Monday. The herd of 2 has barely touched theirs. The herd of 5 gets 2 bales and they are more than half way through one of them. Even though the bales are close to each other they still all want to eat off the same bale so the second bale remains pretty much intact. We have hay rings but they still like to pull some out to make their beds. I don't bed down their lean-to so I'm ok with that, we figure in the waste when we decide how many bales to buy for the year.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Yeah slow feed nets, bout 2" holes. Till they make bigger! Bought roll of uv resist twine it's made from too so I just tie up holes when too many/too big.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

@loosie Thanks i'll look into getting a round bale net with the 2 inch holes. Hand feeding just isn't going to work, they had no hay left and hauling it out is a real pain in the neck. For now they can go through their bale a week neither are fat both on thin side & it's cold. I much rather they have hay available all the time. 

The black gelding put the pally through the fence this morning when i brought out the hay. Both were cranky cold and hungry started chasing each other and black got ugly with it. So a entire section of hot fence was torn down,the black can be nasty so not first time i've had him put a horse through the fence. Now he's playing chase the palomino around from hay pile to hay pile..:x

I'll order a net here trying to find one that's not to pricey.


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## 4horses (Nov 26, 2012)

My 3 horses eat one round roll a week. Which means i buy a new one every Monday or Tuesday.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

I'd seriously consider if your bales weigh as much as you think they do. You could hand-feed for a bale and see how long the hay lasts when actually weighed out (a pack scale works great for this-- suspend it from a beam or tree limb, weigh a muck tub or hay bag, then fill it and subtract the weight of the tub/bag to see just how much you are feeding by weight). If your 1000-lb bale actually weights 800, that would explain a lot. Additionally, are deer or other animals eating off your hay? Part of the reason we had the hay in the round pen when I lived in Montana was to keep the elk off of it. Otherwise the elk would stand around it all night and eat. I weighed our hay last night when I fed, and with the cold weather, we're feeding about 80 lbs/day for three horses, and they usually have a little left at the next feeding so aren't standing around hungry.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Oh & bought net from manufacturer by Metre. Not 'horse slow feed net' retailer - WAY cheaper ;-)


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## clippity clop (May 1, 2012)

We use bale feeders to reduce waste but lots of factors go in to how long a bale lasts. One is what the quality of the bale is, they type of grass, the condition of the horses and the weather. Horse go thru bales faster if the nutrition offered is sub par. They go thru them faster in cold weather too. Supplementing grain should help stretch a bale a little bit but not sure it would be a significant amount. I prefer when we can put our round bale feeder under cover but that isn't always possible due to tractor breaking down..lol.. Such as now! Good luck and I hope your bales last thru the winter (as well as ours!)


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

I usually feed round bales but haven't bought any yet this winter because the prices in Minnesota are finally catching up with the rest of the world. Last year hay ran short and March hay prices went through the roof, so this year a lot of producers are hoarding them for the big payoff.


Anyway, I have started feeding with nets, and I'm very pleased at how well it's working out. I can't begin to describe my joy at seeing how this will transform my spring cleaning. What's left after they finish a bale wouldn't fill a dustpan.


I'm a little amazed that the nets are still like new after many weeks of use. The ones I have are from Hay Chix.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

We loaded a bale in back of pickup took to truck scale bales are in fact 1000 lb bales. We have had 800 lb bales and they are much smaller then current bales are. Basically it's less than great hay horse's are still thin it's cold & a damp so goes right through you kind of cold. 

Put a bale out tonight, hand feeding just doesn't work, weighing hay every night & morning just not going to happen here. One thing if horse's were obese then yeah i'd do what was needed to get weight off them. But obese isn't the case so feel it's not a have to do deal. I'll get netting for bales and net them. These boys need access to hay all the time,they were very hungry tonight when bale was put out. 
@loosie thanks about the kind of netting ,yeah the ones for hay bales are not cheap. @clippy clop i have plenty of hay so shouldn't run out even at feeding a bale a week. Will get netting so once bales are netted it should slow them down, and bales should last 2 weeks then.

This is the first year horse's have gone through a bale in a weeks time, so wondered if others where having same thing happen. And how long bales lasted everyone else.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Joel Reiter said:


> I usually feed round bales but haven't bought any yet this winter because the prices in Minnesota are finally catching up with the rest of the world. Last year hay ran short and March hay prices went through the roof, so this year a lot of producers are hoarding them for the big payoff.
> 
> 
> Anyway, I have started feeding with nets, and I'm very pleased at how well it's working out. I can't begin to describe my joy at seeing how this will transform my spring cleaning. What's left after they finish a bale wouldn't fill a dustpan.
> ...


