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Feeders, what do you like the best?

I’m trying to find whats the best thing for a permanent fixture in the stall for grain. I used to use pans on the ground, but I have one thats a slow eater so I don’t wait around to pull the feed pan out. In the am its pooped on, smushed, etc.

Not really interested in buckets, because same horse will bash it, throw it around, and eventually rip it out (she’s 4, and obnoxious)

I like the corner feeders, but how do you clean them??

Like anything some what permanently attached to a wall is to clean. Not easy, but not horrible. I don’t like them for a sloppy horse with soaked feed, that is way too much work to clean. A tidy horse whose feed is dry, not a huge deal.

One thing I like about the rubber floor pans is they can be a horse toy for the bored critter who likes to amuse themselves. The occasional manure pile is pretty easy to tend to. Have you had the joy of the floor pan being filled with urine yet?

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THis one has a drain plug. https://ranchcity.com/wall-or-corner-feeder

Also these, and similar ones, that hang with either spring bolts or (better and safer) the quick links you use to connect chain https://www.sstack.com/dura-tech-platinum-corner-feeder/p/35342/

I wash the corner feeders out with a sponge or cloth, really not a big issue.

For the horse who likes to throw grain around (Bonnie) we just switched her a to feed bag. Also have one who gets fine powdered meds that we also use a feed bag for. The feed bags are easy to wash.

Oh yes, that is a fun surprise in the morning!!! lol

:stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: Yes, yes I have :unamused:
And it is the Boss Hoss who does this.
I can tell by quantity :fountain: (others are 13H pony & 34" mini)
He is also the one who has managed to destroy 2 of the rubber pans I had for 10 yrs before he arrived.
He does this by lifting them by the rim to show me the Sad State of Emptiness.
Also the one who frisbees pans into the yard for me to find.

But I still prefer feeding from these pans for 2 of the 3.
Mini gets a foal feeder hung from his gate at home, pan when we travel.
Could the fence feeder type work for you? Not permanent, but easy to clean.

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They are MUCH tougher than any other corner feeder and can be taken out to be properly scrubbed and dried. My horse’s current one is at least 6 years old. It has some teeth marks on the bottom, but that is all the wear it shows. HP buckets also last pretty much forever and can take being beaten on with a hammer if they freeze. They will not crack like regular plastic and are not gross and disgusting and gummy like rubber. It’s some sort of magic plastic.

I love the Fortiflex round snap in feeders with grain saver rims. These are getting hard to find but I still have them in my stalls for those horses who can be trusted to leave them alone (my mares)

I also use the the big fortiflex black rubber tubs. Since my four boys are all basically idiots, they get these. One likes to crib on an attached feeder (eat a bite, suck air, repeat), the TB uses his as a frisbee, the warmblood is horrified of anything that squeaks ( if it makes a noise he just refuses to eat) and the pony thinks eating is a full contact sport.

So, as much as I hate them, I just keep around 8-10 of them and replace as needed, change out as needed and let them do their worst. Yes, they get lauched over the fence, run over by the tractor, get lost, are pooped in, trampled and basically abused. Those still hold up better than anything else. I just pour in a little dish soap, let them soak, quick scrub and back in the pile for the next use.

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We use rubber feeders on the ground. I taught my horses where to poop and pee, and keep their food away from that. I taught them by putting the more used/older bedding where I wanted them to void, and putting the clean sawdust/shavings where I want them to lay down. Feed is always in the front of the stall in the front corner opposite the door. This has worked for all 19 horses in the barn, not just mine.

Permanent fixtures are hard to clean and a hazard for horses. If you have a grain dropper, use a feed bag instead.

Can I send you mine?
Because this does not work for mine.

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LOL it takes time and consistency. I found making sure stalls are cleaned this way at least once daily, keeping stall doors shut (IE no stall guards, gates etc) and keeping their heads at the front of the stall with food is the way to go! :wink:

Mine are not closed into stalls, they have access to paddocks. Not going to close them in just to make things neater.

(Add that when my one mare was on stall rest things went from messy to OMFG messy.)

I would stick to a pan on the ground or a bucket and just simply remove it when the horse is done eating?

A feeder in the corner may not last long if the horse is destructive.

I used to have corner feeders permanently installed in the stalls but one day a mouse was in the bucket. The horse spooked and ran over my dad to get out of the stall. Fortunately my dad only suffered bumps and bruises. Total freak accident but now I remove grain buckets after every meal. Maybe that wouldn’t be a problem if you washed them after every meal but I wash mine weekly or so.

I love these, I have a few that are almost a decade old and if you three snap them, they are very secure. I used pans for my outside pens and for my gelding who was a choke risk but in the stalls they get thrown and played with unless they are removed usually.

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I assume your stalls dont have back windows? My piggy boy walks circles from the feed pan and hay in the front of the stall to the window looking out the back. Nothing I have tried works to fix this - so if he is stalled for whatever reason I clean it a few times a day, and at night check… and if I leave the feed pan in there is usually poop in it in the morning. Pellets under the shavings helps.

We have aluminum corner feeders: https://www.countrymfgstore.com/caalcofe.html

They’ve been in place for close to a couple decades (replacing buckets, plastic corner feeders, etc.), and look like new. They’re expensive but bulletproof, and I expect them to be lifetime feeders. The expense has been well worth it - would’ve saved money if we’d bought them in the first place.

Not hard to clean, either. I normally take a couple dishcloths to the stall, along with a bucket of water with a tiny amount of liquid dish detergent (such as Dawn), soak the cloth thoroughly, scrub out the feeder, repeat with a fresh cloth (not putting the dirty one back in the water).

If the feeder is really dirty, I slosh a little soapy water in it, let it sit for a few minutes while I clean the next stall’s feeder, then come back and wipe out the residue.

To rinse, I get a fresh bucket of plain water, wipe out the feeder with another clean cloth dampened with only water, repeating with another to make sure any trace of soapy water is gone. (In the tackroom, I keep a drawer full of dishcloths, washcloths, and hand towels that no longer make the cut to be used in the house.)

Sounds more involved and time consuming than it is; the more frequently this is done, the less time it requires (can get it down to a quick swipe with a damp cloth).

However, my horses don’t receive soaked feed, sticky feed, feed with oil poured on top, etc. They do get Guiness in the hottest part of summer, but they lick up as much as they can (since they love the stout), and the feeders wipe down easily after they’re done.

I wonder if you could just pour her grain onto some hay on the floor? Then there’s no bucket to worry about. I’ve seen people do this to give grain to pasture horses who never come in.

That’s a bit different. Mine do not have access to paddocks off their stalls. We have turn our pastures and paddocks and regular stalls. What I meant by keeping stall doors shut was no stall guards or gates facing/into the aisle. :roll_eyes:

@WildGooseChase It is an interesting concept.
I used to clean lots of stalls at my trainer’s barn. Most horses that were in 24/7. most stalls did not have windows. No stalls had doors that the horses could hang into the aisle. Feed bin hung on the wall, hay was always tossed in the same place.
But still, some horses were tidy and some horses were pigs.
It is great that you have had good luck with tidy horses.