Experiences with slow feeders: PortaGrazer, Pacefeeder, or The Natural Feeder??

[BadKarma]

My mustang has been eating his own poop, and it needs to stop! It has really become a much larger problem, because he ended up with pinworms and roundworms. Then, he rubbed his behind so much that he got a secondary infection (the area is cleaned daily, he still rubs). He has been dewormed with ivermectin, panacur power pack, and quest plus at different times within the last several months, because it appears that he’s continually reinfecting himself.

As for the cause of the coprophagia, he’s fed Triple Crown Lite and good quality Coastal 3x a day. I’ve tried probiotics, minerals, vitamins, and the poo eating has not stopped. He’s been to the vet, had comprehensive blood work (it’s all normal). At this point, I think it’s just boredom. I even have a boredom toy on order.

I would like to get a sturdy slow feeder. Before I dive in and spend $400, I was hoping to find some people that have had experience with these or could recommend a similar product.

[Hermein]

I would put a grazing muzzle on him, taking it off only at meal time—if that’s possible for you.

My neighbor’s horse also eats poop. He’s 39, is fed soupy food twice a day & really looks in good weight. She thinks he does it because he doesn’t get enough food–but, because he does look so fit, and her vet recommends that she doesn’t change his routine.

There are some diy plans around for building slow feeders–should be way below $400, even if you hire someone to build it for you.

[arlosmine]

I tried a portal grazer, and found that my horse didn’t get all of his hay out of it. Also when the weather heated up, he got abrasions on his face from having his head stuffed into the warm, small space of the barrel. I loved the cockpit, but the logistics didn’t work well for us.

[arlosmine]

I tried a porta grazer, and found that my horse didn’t get all of his hay out of it. Also when the weather heated up, he got abrasions on his face from having his head stuffed into the warm, small space of the barrel. I loved the concept,m but the logistics didn’t work well for us.

[Scribbler]

You should verify this with your vet. But my understanding is that when the eggs come out in the manure, it takes a few days for the eggs to hatch into larvae. And they need to be in larvae form to infect a horse. So if you are cleaning the stall/paddock once or twice a day, that should minimize exposure to larvae. Also, if the horse is only eating very fresh manure, that would reduce his exposure to larvae.

What would be the idea of the slow feeder? Is it to slow down his hay time, so he does’t have as much time to eat manure? Could you use a net instead, at least as a trial, to see if slowing down his hay time works? If he walks away from his half full hay net and eats manure, then probably the slow feeder wouldn’t work either. I suggest hay nets only because they are much cheaper to try out.

Our horses had a period this fall of wanting to eat dirt in turnout. Not sure what that was about. We let them. They weren’t ingesting that much. It was primarily degraded wood chips (hog fuel), not sand or anything with a high level of manure mixed in.

[BadKarma]

Very good to know about the warmth/heat being an issue! Thank you.

[BadKarma]

duplicate

[BadKarma]

Scribbler, thanks so much for the hay net as a trial suggestion; it’s an excellent point and now I will definitely try that first.

It’s also good to know about the egg to larvae cycle. I think he eats poop whether it’s new or old, but if I can’t get one of the teenagers to muck his turnout more frequently that should help a lot.

[newhorsemommy]

I’ve used Nibble Nets and really liked them. They are very sturdy for horses that are outdoors. Mine were in a run-in shelter and held up for over two years outdoors. I’m only not using them anymore because I changed barns and they won’t feed in nets.

I used the Nibble Net Extreme. My mare does have front shoes, so we hung it high enough that pawing would be difficult, but not so high that it was at an awkward level. Here’s a link to all their different products.

http://www.thinaircanvas.com/nibblenet/picturesframe.htm

[stb]

I have both Nibble Nets and Porta Grazers.

I like the Porta Grazers best - they are easy to fill, the horses eat in a natural position, and there is very little wasted hay on the ground like you get with a net. The only caveat is they don’t work well in the rain. The hay gets wet and stays wet and can sour if you live in hot and humid land like I do. Not a big deal for me, just something to be aware of. If I know it’s going to rain I put the Porta Grazers in the stall or use my Nibble Nets instead. The Porta Grazers are great for dry lot use - they keep the horses from ingesting sand since the hay is contained in the barrel.

I like the Nibble nets too, but find that one of my horses wrenches his neck pretty violently when he eats out of the net. I figure that can’t be good.

[AKB]

I am happy with my Portagrazer corner feeders. I have fastened them in a corner, using a screw eye, snap hook and baling twine. Otherwise, my guys knock them over.

[enyo44]

Portagrazers have worked well for my horses. My playful geldings love playing with theirs and prefer to eat out of it rather than off of the ground.

[Frog_Pond]

[QUOTE=stb;8985687]
I have both Nibble Nets and Porta Grazers.

I like the Porta Grazers best - they are easy to fill, the horses eat in a natural position, and there is very little wasted hay on the ground like you get with a net. The only caveat is they don’t work well in the rain. The hay gets wet and stays wet and can sour if you live in hot and humid land like I do. Not a big deal for me, just something to be aware of. If I know it’s going to rain I put the Porta Grazers in the stall or use my Nibble Nets instead. The Porta Grazers are great for dry lot use - they keep the horses from ingesting sand since the hay is contained in the barrel.

I like the Nibble nets too, but find that one of my horses wrenches his neck pretty violently when he eats out of the net. I figure that can’t be good.[/QUOTE]

I use PortaGrazers & Nibble Nets, too. My big guy tosses the PortaGrazers around for fun, like soccer balls, and he prefers to eat out of the lower one with the mini-horse sized holes. Go figure.

I use the Nibble Nets inside and while he likes them, he’ll rub spots of hair off of his nose eating out of them too vigorously.

I’m going to try Hay Pillows, too, for my mini’s – they like to toss things around, too.

[LadyBug]

I have slow feed hay nets and a Porta Grazer. One of my horses was wearing her front teeth down from the nets and I also don’t like how they pull/yank/twist with the nets, so I wanted to try the Porta Grazer.

I like it, although it doesn’t hold enough hay for my piggy-horse overnight. My horses don’t spend a ton of time in their stalls, but if they did I would invest in more Porta Grazers.

[EOttar]

I am in the market and asked my friend who has a couple Savvy feeders. Her response:

The biggest thing I’ve seen is if they tip over the portagrazer or you don’t anchor it they can’t turn it back over. A horse at a barn where we boarded had one and she had to anchor it and he’d still tip it. Then he was just out of food until the next feed time. I found the savvy feeders when we were building the barn and I reached out to the owner. So I do like them and am now biased but tested them before working with them! They have lasted really well and my boys flip them all around.

[stb]

One of my geldings tips his Porta Grazer over, but he is adept at setting it back upright. It doesn’t take long for them to figure out how to set it back up.

[Melissa.Van_Doren]

My guys have PortaGrazers (the big ones) in their stalls. BIG thumbs up. Less waste, for sure. Options for a slow-feed or “normal” top. Easy to fill and clean. Sturdy. No tooth damage after a year plus of use (according to my vet who specializes in dentistry). One will knock his down and roll it around and set it back up like a treat-filled Kong toy. The other two push them around the stall occasionally, but leave them upright. Out of concern for mold this very hot and humid summer, I took a break from June through September, and though they have drain plugs, I don’t think I’d use them outside if it were raining… the two pickier eaters would undoubtedly say “no thanks” to trying to pull wet hay out of them and the vacuum would be fatter than he already is.

[MrsMontana]

I tried all the different feeders and love Porta Grazers!! Works great, natural feeding position, doubles as a toy, super durable, easy to load. All thumbs up!