| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Fran E |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 09:13:04 AM
I've just got the keys to our new place which has 2 1/2 acres, stables and a school, so will finally have my two girlies at home.Yipee!!
My dilema now is that they have always been in livery where hay is provided (large round bale - shared with 8 other horses) so I have no idea what quantity of small bales they are going to consume.
They currently eat - 1 horse - one small & one medium haynet / night and the other has one large haynet.
I've managed to get 100 small bales from a farmer which are really good quality and he's offering me the chance to have more (not sure how many) at £5 a bale.
So really I'm asking for your help to recommend how many I'm likely to use per day and do I order the rest of the hay I'm being offered, as I know its been a hard winter so hay is in short supply. |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Roseanne |
Posted - 16 Feb 2011 : 10:55:13 AM
I have a similar set up and two horses (out 24/7 but with access to shelters) have half a (large) bale of hay each over 24 hours or ad lib haylage. My farmer and his wife have charged £3 a heavy bale this winter and £22 for a large round haylage bale which he delivers, opens and re-covers ready for me to use; they are sweethearts. The haylage lasts about 9 days so is good value.
I have two hayracks and the horses have as much as they want. If they have hay, I put it in haylage nets so they 'graze' it and I must admit it lasts much longer. They've stayed in great condition all winter. |
| MinHe |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 11:53:35 PM
Poundworld has luggage scales for - well, a pound!
Keren |
| pat day |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 8:38:44 PM
Ditto to what Susan say,s, It will only get more expensive. |
| Suelin |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 7:43:41 PM
Fran E, store as much as you can and stack it on pallets to keep and air flow so that you don't lose the bottom layer. |
| Fran E |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 6:15:18 PM
Thankyou all very much, much appreciated.
just found out that the farmers got another 100 bales so might just have to get cleaning out another store room to make space - from what you've said - better to have too much than not enough.
least then it gives me time to work out what they eat and for how much to order/have from this yrs hay cut.
cheers everyone |
| Pashon2001 |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 6:00:05 PM
The complete amount of hay/roughage a horse needs is between 1 1/2 and 2% of its body weight. The average 15hh arab weighs approx 450Kg so he would need between 7 - 9kg of roughage. This is a guide as if your horse/s are naturally lean then more, fat then less. I errr on the 9kg. Also good/poor quality grass must be taken into consideration, and how long they get it.
In saying all that i don't weigh my hay, my arms have spent the last 100 yrs 'knowing' how much a bundle weighs lol!!! |
| Callisto |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 1:43:57 PM
We feed 5 kilos a night for the stabled horses (out all day), plus they get two feeds a day. The two ponies are given 4 kilos each a night in their field shelter. So weigh your horses hay ration, weigh your bale (they vary so much in size and weight that it is hard to generalise how much hay is in a small bale) and then calculate how many you need.
Sorry, just realised that Zan has already said all this  . I weigh our hay nets with a spring loaded scale bought from our local petrol station, think it's designed for weighing your luggage, cost about £3.99. |
| sab2 |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 1:09:18 PM
We used to work it out at half a bale a day per horse, hay will store well as long as its kept dry so i think i would buy as much as you can store then you will have some spare to start you off in the autumn. |
| jaj |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 10:34:18 AM
I use almost a bale over 24 hours between two (15.1 older mare and around 13.3 youngster).
They have it ad-lib day and night with access to the stables so that not too much is wasted.
Mine is £5 per bale too.
Good luck with having your own place, how exciting  !
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| littlearabians |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 09:46:36 AM
I use a bale and a half every night for 3 adults and a filly from last year. they are out all day on good grass and even though the grass isn't too rich now they still have bits of hay left over the next morning. |
| pinkvboots |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 09:34:22 AM
Our bales are coming up small at the moment I use between 6 and 7 a week for a 15.2 and 16.2, although they are out all day they get what I would feed them if they were in as the grazing is poor. |
| Zan |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 09:28:00 AM
Difficult to advise because only you know how much your horses are going to be in/out, how long you will be feeding hay for etc. Also, hay bales vary a lot in weight from farm to farm. I suggest you weigh one of these bales, weigh what you give your horses in a day, and do the sums to see how long a bale lasts and work it out from there.
On the other hand, storage usually dictates how much hay you can buy at a time. I would be inclined, if you have the room and this hay is really good, to fill whatever space you have. |
| angelarab |
Posted - 15 Feb 2011 : 09:21:05 AM
I use about 2 bales a week in at night and out during day End of October to End March so 26 weeks round up for the odd day in call it 60 bales. I do feed a fast fibre and chaff bucket at night to keep him munching. He does alternate between munching a few mouthfuls of hay then a bit of bucket,i like to see that
p.s congratulations on your new pad, still a dream for me |
