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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 387
 
| Hey guys,
so we just moved to our new place and we do not have our corrals finished in time for winter, so all our horses will feed together this winter
normally I have two pens, old seniors and colts that get fed second cut alfalfa and grain and the riding horses get grass hay
This winter i was thinking about feeding second cut all winter with a net over the bale. all of my horses are easy keepers, but I do have a weanling to feed and I want to make sure hes getting enough,
has anyone fed weanling and yearlings with a net on? there will be a total of 6 horses in the large pen this winter. one weanling, one yearling and the rest are 3-6 years old.
how do you feed in the winter? what is your experience with feeding younger stuff and hay nets?
Edited by zansbeunogal_2268 2017-09-26 11:38 AM
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 Dog Resuce Agent
Posts: 3459
 
Location: southeast Texas | I just cut net off round bale and leave for them to consume as they feel. No net, ring etc. Vet fees will quickly out weigh any savings from trying to restrict their wastefulness. The horse I ride, he and his girlfriend, I will fork off into hay bags for them to eat when they are stalled during the day or night depending what time of year. |
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 A Somebody to Everybody
Posts: 41354
Location: Under The Big Sky Of Texas | Just get a good ring bulit for horses and throw a round bale in it and your good to go, I dont like the netting myself, I have enought to worry about out here.. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1100
Location: Southeastern Idaho | We use a hay saver ring for both our bulls and horses. Really reduces waste but does nothing to slow down consumption. We have 6 horses per ring. I pay attention to condition and will pull a horse or two if they don't seem to be getting enough and place those low guys on their own ring or add another to that pasture. You may need to supplement your younger horses depending on how they are treated by the older guys. Mine are pretty bossy and I had to keep my yearlings/weanlings in a different area altogether to make sure they got enough. I don't limit the young horses feed either, all they can easily eat. |
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 Experienced Mouse Trapper
Posts: 3106
Location: North Dakota | I used to pitch hay off rounds every day for 5 head. Last winter-because we had so dang much snow to move, we bought a hay chix net and a feeder. Was the easiest year on hay we've ever had. I have a gelding that has lung trouble when self feeding and last winter we did not have any problem! Also, hardly any waste. They can stand and eat all day if they want and I grain all of ours every night so they get a little bit extra IF they need it. (it's mostly to give any supplements my geriatric crew might need) |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 690
Location: Georgia | Hay net, hay net, HAY NET!!! They keep the bale from being drug out all over the place and make the horses eat it more conservatively. Go to the hay chix fb page. They are always putting DIY feeder ideas up. And as always I have a link for 20% off your Hay Chix order in my signature  |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 387
| My only concern with a hay net is that will my weanling be getting enough feed?
he will be substituted with grain daily as well, and none of my horses pick on him! and the stormy and cold days they will be brought into the barn where everyone's stall but his have hay nets so he will eat free choice there.
has anyone fed young ones with nets? and if he feed with the net we will most defiantly have the feeder around it for my own piece of mind. |
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 It's not my fault I'm perfect
Posts: 13739
Location: Where the long tails flow, ND | Hay net and ring. As long as your weaning is eating the entire time I don't see how it wouldn't get enough to eat? |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | I feed with a round bale/ring, but we put 2 bales out at a time for my girls. Unfortunately, I have the plain jane rings so they tend to rub manes out :( |
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 Born not Made
Posts: 2937
Location: North Dakota | This is the first year we will be trying a hay net. We've always done the round bale with ring.
All the horses are easy keepers so curious how well the hay net will work for weight control. It should absolutely help with waste!
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 A Barrel Of Monkeys
Posts: 12972
Location: Texas | I think with them all together, it might be better to feed each a flake of alfalfa twice a day (and the round bale). Otherwise, I think I'd use hotwire to divide up the corral and feed the babies separately. |
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 Three in a Bikini
Posts: 2035
| Hay net with ring.
