Can Horses Eat Hay Stretcher?

IMPACT HAY STRETCHER can serve as a substitute for forage – hay or pasture. One pound of IMPACT HAY STRETCHER can replace 1 to 2 lb of hay consumed by your horse. If using as a complete feed to replace all forage and feed in your horse’s diet, recommended amounts of IMPACT HAY STRETCHER are shown below in pounds.

How much hay stretcher should I feed my horse?

5 to 1.5 pounds per day. A general application is that one 3-quart scoop of a complete feed will replace one average 4 pound flake of hay. For horses being fed two flakes of hay twice a day, replacing half of the hay with a complete feed will make the hay supply stretch out twice as long.

Is hay extender good for horses?

In addition to serving as a source of energy when forage is in short supply or when only poor-quality forage can be attained, consider other benefits of forage extenders, such as sustaining a healthy intestinal microbiome that contributes to normal digestion and overall health.

What is the difference between hay stretcher and hay pellets?

Hay Stretcher is a pellet with a nutritional profile similar to grass hay, but slightly lower in fiber and higher in energy. It may be used to replace up to half the hay in an animal’s diet on a pound-for-pound basis.

What does hay stretcher do?

Inspire® Hay Stretcher is a high-fiber pellet designed to replace or supplement hay or forage. Providing consistent quality fiber from Inspire Hay Stretcher helps to support digestive function and health, especially when hay or pasture is limited or of poor quality.

Can you feed horses hay pellets?

Horses often eat hay pellets faster than traditional hay because the smaller, ground particles are easy to chew and swallow. Hay pellets also do not provide any long-stem forage. However, for horses with poor teeth, soaking these pellets can still provide important fiber and nutrients.

What is the best ration balancer for horses?

That’s why GRO ‘N WIN™ or Senior Balancer are the perfect ration balancers to complement your horse’s forage. Created to be fed as stand-alone feed or as a top-dress to your horse’s daily grain ration, both are formulated with a precise balance of amino acids, vitamins and minerals for ideal nutrient balance.

Is Hay stretcher a complete feed?

IMPACT® HAY STRETCHER can serve as a substitute for forage – hay or pasture. One pound of IMPACT® HAY STRETCHER can replace 1 to 2 lbs of hay consumed by your horse. If using as a complete feed to replace all forage and feed in your horse’s diet, recommended amounts of IMPACT® HAY STRETCHER are shown below in pounds.

What is the fastest way to put weight on a horse?

Allowing 24/7 access to pasture or hay (or as much forage as possible). If increased amounts of hay aren’t enough, try offering a higher quality hay such as alfalfa or an immature grass hay. Alfalfa tends to be higher in energy and protein and lower in sugar. Alfalfa can be fed as hay or as cubes/pellets.

Can a horse eat hay with a muzzle on?

A determined horse can still ingest a fair amount of forage through the hole in a grazing muzzle, but overall intake is usually reduced significantly over what he would eat without the muzzle.

What is the most digestible hay for horses?

Timothy hay is a popular choice because of its easy digestibility and may be more suitable for certain life stages. However, alfalfa hay has a higher calcium-to-phosphorus ratio, which makes it unsuitable for younger horses. Timothy hay has a balanced calcium-to-phosphorus ratio.

What happens if you feed horses too much hay?

But it’s easy to go overboard when feeding them with the wrong hard feeds or hay that is too high in sugar or protein. Overfeeding leads to problems like obesity, laminitis, and colic. Healthy horses need a very simple diet of good pasture or hay.

What to feed horses when you run out of hay?

If hay isn’t enough, grain can be added, but the bulk of a horse’s calories should always come from roughage. Horses are meant to eat roughage, and their digestive system is designed to use the nutrition in grassy stalks. A horse should eat one to two percent of their body weight in roughage every day.

What to feed horses when there is no hay?

Six Hay Alternatives for Horses

• Bagged chopped forage. It can replace all of your horse’s hay, if necessary.
• Hay cubes. Chopped cubed hay (usually alfalfa or timothy or a combination) is another 100-percent replacement.
• Hay pellets.
• “Complete” feed.
• Beet pulp.
• Soybean hulls.

Can horses eat hay pellets dry?

If your horse is still eating a lot of hay and the weather is warm, I would recommend beginning with 2-5 lbs per day of pellets dry, then add water as described.

What happens if you soak hay too long?

In warmer conditions, soaking hay for more than two hours is also likely to result in the hay starting to ferment and this is not desirable for then feeding to horses. Studies have shown that soaking for longer periods such as 9 hours, also increased the microbial contamination in the hay.

Can you feed a horse just alfalfa pellets?

You should include alfalfa pellets in your horse’s diet for many reasons. However, you should not use them to replace hay. Why is that? These pellets do not have particles big enough to stimulate the horse’s digestive tract.

Does soaking hay remove nutrients?

In addition to removing sugars, soaking also reduces some minerals. Crude protein, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium concentrations all decrease with soaking. However, certain horses might benefit from the loss of specific nutrients.

Can horses choke on hay pellets?

You will hear all kinds of myths that pellets, cubes or beet pulp cause choking, but in reality a horse can choke on any type of food under the right conditions. Horses have been known to choke on hay, apples and even grass!

Can a horse colic on hay pellets?

Alfalfa cubes and pellets can cause colic.
Two primary causes of colic in horses are overeating and diets that include grains or concentrated foods. If allowed, horses eat more alfalfa cubes and pellets than is healthy. And pellets are concentrated in alfalfa hay, increasing the risk of colic.

Which is better hay or pellets?

Hay provides the largest volume of fiber overall compared to hay pellets, cubes and chopped hay due to its natural particle size (longer leaves and stems) and requires longer chew time per pound. Chew time is critical mentally and physically for grazing herbivores.