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Post by enigma on Oct 21, 2014 15:18:57 GMT
so, I have a little bit of a dilemma. My husband, bless him, has produced 26 large round bales of not-high-nutritional-value grass hay (too mature when it was cut) for me exclusively for horse use. (He feeds the cows the crap hay or the stuff with tons of weeds.) the horses are on turnout with some grazing available now. We threw a round bale in with them the other day, which they went through in five days. The way I count, 26 bales will not last until next hay season (runs out, like end of Feb, and anticipate their eating more if they don't have pasture). I don't have to hay right now, but expect to only have a week or two left on the pasture they are in.
I have found decent grass hay for four dollars a bale, and can get 100-300 bales. It is weathered, but not bad. I also have kids lined up to be able to move the hay for me, and a place to store it. I have two feeders, the kind that have the hay above the troughs, that I can use to put the small bales in. That gives me four sides, which should be plenty for everybody to have a spot. Should be able to dump a bale per feeder every evening, and stretch what we have by a couple of months, anyway.
I also plan to buy at least a dozen large bales of alfalfa (3X3) to try to get away from the grain as much. We were going to get a semi-load and split it, but DH backed out, which has bumped my price up. (boo)
I am trying to figure out if this is the best way to try to feed over this winter, since these guys will not have stalls, probably until spring, and they are used to them. I am also looking at whether this is the most cost-effective way to feed. Do I buy the small bales and feed them, or do I keep them on the Strategy Healthy Edge?
As an example, one mare, who had been getting two flakes of alfalfa in the morning and at night, is now getting almost 3 quarts of strategy healthy edge morning and night, plus pasture. if I switch to alfalfa with grass, a large bale of the alfalfa should last at least two weeks. My feed bill currently is about twice what one of the big bales would cost.
ETA: Seems I always have nutrition questions! But have definitely learned a TON over the last few years!
With this, should I look at any kind of balancer? Weight, of course, will help determine what I have, but there is not a good way to separate them individually for feeding at this point, though I do have an alpha group and a beta group that can be separated.
Thanks for any suggestions or pointing out any things I haven't thought about!!
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Post by lorddaxter on Oct 21, 2014 15:25:21 GMT
Ok, if I were you I'd look at slow feeder nets, you can get them for round bales too, I just got some and noticed already a big difference! www.econets.ca |
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Post by horselover4life on Oct 21, 2014 16:37:42 GMT
I second the slow feeder nets....stops some of the waste too.
Me, I would get those square bales regardless of what rounds you have....
I would feed the rounds first when they are needed when your pasture is done.
If your horses have 24/7 decent hay they should be OK till the weather gets really rough. Grass hay has decent nutritional values most of the time.
I am thinking your square bales will all be stored inside but rounds outside? For that reason I would use what can get weathered on first...
I would not be doing alfalfa squares myself. I would instead do alfalfa pellets as those I can add liquid to to make sure adequate liquid is consumed and any vitamins/minerals can be fed in the mix. And fed only if needed... I would rather feed loose vitamins and minerals daily.
Can I ask why are you needing such high protein amounts and hay of such a quality during the winter months? Most people slow down their riding activities due to cold weather, ice and  .... Is it different for you and you ride year round most days for a strenuous workout???
I would rather keep them busy with more hay and lesser protein so their gut is active and digestion keeps them warm than to feed less hay but higher protein amounts leaving their bellies emptier which can in turn make them colder....
If your horses all work daily and considerably...then a different plan of action and attack is called for, Yes!
Most horses are equipped to do well on a grass hay. It is us humans who think they need more than they do. I can tell you by me the horses graze year-round side by side with the cattle...they have fat horses and very healthy cattle.
Now I am limited in land amount but my horse grazed since I got him...and he was moderate to severely underweight. I fed him feed because he needed those extra calories. Now my pasture is slowing down I upped his hay intake fed...and didn't decrease his feed enough...big mistake!
Now my guy is going on a diet... I cut his feed already by 1/3 as he has more hay and he is maintaining and looking good....another week and I will again cut his feed intake...because he doesn't need it as the grass hay is more than enough to sustain him...he is ridden about 3x a week now that it has gotten cooler.
I am hoping to lose the feed altogether but am realistic that that may not be smart, but him being "chunky" isn't healthy either. The horse who came home scoring a "3" is now "5.5" and I don't want one more ounce on him, a few off would be better.
Seriously consider why you need to feed that high protein hay or high calorie feed. If fed enough hay...even in winter they should need very little more of anything. You don't want high protein but higher fat and fiber...more of a fat supplement may be the better way to go.
