# What's worse feeding Straw or going too long without munching?



## Lorrie66 (21 February 2011)

Hi there,

I have an exceedingly greedy horse who can devour his stuffed full very small holed Elim-a-net by the middle of the night.
I've been worried that he is then stood too long until his 8am feed & turnout without munching on anything.
I have started putting a 2nd net at the back of the stable half filled with clean straw for him to munch on - which he is doing. He has a great coat & well covered so he needs no more calories so I don't want to feed a 2nd net of hay.

What does everyone think about the half a net of straw? Is it safe? 

I keep reading very conflicting views. He's seems fine & got myself worried last week & drove to the livery in my nightie - but he was fine. 
Is it OK to do long term? or maybe just a winter solution until he can be turned out for longer periods. 

Thanks


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## fatpiggy (21 February 2011)

If eating straw was bad for horses there would be an awful lot of dead ones out there!  The "old" opinion was that barley straw in particular caused colic, but if you live in a barley straw area you can't get wheat or oat straw so you haven't got a lot of choice.  Modern threshing removes 99% of the prickly awns and so the risk is minimized. During the brief time I used a straw bed, my horse ate herself onto bare boards every night with no harm at all.  Your horse will be much happier munching some calorie-free straw than chewing the edge of his stable door and swallowing the splinters.  Stop worrying!!


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## PucciNPoni (21 February 2011)

Hmmm, my very good doer gets a doubled net which contains 1 slice hay, 1 slice oat straw.  Hasn't done him harm - on the contrary - he's losing weight as required.

Many chaffs are oat straw based.  
As far as I know, feeding oat or barley straw is okay.  And to me (and my horse) much preferred over going without!


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## mystiandsunny (21 February 2011)

I feed one slice haylage (small bale), and one slice oat straw.  She's fine on it.


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## Nailed (21 February 2011)

Eating straw is not an issue.. not eating is..

Lou x


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## pillion (21 February 2011)

Lorrie66 said:



			Hi there,

  He's seems fine & got myself worried last week & drove to the livery in my nightie - but he was fine. 

Thanks
		
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bless you lol!! we have all probably been there, I mix haylage with oat straw, never had a problem...........

maybe mix up the two and provide the two nets this way


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## TGM (21 February 2011)

pillion said:



			maybe mix up the two and provide the two nets this way

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This would be my suggestion too.  There* is *a risk of impaction colic when feeding straw, but this can be reduced by mixing it with other more digestible forages and obviously ensuring fresh, clean water is always available.


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## outandabout (21 February 2011)

My vet advised me that feeding one then the other can result in an impaction colic and that it is better to mix the hay and straw together and feed it this way


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## lizness (21 February 2011)

I feed a haynet of hay and two or three small slices of wheat straw on the floor. She used to eat her straw bed so thought it wouldn't do any harm. It has made my hay last a lot longer. It meands that my horse always has something tom munch on


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## JoBird (21 February 2011)

I would much rather my horses ate straw than were left with empty stomachs for too long. I have fed straw in addition to hay for many years (and now use a straw bed too!).  I have fed oat, wheat and barley straw and all have been fine.  I would say that mine prefer oat straw first and then wheat straw (even the stuff that doesnt look nice to us!). 
I would say that occasionally I mix the two but on the whole they have a huge container with hay on the top and the straw underneath for when they run out but maybe mix the two if you have time. 
I am totally happy to feed straw and it is the perfect choice for your horse's scenario. 
x


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## ISHmad (22 February 2011)

Why not soak his hay so that you can feed it ad lib without him piling on the pounds?


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## tallyho! (22 February 2011)

Why is everyone so paranoid about horses not eating 24/7, 8hrs is less than what they would normally sleep/stand for if they had full turnout left to their own devices. 

As far as I can gather, from the conflicting info out there is that horses feel the urge to chew so as long as they are chewing something safe and edible, I wouldn't hesitate to feed a mixture of hay and straw.


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## Kallibear (22 February 2011)

8hrs is less than what they would normally sleep/stand
		
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Not entirely true. Horses sleep for less than 4hrs a day and in no more than 30min stretches. THey will doze for a couple of hours, but again for no more than 30mins ata time. They are therefore never not-munching for more than half and hour or so. 

I woulnd't feed straw on it's own as they can and do colic, although it's far more to do with not drinking enough than the straw itself.

I would happily feed half:half hay and straw though, with a big bucket of water beside the net to make sure they drink.

As others sai, why not mix up his net with half and half and give him two nets. The extra forage will give him much longer eating, and he'll prob spend considerable time picking the hay out from the straw first.


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## Jadey (22 February 2011)

horses do best on constant forage available as it reduces the risk of gastric ulcers and other problems. a hay and straw mix sounds really good, but if you are worried about that soak the hay. research has shown that submerging hay for 12 hours halves the energy content. but good quality straw won't be a problem.


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## Lorrie66 (22 February 2011)

Hello everyone - thanks for fab & very interesting advice. I have started mixing 2 nets with half & half. He has an auto water drinker so plenty of water all night as he needs it. (as long as we have no more minus 12 degree nights!)
He seems very happy tonight !