How did horses adjust to eating from netted bales? i've never have netted bales before so are horse's going to be ok with it?? 

See your from cambridge MN i'm further north and east. Prices here for big bales last year were 35$ a 1000 lb bale for grass/Alfalfa mix . Grass hay 30$ Pure alfalfa 45$ to 60$ depending on where it was bought. 

Current bales we got for 25$ grass rounds 1000 lbs Other bales we paid 30$ for delivered,25 $ bales were also delivered no extra charge,but was just down the road from us.

Hay was in short supply here last year but not due to drought it was to wet so hard to get hay up. This year was same thing, hay crops were down by 40% this year. Our normal hay supplier didn't have enough, so we had to scramble to find hay this fall.


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## dee (Jul 30, 2009)

LOL... I wish I could get 1,000 bales. Mine are only 700 - 900 at best. 12 horses (accident - don't ask) - six bales a week. Ugh...


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

rambo99 said:


> How did horses adjust to eating from netted bales?



I was skeptical of the nets, so I held off on them for years. But one of the seminars I attended at the Minnesota Horse Expo last April was done by the Hay Chix themselves, and they gave all the attendees a swag bag that included a half-bale net.


The instructions said to start by feeding the horses loose hay and letting them pick at the net after they had a belly full. Then gradually reduce the loose hay until they become more proficient and patient with the net. My horses got the hang of it within about three days.



The nets are expensive but the Hay Chix have sales multiple times a year so I suggest you get on their email list and wait for a discount. It's a successful business now, but it was the result of a LOT of trial and error on design, materials, and manufacturing processes.


Since then I've bought a full-bale net and a round-bale net.


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

rambo99 said:


> See your from cambridge MN i'm further north and east. Prices here for big bales last year were 35$ a 1000 lb bale for grass/Alfalfa mix . Grass hay 30$ Pure alfalfa 45$ to 60$ depending on where it was bought.
> 
> Current bales we got for 25$ grass rounds 1000 lbs Other bales we paid 30$ for delivered,25 $ bales were also delivered no extra charge,but was just down the road from us.



You're still in the land of cheap hay. Here round bales are going for $80 - $120! I found some really good small bales this year and bought everything the guy had for $6.50 a bale. I'm due to run out in early February, and I just hope by then all the hoarders will all be dumping their hay on the market.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Joel Reiter said:


> I was skeptical of the nets, so I held off on them for years. But one of the seminars I attended at the Minnesota Horse Expo last April was done by the Hay Chix themselves, and they gave all the attendees a swag bag that included a half-bale net.
> 
> 
> The instructions said to start by feeding the horses loose hay and letting them pick at the net after they had a belly full. Then gradually reduce the loose hay until they become more proficient and patient with the net. My horses got the hang of it within about three days.
> ...


Thank you. I will get on the Chix emailing list and wait for a sale on the nets. In mean time the piggies can eat a bale a week. 

I'll be sure to have loose hay available along with the netted bale. Last year the wasted hay was unbelievable and clean up was a freight. Hubby wasn't happy with the massive layers of manure and hay ,around the feeders. 

Had probably 2 maybe 3 feet of manure/hay waste built up around feeders.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Joel Reiter said:


> You're still in the land of cheap hay. Here round bales are going for $80 - $120! I found some really good small bales this year and bought everything the guy had for $6.50 a bale. I'm due to run out in early February, and I just hope by then all the hoarders will all be dumping their hay on the market.



Holy cow that is some expensive round bales. Square bales here are 2.50 to 4$ a bale 50 to 60 pound bales.

At the prices you pay I wouldn't be feeding bales and letting hay be wasted. I've seen hay on Craig's list 70 dollars a 1000 lb bale. 

I have extra hay glad I do should be good till next haying season. Most farmers up here are sold out or only have enough to feed there own animals.


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## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

Gosh you guys are lucky. Here, we don't even have round bales (not that I would have a way to move them anyway). I am paying $16.50 a bale (100 lb bales) all year round. Because we don't have pasture either. 



I would pee my pants if I could get hay at the prices you guys are talking about! Be glad you don't live in Arizona.


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

trailhorserider said:


> Here, we don't even have round bales (not that I would have a way to move them anyway).



I don't actually "move" round bales. I buy them from farmers who can load one at a time in the back of my pickup. When I get home, I park the truck so the back is downhill, remove the tailgate, and roll the bale out like a big wheel. Usually it stops before it knocks down a fence.



