My horse is driving me potty eating his straw beds

myfunkyhorse

myfunkyhorse

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Jan 9, 2009
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Being blown around on my horse in Berkshire
I've tried spraying it and he still eats it!! I did him a massive lovely bed on Saturday and today there's nothing left!! I've been topping it up too, I also put shavings under to soak the wet up. What else could I try to stop him eating it. He gets enough hay to sink a ship and hard feeds and yet he still insists on eating the straw. :eek:
 
This is one of the reasons I'm not a fan of straw bedding :(
Have you tried mixing urine-wet and clean hay together? Sort of defeats the purpose to my mind, but needs must. Can you try another source of straw? He obviously finds current very tasty (is it wheat/oat/barley?), perhaps oilseed rape straw instead? Link to an option here - http://www.sundownproducts.co.uk/equine_sdYellow.html - no idea about costs though.
 
Can you mix it with some shavings to make it less appealing? or Nedz bedz type stuff (that has been treated with something I'm sure). Naughty greedy hoss!!!!
 
He's a right bugger.. I've spoken to my local tack shop and they've recommeneded Yukkabed and there going to order some in for me. So I am going to try that Ive tried to mix up the nice hay with the damp hay but he still manages to hoover up the good stuff.

Trewsers said:
Can you mix it with some shavings to make it less appealing? or Nedz bedz type stuff (that has been treated with something I'm sure). Naughty greedy hoss!!!!
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Dylan is the same. I put him on wood pellets underneath with straw on top (poo pick everyday, full muck out weekly) and make sure he has more than enough hay to get him through the night (10lb of haylage, 3/4 bale hay) and he's in no longer than 12hrs, ideally 10.

If he eats the straw then, so be it - it's him that has to lie on wood pellets instead (i know horses don't think that way, and i'm sure he's quite happy on just the pellets but the straw is much cosier, I feel less guilty, and doing it this way he tends to eat a bit but not much)
 
this might be an option?; i went on to shavings this year to save on muck heap size, and have found that it is actually cheaper to use shavings, than it was to buy straw, as my porkers were eating all of thier straw beds last year, at an alarming rate!
 
I wish I could bed Silver on Straw as it would be cheaper although I hate mucking it out - but she eats it out of skip buckets over a bale of hay or halage next to it :rolleyes:
 
What about spraying it with teatree oil disinfectant? Thats what I did with mine and she no longer eats the bed and teatree oil isnt going to harm her in anyway.
 
Ahh yess, the straw eating horse... cheaper than hay I suppose ha ha! Mine eats his bed too, it's good for them as has lots of fibre (laminitic feed contain lots of oat straw). Hemp is palatable too so don't try that - yep, shavings is a good idea. If you have mats, you don't need bedding really, just enough to soak up wet.
 
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