# feedbags



## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

I just use the canvas bags. When ever I feed pellets or grain in the high country, the horses waste half of what I give them. I'm hoping they will cut down on the wasted feed. 

My nice white bags were filthy after one or two trips, The horse press them right down into the dirt trying to get the last grain out of them.

I don't grain my horses at home. But on the trail they are working harder and not getting to stand around and eat all day, So I do grain them a little on over night trips. I've also found when I get the bags out and shake them, my loose horses come a running. So it's a great way to condition them to come when I call.


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## TrailheadSupply (Sep 6, 2012)

I'm a fan of canvas, but I like the light weight of mesh. So that makes me a big fan of the mesh bags with a canvas bottom. the weight of the mess but a solid bottom so when the are pushing down in the mud and manure for the last piece of grain it doesn't fill the bag full of all that unwanted stuff.


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

BTW the bags that I have, have the leather patch just above their nostrils that has lots of holes punched through it to let air in for the horses to breath as they eat.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

I have a couple of nylon mesh feed bags. They are porous enough that they don't cause breathing problems. They keep the horses from wasting feed.

I did have a problem the first time I put a feed bag on one of my Arab mares. She apparently felt trapped. She tried to back away from the bag. It followed her. She panicked and started backing. She ran into the side of my car and dented it. Try explaining that to the husband.


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## COWCHICK77 (Jun 21, 2010)

The guy I worked for in high school made his own out of burlap sacks.

Cut the burlap bag down each side leaving the seams and the bottom which would be your "bucket", then tie the sides together at the top. 
So when the horse/mule sticks his head in the bottom to adjust you twist the knot at the top and tuck under the crown piece of the halter to stay. It worked awesome if you cut the bags just right. For me it took some experimenting when I tried it years later. 
Get the narrow, smaller sacks if you can find them, I tried the big tater sacks with little success(about a bushel).


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

I'm pretty sure the burlap bags wouldn't last for my trip, but good idea for a short trip on a budget.

@Celeste: That's why I was considering the mesh bags, but I'm skeptical that they would be very durable. How have yours lasted? Out on my trip I won't be able to just order a new one off the Internet.

Anybody tried the cavalry type? I understand they sort of meter the feed to the horse's mouth as they eat, by the way they hang. Looks like they could spill a lot of feed, though.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

Mine have been around for years. They have been used, thrown around, stomped on, dragged around the yard by the dog, rescued, used some more. They are fine. 
I haven't used them in a long time, but I used one for an old mare to feed her every day for quite a while. Months, years, who knows?


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

I just ordered one of each from Trailhead Supply. I'll just test them both out and see which I like best.


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

Let us all know what works out!


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## AnnaHalford (Mar 26, 2012)

Mesh weighs a lot less and folds down smaller. Plus it's easy to soak feed in whatever water source you've got.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

AnnaHalford said:


> Mesh weighs a lot less and folds down smaller. Plus it's easy to soak feed in whatever water source you've got.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Now, there's something I hadn't thought about. My dad has been telling me about beet pulp for feeding on the trail. Says you soak it before feeding it. I've never used it, but I'm going to look into it.

Anna, are you carrying anything to supplement the grazing for your stock?


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## AnnaHalford (Mar 26, 2012)

thenrie said:


> Now, there's something I hadn't thought about. My dad has been telling me about beet pulp for feeding on the trail. Says you soak it before feeding it. I've never used it, but I'm going to look into it.
> 
> Anna, are you carrying anything to supplement the grazing for your stock?


Yes, grain. Oats, mostly. Sometimes corn, sometimes barley if we can find it. They get between 1 and 3kg per day, depending on workload, general condition, and state of grazing that day. 
I honestly wouldn't swap our mesh bags for anything.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## PurplePopcornDelicious (Feb 13, 2013)

We always used the mesh bags, I think the horses finger them more comfortable to breathe in.


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

Tony, I use Beet pulp a lot. At home in the winter when the weather is really cold, I will soak it and feed it along with hay to add extra water to the horses diet during cold weather.

At trail rides, I offer the horses a drink. When they are done drinking, I then give them soaked beet pulp as a way to cram a little extra water into them.

My horses eat beet pulp with gusto. So I can easily add just about anything I want to slip into the beet pulp and get the horses to eat it. Electrolytes being a prime example.

Around here, I can buy beet pulp pellets for about $10-$12 a 50lb bag. So they are priced similar to other feed products. They broaden the mineral and vitamins that my horses would normally get just from hay.

There are some good articles on animal nutrition that discuss what beet pulp offers in the horse diet. Especially in the distance horse.


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

Thanks all. Great information.

Thanks Painted Horse for the link you sent on beet pulp and the above information. I used it several years ago to try to put some weight on an old horse. Never had time to really look into it much as a trail feed. I'm going to look around here and see if I can find it. I'll start my mare on it and get her used to it as a supplement.


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## AnnaHalford (Mar 26, 2012)

I wish we could find it here. Great stuff.


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

Got my order from Trailhead Supply. 

They both look pretty well-made, but I have a small complaint about each one:

The mesh bag's straps are sewn to the bag with one line of stitching. I'd prefer to see some reinforcing there with a couple lines of stitching.

The canvas/leather bag looks very well made. My complaint is that the breathing panel is too low on the bag for my taste. I'm concerned that three or four pounds of alfalfa pellets in the bag might cover it. I've seen horses stop eating in a nose bag, because their breathing was restricted.

At $14.95 and $21.95, respectively, I think they're both a good buy.

I'll put some use on both and see which I like best.


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