Boredom breakers and low sugar treats for a horse on stall rest

[akhunterrider]

My lease horse has suffered an unfortunate injury (hock fracture) and will be on stall rest for the foreseeable future. He is kind of a chunky boy, even when he lives outside. So I’m looking for ways to 1) keep him entertained and 2) from looking like a pony that is on the verge of founder. I have been looking at some various horse toys and hay nets to keep him entertained. Do you have any favorites?

This horse is pretty mouthy and loves all food. I normally feed him store bought treats and wintergreen lozenges, but I’d like to cut back on sugary snacks while he can’t move around much. I know hay pellets are good for the treat balls or as small snacks. Any other favorites?

[clanter]

we have hay balls for the horses, you stuff these things with hay that they eat and can beat around the stall

also for the one that is on a very controlled diet her hay net is suspended from the ceiling in the center of her stall

and for the yearling he has a squeaky chicken dog toy hanging that he plays with

and for our favorite mare she had a large screen TV to watch, the old Mission Impossible TV series was her favorite

[Posting_Trot]

An unbreakable Mylar mirror hung in the stall. For some reason a lot of horses seem to like this.

[RosebudLaVie]

I love the Shires treat ball and the hay ball. Purina makes some “carb conscious” treats that are low in sugar that fit in the treat ball well.

[pony_baloney]

Hilton Herbs Herballs are sugar free and are a size that might work in treat-dispensing toys. And they smell like pizza!!

[akhunterrider]

Which bay ball do you all have? I’ve seen several different brands and the reviews are a bit mixed.

[clanter]

@akhunterrider

Which bay ball do you all have?

daughter bought ours for her horses… all I know is they are Blue

We feed Teff hay that is low sugar which does make stuffing these a chore as the hay is long stem.

Horses with shoes can be destructive to these hay balls as they bang them around the contact by the shoe can break the screw in access port of the hay ball otherwise I have not seen any issues. We have had these hay balls for several years, they have been used in their paddocks but most often used in their stalls.

Since we use them inside and out I an not sure if the plastic used is UV resistant… if it of low UV quality that may explain why the screw in caps can be broken.

But even the broken caps do easily screw in and out easily

(as for a Treat, we use Standlee Teff pellets… if you go to their website there are often discount coupons that can be printed)

[WildGooseChase]

If he is eating any complete feed, I’d start decreasing that now and move to a ration balancer and 24/7 hay either free choice or in a net (nothing too slow feed as it can actually be stressful!) or as close as you can get without too much weight gain. The hay balls, toys and treats are good, but the forage is the most important right now. Medications and the lack of movement will do a number on the GI, and forage can help with some of that.

[akhunterrider]

This horse is a chunk of a guy before being on stall rest and he gets very little grain as is. When he lives in his outdoor pen, they have a round bale in a hay net 24/7. The stalls have a corner hay bin. His grain may get reduced from a couple cups down to a single cup.

[Bonnie2]

I hang empty water bottles or detergent jugs for my guys. They love batting them around and destroying them and the price is right!

[kaya842]

None of my horses have ever been interested in toys so no help there. I like using hay pellets for treats or low sugar treats like the Haystack treats (they smell so yummy!).

[EmilyM]

I get Purina Carb Conscious treats for my IR horses.

Would Soaking this guy’s hay be an option? it can take out the sugar and lower calories. Sometimes it slows their eating as well because they don’t like it. Hay Chix haynets hold up well and you can get slow feed sizes

[Tee]

I have the hay balls from High Country Plastics and they’ve held up great for the last or so that I have had them. And that’s with a young horse that likes to beat the snot out of them and an older horse who likes to fling it against the walls.

[akhunterrider]

I ended up ordering a Burlingham Sports hay ball. The best price I found was from FarmVet.

I did look at the High Country plastics one, which was at Valley Vet, but it was a bit more once shipping was factored in, plus was going to take a bit longer to ship.

[akhunterrider]

I don’t think the barn has the staffing to soak his hay. It’s a full service barn, but their staffing is fairly minimal. When not injured, he lives in a group of geldings in a dry lot. They have a round bale in a hay net inside a bale feeder. So he’s used to eating hay from a net. If the ball I just ordered doesn’t slow him down enough, I’ll talk to his owner about her thoughts on hay nets in his stall. To my knowledge, this has been the first time he has been on extended stall rest since she has owned him.

*edited due to poor typing skills

[twostinkydogs]

I feel for you. I have a very chunky mare who was assigned stall rest with a grade 4 check ligament tear and I swear she gained 100-200 pounds in a few weeks. I ended up sending her to rehab farm with an aquatread and walker because I was so worried. When she was on stall rest a few years ago, the hay ball, a mirror, and trazedone helped the most. And a lot of time with me just hanging out in front of her stall. Green Guard has a new hay bag that goes on the floor so they are eating in a more natural position than a hay net. I haven’t tried one, but they have been selling out very quickly.

[Chall]

Be sure your (g) horse is not panicky. My TB killed his gallon milk jug promptly and large parts of it were stuck in his tail. If he’d been spooky that might have set him off.

[akhunterrider]

Hay ball and salt on a rope arrived yesterday. He has been moved to a tiny paddock (I think he was just going stir crazy in his stall). He was obsessed with the salt last night and I filled the hay ball as well. I probably won’t be back to the barn until the weekend, but I will see how he is liking it when I go out then.

[Tee]

After my guy had KS surgery, his vet said we could make a tiny area (literally just big enough to step outside) and it made a HUGE difference in his attitude. He’s never been much of a horse that likes toys, so this was great for him.