If your horses are acclimating to the weather as it changes, they will grow heavy warm coats as needed. As long as they are out, have been out...they are preparing already.
No barn is truly needed...a shelter of wind protection and a place to get out of the rain/sleet/ if they want... Again, we humans overdue what we think they need with blankets and such....
Me, I can't believe I am writing that but it is true.
My horse has a new barn to go in when ever he wants...he would rather stand in the elements of pounding rain than under a roof and stay dry. His choice...
Mother Nature does supply what her creatures need if we allow it to happen...we need to not interfere...Something to consider and think about...
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Post by enigma on Oct 22, 2014 16:59:58 GMT
So, thanks for the slow-feed net ideas. Will they be able to get enough to keep them warm using those nets?
I've talked to hubby. We have a few fairly hard keepers. One mare was getting alfalfa, grass, and NINE QUARTS of senior a day when we got her. Pasture isn't providing enough. We have had weight drops (a couple of them pretty significant) over the last few winters. I'd like to get a little padding on them now before it truly gets cold. I was thinking take the Healthy Edge, add supplemental fat pellets to it for a little bit here, then slowly swap out the grain with the alfalfa to add heat. NOT free choice on the alfalfa, but just to provide a calorie baseline, with the lower-quality hay as warmth. The big bales were a little too mature when cut, so are not particularly nutrient-dense. Lots of fiber, though. **Is this reasonable, or am I all wet?**
Ideally, they will have a big bale at all times (we will need to buy more, which is already planned for, just not sure of bale type). When it gets cold, they will have the big bale, and I'll throw more.
We also have a bunch of cows. He wants a chunk of alfalfa for his cows, as well. Right now, looking at some out of SD.
Hubby challenged me on the price per ton for the small bales, and he's right. So we will probably buy more big rounds, which makes the whole thing much easier.
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Post by lorddaxter on Oct 22, 2014 17:25:09 GMT
I just started the slow feeder nets Monday after Isis left, Ira was very very frustrated the first day, so I put some hay out on the ground to get his initial hunger satisfied then whe he moved onto the net again he was much happier, I filled 2 nets, prob 15lbs in each, if that and they lasted them right through, next to nothing on the ground, I'm very pleased I got them:)
Now, I bought 2 @ 1 1/2 inch and 2 @ 1 inch, I'd just get the 1 1/2 inch ones, I think the other ones would be too small, ok for ponies and trailers which is what I will keep those ones for:)
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Post by horselady on Oct 22, 2014 19:05:41 GMT
I always keep the square bales on hand in case i can not get the round bales out into the holding pens for the horses. so if you can get some of those alfalfa bales than get them and store them for later in the early winter.
also you should be starting to bulk up those horses NOW, you can use whole corn off the cobb of course to get them to add some heat and calories.
also start to give them a higher fat content . with either corn oil or vegetable oil, start out with a 1/4 cup each and add up to 1/2 cup each horse each feeding. that way you can cut back on the grain. and keep that hay in front of them at all times.
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Post by horselover4life on Oct 23, 2014 1:36:32 GMT
I know the Purina Healthy Edge line of feed all have the Amplify nugget in it...that is their high fat nugget supplement. You can buy that by itself from a dealer in 40 pound bags or a bucket, not sure of the bucket weight though.
I have also fed Nutrena brand Empower Boost which is this brands high fat nugget supplement.
Fed both with excellent results.
I have read that most all the better brands of feed have their own fat nugget supplement.
Purina and Nutrena both do a nice softening with liquid added....
I've not used other brands so can't tell you how much they soften or how well they accomplish their task of packing on pounds.
When I used either of these products I packed pounds on in a short time, real short time...
Good luck.....
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Post by enigma on Oct 23, 2014 10:23:58 GMT
actually did a condition assessment on everybody last night. The big girls, my alpha crew, are all in good weight - 5-6. For my betas, the draft baby (3 y/o friesian x) is at least a 6 - too fat. There are ribs in there somewhere, but it's squishy. He just ingratiates himself right into everybody else's feed bowl. Only one mare in his feeding group will run him off. Everybody else sighs and moves over. His mom, perch x appy, is just right, could be a tad lighter. And the two old arabs, I would put at a 3.5 and a 4. So I think it's them I get to work on. Need to figure out how to get them separated. HAH! Just got it.  Had amplify in mind for the fat supplement. Have used one from Progressive, but wasn't too impressed, so looking forward to trying this one. Thanks, all - and looking at those feeder nets. |
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For that reason I would use what can get weathered on first...
.... Is it different for you and you ride year round most days for a strenuous workout???