It is 9 degrees F outside as I type this, so Arizona has a certain appeal right now, expensive hay and all.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

In Florida bales of so-so hay is averaging $8.00 per for a 40 - 50 pound square bale...
Rounds in my area go for $65 and up to about $90 for 700 - 1000 pound horse rolls.
When you find a supplier who has a consistent supply and quality you stay with them and pay the price, period.
If I wanted to feed T/A, alfalfa or some premium hay it starts at about $16.00 per bale and goes up rapidly from that number to near $30 a bale...this is for 50 pound square bales.
You can buy "cow hay" but it is not guaranteed free of weeds or undesirables, nor has it been stored in protected barns from sun and weather...cows need hay but they don't need as carefully harvested, dried and stored as horses do and cow hay can be stored outdoors in a field...these rounds still cost about $55 to start for the smaller ones.



Horses are *not* "cheap" to feed and take care of properly no matter where you live... :|

:runninghorse2:...


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Haven't read through but To get and idea of weight I peel off a layer and roll it then get on the scale with it. Another way I have used to show my husband how much he is (not) feeding is to take what he considers a full wheel barrow and stuff it into a feed bag then step on the scale with it. Big difference between the two. But I mention as a way for you to get an idea of what you are feeding. 



Did you weigh the bales yourself on a scale or are you going by the weight the grower is giving based on size of the bale? I have had growers over estimate weights by quite a bit.


ETA I see you did weigh them. Mine will gorge on the first rounds set out then settle into an amount that is close to 2% of their body weight. We do have deer coming through eating off bales too and that makes a difference.


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

rambo99 said:


> Last year the wasted hay was unbelievable and clean up was a freight. Hubby wasn't happy with the massive layers of manure and hay ,around the feeders. Had probably 2 maybe 3 feet of manure/hay waste built up around feeders.



A horse approaches hay like a 9-year old attacks a bag of Halloween candy. First he dumps it out and spreads it out. Then he eats the bits he likes best. Then he goes back through it to see if there's anything he missed. By then he's lost some of his appetite, so he kind of plays with the rest and maybe wanders off.


With round bales, you're dealing with a huge quantity of hay, and even if contained in a feeder the horses will want to pull it out and throw it around and look for the good stuff. They will inevitably walk on it and foul it and render it inedible.


Using a net, the horses can only get a little bite at a time, so they eat everything. It's hard to imagine how a net would not pay for itself in hay savings, even if you bought a new one every year. But I would use one even if it didn't save hay just to eliminate the spring cleanup. That giant mass of fouled hay takes so long to thaw in the spring that it kills the grass, plus it doesn't have enough manure in it to make good compost. Using a net will eliminate my worst horse keeping chore. 



The only negative I've heard about nets is that they are somehow hard on horse's teeth. I don't know why that would be true so if any of you have a definitive answer on that it would be welcome knowledge.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Dang...I thought I got a deal on our hay at $60 for a good grass round and $5/bale for grass squares. Alfalfa/grass mix horse hay is $80/round and $8/square....

FWIW, if your horses are thin, I wouldn't net the hay. If they are thin, they need more forage, not less. Netted hay is for horses who are eating so much they are obese.


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## Joel Reiter (Feb 9, 2015)

SilverMaple said:


> Netted hay is for horses who are eating so much they are obese.



Maybe. The standard 1 3/4" net sold by the Hay Chix is OK with underweight horses. They have nets with smaller openings for horses that are obese.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

I was thinking the net would slow them down make bales last longer than a week. Was going to get the biggest holed net to use. Net one bale and also give loose hay to start. They aren't currently wasting hay but i don't think that will last. 

I've also have heard of the slow feed nets doing damage to teeth. But know people who use them and their horse's have never had issues with teeth being damaged. Yeah they are thin but net won't keep them from eating hay and all they want will it?? Having to work for their hay isn't going to cause them to lose weight?? 

Cleaning up wasted hay come spring is a huge doing,and a pretty stinky deal at that. Tell me about horse's being expensive to have and take care of properly.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

The draft horse guys around here, and some of the vets, advise against slow-feeder nets year-round-- the reasoning is that a horse's natural cycle is to gorge in the summer months, and get sparse food in the winter. When they eat sparingly all year, it sends their systems into constant insulin-resistance. Something to keep in mind if you feed hay year-round. 

