Version User Scope of changes
Sep 3 2012, 2:40 AM EDT Horsemama 26 words added, 26 words deleted
Jul 31 2012, 1:46 PM EDT Healthezhay 1 photo added, 1 widget added

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Horses are designed to process roughage 24 hours a day. As Jessica Jahiel says, horses are grazers, nibblers, trickle-feeders.

Jaime Jackson points out that wild horses expend time and energy finding their food. He calls unlimited lush grass a "founder trap."

Slow feeder designs permit horses to eat a controlled amount of feed, constantly. The hay never runs out. Mealtime
anxiety disappears. (Note: this concept works best with grass hay)

Some choke-prone horses can eat dry hay cubes or concentrates from feeder toys in place of requiring soaked feed.

Horses seem to enjoy the puzzle! Some prefer to eat from a restricted free-choice hay feeder even when loose hay is available.


This page features an overview of several types of slow feeders. Be sure to look at Small-Mesh Hay Nets (smhn) -- low-cost and versatile slow hay feeders with many more examples in the Small-Mesh Hay Nets section of the wiki.
Check out all the options -- see menu at LEFT!

The Health EZ Hay Feeder!

Ali munching from her Slow Grazer Hay Feeder
By popular demand ~ DIY Kit available now!! SlowGrazer.com
The Natural Feeder (TM)
Barrel.Net feeder
Bearcat's barrel/net feeder
Cheryl's Homemade Plastic Drum Hayfeeder

Nose-It! JoAnn's horses on their first day with a new feeder toy. 4-cm hole dispenses ODTB hay cubes or complete feed.


Estremel's metal grid slow feeder with divider
for Sunny and Chavez



Slow feeding in freezing mud season - Jewel, Stella, Ally

Destiny and Maggie trying out their small mesh hay net.



Closeup of small-mesh hay net on ground. Jewel and Stella, masked hay munchers.


Best Friends grazing muzzle at portraitswithhorses.com


Pasture Pal feeders in NY. Ally in foreground.

round bale feeder box with TX Hay Net
Tangledmanes Hay Well with TX Hay Net
Modified Slow down Feeder

Joanne's Corner Hay Feeder
Secured hay net on gate does not swing

Angela's net doesn't swing around and can't be flipped over the gate.
hockey hay net outside
Lorna's horses eating 100 lbs of hay from a (puck) hockey net with one-inch holes.

Cinderella & Sophie's hay feeder click here for more

Swedish Hoof School (YouTube link)
nets for sale


Cinderella's weighted hay pillow

pawing through snow


Jewel and Stella paw through the snow -- Mother Nature's slow grass feeder?



Hay cubes dispensed at dark. Stella and Ally.
Stella with JoAnn's Amazing Graze feeding toy. Dispensing hole is sized for alfalfa cubes, but also dispenses the smaller ODTB timothy hay cubes
Freedom Feeder Boarding stable application for ease of filling

Available at freedomfeeder.com
Maria Siebrand's hay feeder
Maria Siebrand's fence-mounted hay feeder















The Grazing Box Cassie enjoys her Grazing Box, available at www.grazingbox.com
SMHN hanger
Russian SMHN
Horse owners can save up to 50% on hay cost, compared to feeding loose hay. (Or about a 25% savings over feeding in a hay rack or open bin.) Horses eat the same amount of hay from slow feeders but with no waste, which also means less work to clean up!

SLOW FEEDER HAY BAGS:


The Standard Hay Pillow™ Slow Feeder

Standard Hay Pillow™ Slow Feeder Hay Bag

TheHayPillow.com
Hanging Hay Pillow™ Slow Feeder Hay Bag

Hanging Hay Pillow™ Slow Feeder Hay Bag

TheHayPillow.com
Hay Net Comparison Chart slowfeeding.com - Even more information on slow feeding
Convinced? Then be sure to avoid these mistakes when building your own slow feeder.

Slow Feeder Accessories
Bag Buddy holds bags open for easy filling- click for website
Bag Buddy
Holds open any slow feed bag for easy filling, just slip it over any fence or wall or I just put mine on the back of my golf cart to easily fill my bags. Then you take the full bag of hay off and hang it up for the horses to enjoy! This is not meant for the horse to eat from, just holds the bag for filling.

Stall Bag Buddy
Mounts on any solid wall and opens 90 degrees for easy and fast filling then just snap it closed for horse to enjoy the hay...Click on Photo to go to website: Pat. Pending
tntcustommetalworks.comStall Bag Buddy


Hay Net Comparison Chart slowfeeding.com - Even more information on slow feeding



Convinced? Then be sure to avoid these mistakes when building your own slow feeder.