DIY chopped hay

[wsmoak]

I’ve been buying Triple Crown chopped hay for the ancient one. He still has some teeth and actually can still eat regular baled hay, but he doesn’t eat as much as he used to through the Nibble Net. He’s nearing 30 and it just seems like too much effort. I’ve upped his soaked senior feed and started the chopped hay, but it’s expensive and he doesn’t really need the “Safe Starch”.

So I was reading about using a leaf mulcher and then realized… self, you have one! I usually use it for chipping branches but it has the big chute on the top. I got it out and…

220110_9493 by Wendy, on Flickr

Result
220110_9498 by Wendy, on Flickr

Success!
220110_9496 by Wendy, on Flickr

To match the store bought stuff I’d probably have to run it through twice. But he does have some teeth left, and this seems to work.

[NaturallyHappy]

That’s AWESOME! And a great picture!!!

[Tarlo_Farm]

Brilliant idea! I may have to borrow one from a friend for my old guy.

[wildlifer]

What a good idea - kudos for inventiveness to help the old guy! Mine is “only” 26 & still does fine with hay, but am definitely storing this idea away for future- not that I have a mulcher, but I have time make friends with someone who does,lol.

[wsmoak]

If you do this, be sure to wear goggles and a good mask. It kicks up a lot of dust and fine particles that you don’t want in your lungs or in your eyes.

I think people have had success with the electric leaf mulchers that sit on top of a trash can.

That would be way easier than wrangling the collection bag which only holds 2-3 flakes, not to mention fiddling with the choke and the pull start on this one. Small engines are such a pain, if I never hear the word “carburetor” again it will be too soon!

[rubygirl1968]

I bought a leaf mulcher and am chopping for the old mare at my barn along with my gelding. It works good but it is definitely dusty!

I’ll get a picture tonight but it seems comparable to the chopped I’ve bought.

[rubygirl1968]

I was in a hurry on this one. The weed eater string needed changing but I didn’t have time. It left some pieces longer than it usually does.

[Obsidian_Fire]

I have seen this done with a lawn mower also. Put the bag on the back of it to catch the hay.

[Tarlo_Farm]

Duh! I just realized I can use my monster leaf vacuum that has a mulcher on it. I think I read somewhere not to feed lawnmower grass to horses because it would have oils on it. Wouldn’t that be the same with chopping the hay that way?

[wsmoak]

I think not feeding cut green grass is more about fermentation than anything the lawnmower might deposit on them. If you give a horse a pile of grass clippings and they eat too much without chewing thoroughly (adding saliva) then it can go very wrong.

I don’t think there is oil on the blades on my lawnmower or the mulcher. There is a grease fitting on the spindle, but that should stay inside.

I’m definitely not seeing any issues with the leaf mulcher chopped hay. It’s just smaller pieces, it still feels and smells just like it did in longer pieces in flakes.

[carman_liz]

I used… and still sometimes for my senior that gets picky sometimes… a Worx blower mulcher. It comes with a cloth drawstringed cover for a garbage can for mulching leaves. I put that over a clean muck tub and chop about two flakes slowly, otherwise it gets stuck and bogged down and stops working. Clearing it out is a PITA! And then I dump the whole thing out and do it one more time. Both sides of the muck tub handles are clipped in the stall to each end of a corner so he cannot tip it. Usually he eats the whole muck tub in a couple days besides his regular hay. If i really want to make him eat it, I dump his senior feed over it and he snuffles thru the chopped stuff and gets some of it in each bite as he eats the senior.

String trimmers like the one mentioned above scare me bc if the string has to be replaced that means it is going into the chopped hay. Theres a video about it somewhere on the internet. That is what made me go with a blower mulcher with metal blades.

[Tarlo_Farm]

Big thanks to the OP for this suggestion. It too me a couple days, but I realized I could use my commercial-sized leaf vacuum/mulcher that is sitting parked for the season.
Works like a charm!! Glad I have quite a few left-over feed sacks to put the stuff in.

[wsmoak]

I only have the one bag that came with the machine, which holds maybe 3 flakes chopped.

I just bought one of these aftermarket bags to try. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TYRZS9Z

Right now I would pay A LOT to not have to stop and empty the bag repeatedly. If this works I will consider if it’s worth trying to make some of them myself or just buy a set from him. The reviews seem to say they are fine for leaves, so hay should not be a problem. It’s a looser weave which is going to be dustier but it’s probably good to get the dust OUT of the bag and off the hay rather than trapping it.

[wsmoak]

Reporting back with a review of the aftermarket bag. The looser weave is excellent for chopping hay, more of the dust blows out of it and away than with the original bag. I agree with the reviews, it’s fine for leaves (or hay) but would probably not hold up well for chipping branches.

I got the bigger one and it’s actually too big. It doesn’t fill up well on its own unless you flop it around and try to move the hay more to to bottom. I’m 5’5 and it’s hard to handle. If you’re going to dump the whole bag into the feeder it’s probably fine, but as I’m still emptying into plastic bags I’ve saved, it ends up being a bit too much for one of those and spills the remainder, or I have to take handfuls out first before I empty it. I am going to buy one of the smaller ones, about the same size as the original that came with my chipper (48" instead of 61" long.) It’s also really stiff as opposed to the floppy nylon(?) original one. Maybe it will soften up with use.