We have saved so much money since adding the net. The horses get plenty to eat.
The net just keeps everything from blowing around or getting drug through the mud. |
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Nut Case Expert
Posts: 9305
Location: Tulsa, Ok | We use big rounds and a hay ring. There are 6 or 7 horses feeding at all times so we put out two bales so that the less aggressive horses do not get pushed out by the bullies. If I was really concerned about waste, I would probably need to get out of the horse business!!! |
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| Hay net with a solid bottom ring.
As an aside, how in the world does everyone keep their rounds from going bad? We round baled our first cutting, it went up beautiful and dry, the best cutting we’ve had in several years. We put 4 bales inside on pallets on top of dirt floor. We legit had almost zero rain this summer for them to even draw moisture off the dirt.
We were hand feeding off the bales daily and the first 2 bales were fine. The last 2 we started finding more and more hot moldy spots, both in the first outter later and then inside the bale. We did not feed the last 1/3 of either bale because of them.
This is one big reason why we won’t free feed round bales - but I know lots of people who do, do you not worry about hot spots and mold in the hay? |
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 The One
Posts: 7998
Location: South Georgia | OhMax - 2017-09-27 8:54 AM Hay net with a solid bottom ring. As an aside, how in the world does everyone keep their rounds from going bad? We round baled our first cutting, it went up beautiful and dry, the best cutting we’ve had in several years. We put 4 bales inside on pallets on top of dirt floor. We legit had almost zero rain this summer for them to even draw moisture off the dirt. We were hand feeding off the bales daily and the first 2 bales were fine. The last 2 we started finding more and more hot moldy spots, both in the first outter later and then inside the bale. We did not feed the last 1/3 of either bale because of them. This is one big reason why we won’t free feed round bales - but I know lots of people who do, do you not worry about hot spots and mold in the hay?
Ours are never bad and do not get moldy. I'm guessing there was too much moisture when baled, so over a little time, mold developed in there. |
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| horsegirl - 2017-09-27 8:31 AM
OhMax - 2017-09-27 8:54 AM Hay net with a solid bottom ring. As an aside, how in the world does everyone keep their rounds from going bad? We round baled our first cutting, it went up beautiful and dry, the best cutting we’ve had in several years. We put 4 bales inside on pallets on top of dirt floor. We legit had almost zero rain this summer for them to even draw moisture off the dirt. We were hand feeding off the bales daily and the first 2 bales were fine. The last 2 we started finding more and more hot moldy spots, both in the first outter later and then inside the bale. We did not feed the last 1/3 of either bale because of them. This is one big reason why we won’t free feed round bales - but I know lots of people who do, do you not worry about hot spots and mold in the hay?
Ours are never bad and do not get moldy. I'm guessing there was too much moisture when baled, so over a little time, mold developed in there.
Well, we couldn’t have ordered better hay baling weather when we put them up, that’s why we were willing to feed them to horses at all. We usually reserve our rounds for our cattle but downsized this year and ran short of last years small squares so that’s why we stuck some rounds under roof. My husbands family has lived here and baled their own hay for nearly 30 years, so not beginners mistake.
It’s frustrating for sure. Makes me hesitant to free feed round bales though, especially if we didn’t put them up personally to know how they were baled.
Edited by OhMax 2017-09-27 8:50 AM
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  Sock eating dog owner
Posts: 4557
Location: Where the pavement ends and the West begins Utah | If you can put the baby somewhere by him/herself. The big horses will eat him alive and run through the fence. I had mine with the big horses , it didn't work. I ended putting her with a crippled buddy, for awhile then out with the others. The crippled buddy took care of her after that so then it worked. You may have to put out 2 bales, so they don't have to fight for space. |
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 Midget Lover
Location: Kentucky | Hay net with ring has saved me a lot of money. I cut the strings off the round bale, throw the net around it, then put the ring around the bale. It's easy and woth it. |
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