The net will slow down consumption. If your horses are thin and eating all they want, they will probably drop weight once their food is restricted and they have to work for it. You will want a net with holes big enough the horses can still eat easily, and the net may keep some of the hay from ending up dragged onto the ground and wasted. Another option is to do what my friend Crystal does--she throws a bale of good hay over the fence to her horses twice a day, and the rest of the time they have a netted round bale to pick at. This way she knows they are getting enough hay to sustain them, and the round bale is just to give them something to do the rest of the time. Her round bale is at one end of her pasture, and she feeds the loose hay at the other, so it keeps the horses moving back and forth, too.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

I have straight alfalfa squares i can feed 20 lbs per horse per feeding twice a day. Then the netted round bale ,when i get the net for the round bales. No don't want them to lose weight that wouldn't be good being winter time,and the coldest part is yet to come. 

I don't feed hay year round only from november to early may,then they go out to pasture for summer. Depending on year some years it's mid april they go out on pasture, some years it's late may.


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

We keep our easy keepers on slow feeder nets. Those 4 Canadians are on a round bale with a 3/4 inch nag bag netting, and we change it once a month. These are 1350 lbs


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

We had three bales left from last year. They have been out of the weather and are still ok. They weigh about 800 pounds. I have 5 horses, none of which are huge. The first bale lasted two weeks. The next two bales are going in about 
1 1/2 weeks. Once it gets cold, we usually get about a week out of a bale. They may get a few pickings, and the two antique horses get a significant amount of feed in addition to it. 

We used to get a lot of hay waste. Now we don't with this cool cover.


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## gottatrot (Jan 9, 2011)

I can't believe the hay prices some of you get. Our cheapest hay would be $100 for 1,000 lbs. Our barn pays more like $150 for 1,000 lbs in order to get hay that has a good amount of protein and is worth feeding nutritionally.

Horses eating 65 lbs and still thin and feeling hungry? It makes me wonder if you're basically feeding straw. Sometimes it can actually be more cost effective to feed higher quality hay that appears expensive at the outset. I've had friends who used what I would call "false economy" with horses, meaning they didn't want to outlay a lot of money for good quality hay, but ended up spending more on hard feed and vet bills than they saved by feeding cheaper hay.

Let's say you were able to feed 20 lbs of high quality hay per horse and 1 lb of beet pulp. My expensive hay costs 15 cents a pound, your cheap hay costs 3 cents a pound. I feed 20 lbs to my average sized horse and he is a BCS of 5 if I add 1 lb of beet pulp a day. For hay and beet pulp it costs me $3 for hay plus 30 cents for the beet pulp. $3.30 a day.

Your 65 pounds of hay costs $1.95 a day. If your hard feed costs $15 for 50 lbs, feeding 6 lbs costs $1.80 a day. Your total cost would be $3.75 a day. So you might actually be spending more to feed your horse to a low BCS score than I am using expensive hay that the horse needs to eat much less of. 
Plus, a horse at a healthy weight, eating the majority of his diet from high quality hay is less likely to get sick and have expensive vet bills.

This is not directed at the OP in particular, but I just wanted to point out how people might think they can't afford to feed good hay and end up spending more money trying to keep weight on horses using low quality hay that is much cheaper.


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## apachetears6 (Jun 7, 2018)

rambo99 said:


> Feeding big rounds 1000 lb bale one is lasting 2 horse's 7 to 10 days usually only 7 days. That seems like a lot of hay being eaten in a short period of time. We put bale out in a feeder and it is gone in 7 days nothing left every blade eaten.
> 
> When i had the old horse in with current pally gelding, a big round last them 2 weeks same size as bales we have now. Hasn't been that cold, last year at same time it was way colder single digits and well below zero. Last year we went through 4 bales a month for 3 horse's.
> 
> Going through 4 a month for just 2 horse's and bales aren't lasting 2 weeks. Plus both are getting hard feed twice a day, they act like they are just starving every time i give feed. Will have to put out another bale tonight one we put out last thursday is pretty much gone,will be by tonight. Both are out there eating away like they are starving.



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Deep South. Georgia, I have Two quarter horses. 

I use 700 lb bales at $50.00 a bale.

I start my winter hay routine in November I use 700 lb hay rolls. The November hay due to weather changes is never entirely eaten the horses still have forage they can consume from the pasture. November to March is one bale a month of 30 days.
February and March it can become two bales a month according to the weather, colder than usually, ice and snow storms the amount of rain that may spoil the hay faster. At rare times I will have to feed another roll April but that is also due to winter weather hanging on and a delayed spring.
So sum it up in a twelve month period, I use 4 bales of 700 lbs. definitely, one roll a month. I use 2 more if the weather is bad for the two months listed, that's is possibly 6 of 700 lb bales.
That comes to definite $200.00 a season with another possible $100.00 with the rare $50.00 in April.


I also at times buy 50 lb bales to tide me over till payday or emergencies at $6.00 a bale.
Definite four bales in 120 days.