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## eggs (22 February 2011)

I wouldn't worry too much.

In the old days it was recommended to feed oat straw to make the hay rations go further.

My horses that are stabled at night get their last hay net at 9.30 ish and I know the greedy ones will have finished that well within an hour and won't get breakfast until a little after 8.00 the next morning.  In 35+ years of owning horses I have never had a problem with them not having something to eat at all times.


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## Becksway (22 February 2011)

After realizing our mini wasnt so mini just after Christmas i started mixing straw in with his hay and its really helped us bring his weight down while still making sure he has something to munch on.


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## PucciNPoni (23 February 2011)

Also, I have discovered that feeding straw/hay combinedi in doubled small holed nets seems to really slow the rate of consumption down for my fast eater.  What used to last him an hour now will trickle out for hours (though as yet to be determined exactly how long).  But the other day I was told about 2 hours after I'd fed he was only 1/2 way thru his two slices.  So reckon this lasts between four and five hours now.

If you bring a horse in at 4 pm and they're standing in til 7 am (ish) then it's a long time to go without if they're consuming all they've been fed within an hour or two.  Dragging out the munching time is better than leaving without.


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## Amymay (23 February 2011)

What does everyone think about the half a net of straw? Is it safe?
		
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Yep - I've done this with a 'fatty' and it was great, as like you I was very unhappy about the amount of time she was having to spend not eating.  Feeding straw as part of the ration meant that she could eat her head off and still be kept nice and trim.


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## tallyho! (23 February 2011)

PucciNPoni said:



			If you bring a horse in at 4 pm and they're standing in til 7 am (ish) then it's a long time to go without if they're consuming all they've been fed within an hour or two.  Dragging out the munching time is better than leaving without.
		
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I do agree with that, if you are bringing in that early. 

Also, if you bed down on straw I find all mine eat the fresh bits of their beds quite happily even when laying down. I feed from floor too so the hay gets everywhere and makes it longer to find and makes them forage for the 'leftovers'.


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## Welshboy (23 February 2011)

My horse (very good-doer too) can devour approx 10 lbs of hay from an elim-a-net (or, indeed a double haynet) in about 4 hours.  So, I'm guessing pretty much has nothing left by 9.30pm, until 8.30 in the morning. But, he has a straw bed and whilst he doesn't eat masses of it, he obviously nibbles and comes to no harm..

I too would not want to give any more hay, as he can gain weight so easily.


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## SO1 (23 February 2011)

I think in some European countries such as Portugal they feed straw not hay and I don't think they have problems.

I think it must be very boring for horses stood in for more than 12 hours if they run out of food after a couple of hours. It is different for living out horses as they have each other to play with or keep each other company if they are not eating or sleeping, rather than having to stand in a small space for hours on end.

In the first instance I would try soaking the hay and if that does not work then maybe try soaked straw this might soften it and increase the water intake if you are worried about colic.


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## Flummoxed (24 February 2011)

My lad is a good doer at the best of times and has come out of winter looking much too fat. I have also taken the step of feeding half hay/half straw overnight. I know that he eats at his bed anyway, so figure this can't be any worse.

He also appears to be quite happy with the new arrangement..........


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## Lorrie66 (1 April 2011)

Hi all,

Just thought I'd let you know that my boy is looking fab on 2 overnight nets of hay & straw and his fast fibre feed with top spec comprehensive supp + linseed + garlic! 
Thanks for the responses - the vet also agreed that mixed nets is the way to go and as he has auto water he always has enough liquid. He seems v happy boy.


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## PucciNPoni (2 April 2011)

Glad you're finding this successful.  I have been mixing hay/straw in double holed nets to slow the rate of consumption and for weight loss purposes since January.  And while that's not the only thing I've done, it's probably the most effective thing I've done - since then we've increased work load (gradually), and changed the diet somewhat - and (accorsding to my tape) my boy has dropped nearly 80kg!!  

He's been munching longer and seems happier for it.  I've had to go buy him a new girth as we were out of holes with the old one.  His energy has increased and he is much more capable of working through his back.

I am a huge convert of feeding straw and hay mixed.  The trick for me now will be finding a balance in there so he doesn't continue to lose weight but keeps what he's got and just keep increasing his fitness and muscle tone.  Happy happy!


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## jmp_pops (4 April 2011)

All our ponies have 75% Oat Straw 25% Hay during the winter, its also cheaper than hay .  put it in a smalled holed haynet otherwise get more waste


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## posie_honey (4 April 2011)

i fed half straw half haylege when i could not get hay - worked a treat  and horse rather randomly went for strwa first.... odd horse


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## Alec Swan (4 April 2011)

Nailed said:



			Eating straw is not an issue.. not eating is..

Lou x
		
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Exactly this,  and _good quality_ barley straw is a poor man's hay.  I've seen plenty of horses kept in such a fashion,  without any ill effects.

Alec.


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## jcwh (5 April 2011)

mine ate straw. after a few weeks i thought all was good, she got colic.


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## NOISYGIRL (5 April 2011)

Going too long without munching


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