This was sent to me with perfect timing, I was really struggling to find a happy medium with Silk's hay! She's so picky and I had been giving her extra so that she always had some left, but then there was an awful lot going to waste as she wouldn't touch anything that had been left the next day. I was also finding when I had put a massive pile in for her the mice were always going into the bottom and I was scare when I was removing what was left each day that I was going to end up stabbing one with the pitch fork.
So I then started to give her less, but working out the right amount is just impossible. I hated when I came up to find I'd not quite given her enough to last her and there's nothing left. Never knowing exactly how long she'd been without either.
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| Her big unruly pile of hay, probably with added mice underneath it! |
When it came I found it very different from any other hay feeder I've had before, I'm not a fan of haynets so I'll only use one if I have to but the Haygrazer having larger holes and being able to be hung a little lower than a net so it should cause any strains that are known to be caused from haynets. The material seemed hard wearing and although it's not something I needed to try myself I could see why it would be a great option for those soaking hay, not only due to the mesh bottom which allows the water and dust to fall through but also due to not getting soaked in the process of carrying it or hanging it.
When filling the bag I first thought it seemed a lot bigger than expected but I found I over filled it rather easily and was unable to get the lid fastened so had to empty some out. I feel that I wouldn't be able to just give her one bag for her time in if she didn't have her hay pile. But I also wouldn't just leave her with one haynet if I used haynets, I however didn't have a haynet to compare the size of each.
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| Much neater |
So I set Silk's stable up with a smaller pile of hay and then the haygrazer bag, I used some twine to hook on the clips, although I was unsure about using clips as I've heard so many horror stories of horses getting caught on them so ended up taking them off and just using the twine to the d-ring the clips had been on with a quick release knot. I couldn't wait to see what she would make of it!
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| Her first sniff |
Later in the week I decided to see if she would eat from it when it would be a little harder, so I hung it away from the wall and I actually found she still ate from this first. It didn't seem to faze her at all when it would swing around after she'd managed to take a bite. Even with the movement I don't feel it really slowed her down at all but it certainly made it more interesting for her to eat.
I used the bag for over a month, I've found it hard wearing, although I found tying it up a pain. The strap is great for carrying it but it's not ideal for hanging it, nor are the clips. I think for myself personally to use in a stable with the horse I wouldn't buy this product but I defiantly think the Haygrazer bag is a great idea for show days, travelling to the show it will keep the trailer more tidy and pulling out for the horse to outside of the trailer will keep you tidier than if it was a haynet.
Check out the Haygrazer website to see their bags HERE