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## apachetears6 (Jun 7, 2018)

Celeste said:


> We had three bales left from last year. They have been out of the weather and are still ok. They weigh about 800 pounds. I have 5 horses, none of which are huge. The first bale lasted two weeks. The next two bales are going in about
> 1 1/2 weeks. Once it gets cold, we usually get about a week out of a bale. They may get a few pickings, and the two antique horses get a significant amount of feed in addition to it.
> 
> We used to get a lot of hay waste. Now we don't with this cool cover.



That is a nice rain cover!
I may try that for my two who tear up and down any cover I try to use.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

A 1000 lb bale usually last 2 weeks for 2 horses, so would be two bales a month starting in november through april sometimes may. Being in mn winters are a lot colder then down south,and consistently cold won't see 50 degrees till late march or april. Yeah we will have some high 30s this week and next week but wont last. Temps will take a dive into the teens for highs single digits and below zero for lows.


They are slowing down on the bale eating, have more left tomorrow will be a week since bale was put out...won't be gone. I don't see them at bale all the time like before so must finally be getting their fill. They are gaining weight but getting big bellies and still ribby so weight isn't filling in ribs.

Doesn't help both got sick here with bad colds snotty noses and coughing went off feed/grain for a few days,now starting to eat again. 

Hay isn't straw like it's fairly decent looking not great but not horrible either,was best hay i could find this year.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

@rambo99 They are gaining weight but getting big bellies and still ribby so weight isn't filling in ribs.


When forage is poor and nutritional needs aren't being met (quality protein) and the flora changes in the gut then you end up with a distended belly and no cover on the ribs. Weight isn't good weight - it is all of that fiber trying to be digested and just hanging out in the GI tract. Look at a good pre/probiotic and a supplement that has the amino acids they need. I have one that is the worst for developing a hay belly when we go to feeding bales. She is typically an easy keeper but in the winter I have to add supplements. My goto has become Manna Pro Senior Weight Accelerator. It doesn't take much and then for her I add ProAdd Ultimate (mixed with Calf Manna - just enough for flavor) to ensure she is getting the type of protein she needs to alfalfa pellets. If she gets horsey about keeping to her own pot I dust with what I am feeding the other two in that pasture. It keeps her belly from ballooning into epic proportions and not just fat but needed muscle over her ribs and on her topline.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

This is the hay. Best we could find buy,i usually get good quality hay but couldn't find it this year. What probiotic/prebiotic is best?? pictures show what outside looks like, and what inside of bale looks like.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

@rambo99 The hay looks pretty stemmy.

You have to look at the horses. If they are too fat, they are getting too much.

If they are too thin, they sure don't need any cutbacks on feed. You may have to supplement with a hard feed.

I bought a bag of feed from Tractor Supply. They pony that I was feeding would not eat it. I read the label. A large percentage of this feed was made out of peanut hulls. Termites may be able to use peanut hulls. Horses cannot.

Read your feed labels. Percentages can be deceiving. Check not only the percentage of protein, sugars, fiber, etc., but check where they come from.

You can take peanut hulls and chicken feathers, ground up and mixed with molasses, and on paper, it may have pretty good nutritional values.

Look for *quality ingredients* in your hard feeds. Wheat middlings may be ok. Peanut hulls are for termites. The raccoons won't even steal that type of feed.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

The Manna Pro Senior Weight Accelerator pretty much covers the additional flora and some added fat. We are having trouble finding good bales. Weather was bad this year so hay even worse. I will likely he adding the MannaPro to everyone. If you add a hard feed to add calories go to something like Nutrena with Topline Balance and you can skip the amino acid supplement or feed that to any that don't need extra.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Problem is they need weight so need calories so a balancer wouldn't work in that respect. The black is on nutrena senior & the all stock feed mixed more senior than all stock. Pally is on the all stock feed and a 1-1/4 pounds of the senior. 

So they are getting feed not just yucky hay. I will look into getting the manna pro senior weight excelerator add that to the mix of feeds...or try and get them on just that and cut out the other feeds. Hay pictured is best we could find, weather this year wasn't good so getting up good hay was next to impossible for farmers.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

It is over 80% fat so a small amount adds what a pound of feed can add. I've found adding flax or stabilized rice bran gets calories in them too. Mine don't go for liquid oils added and I try to stay away from high omega 6 additives. You could try that route too.


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## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

i'll pickup the senior weight excelerator next week. Guess the pally looks ok but is ribby winter coat hides that though,lacks energy not his usual very go,go self. here's a picture from yesterday. Somedays his belly looks big other days not yesterday it didn't have that bloated look.


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