What are your favorite boredom toys? Of course I have used jollyballs in the past. The problem is here in hot So Cal they get gummy and sort of melt… no joke. LOL
What other toys are things that your horses really seem to use?
Cones? Milk Jugs? Tetherballs?
I hang empty 2 liter or smaller bottles without labels. They make a better size to bite than milk jugs and get more use than the jolly ball.
I never saw her “play” with it - but my horse would always move around and destroy cones, so they must have provided some entertainment!
I had a TB that LOVED ropes! I would get a 3 foot or so length of thick cotton rope, tie off both ends (trim away the lose ends in case dumb dumb decided to eat them!) and toss it in his paddock.
He would toss, chase, and swing that rope around like a lasso!
When my horse was on stall rest for a couple weeks earlier this year, I made him a couple toys from an idea I found (on here, I think). Take an orange juice jug or similar container. Cut a small hole in the bottom, then put some treats in (I used fibre nuggets, mints, and licorice allsorts). Hang the jug by the handle (hole down). The horse can swing it and bang it until the treat falls out.
Mine gave it the hairy eyeball when I first went into his stall…until I shook it and a treat came out. Instant interest! I even videoed him whacking it around and playing with it. He also figured out to bite the jug and squeeze it to get the treats to fall out. I then made another toy out of one of those huge Costco-sized canola oil jugs and that worked well, plus it was too big to get his teeth around.
Ooh, I love the idea of the jug treat dispenser! I usually have done things like take a Martinelli’s gallon bottle, rinse it out, put rocks in the bottom, and hang it up–filling it with treats will be WAY more interesting to Mouthy McMoutherson. I also like the idea of just a rope. EVERYthing to this guy is a toy.
I kind of imagine him trying to eat the jug, so I need to see how to manage that without him managing to hurt himself. He does excel at that.
I used an Amazing Graze when my horse had six months of stall rest and it worked great. I would put different things in it and then full it with lose hay to make it harder for her.
That’s awesome, that amazing graze thing looks really good…
For homemade, I use the jugs and don’t put a hole - just leave the top off and then fill with hay pellets. Either give them the jug loose or hang from a rope and they figure out how to shake or nudge to get the pellets out. I save jugs from things like oil or even bleach and wash them out to use for this – they are heavier weight and last longer than the milk jug types.
For purchased toys, I was using the Nose-It treat dispensers and they work really well, but at $40 or so each, when I needed another one, I decided to try this Ball Feeder (only ~$15). While the cheaper one is not as heavy duty and probably won’t be as durable as the Nose-It, so far, it has been pretty successful around here. Living on a hill, these work well as they don’t roll too far away (I also have the Snak-a-ball and those end up rolling out of the paddocks too easily).
I had an Amazing Graze but found the hole too big for anything I was using as treats – they got small cookies and pellets out way too easily and fast. It is super durable and if it works for the type of thing you are feeding, it is worth trying. But for the small price, I’d try the $15 ball feeder first.
Today, I decided to throw my hat in the ring, literally. It’s an old, already partially destroyed hat that was no good for wearing anymore, so I thought I’d let my boy have it.
He LOVED it and played with it more than any toy I’ve offered before. (Video link.) By the time he was done, it was just shredded. Heh heh. (I had to film him from behind, or he’d get distracted by my presence and come over to mooch affection from me.)
Jollyball toys? Exercise ball toy? Hanging apple on a chain? Meh. Old straw hat? YES.
I second the Amazing Graze! Well worth the money- every single one of my equines loves it! And it’s virtually indestructible!
My horse is going on stall rest so I need more ideas!
I have a second-hand Jolly Ball. What about cutting a hole in it as a hanging treat dispenser?
Has anyone tried free or tied-up large dog tug toys? Like the kind with rope plus a rubber ring?
I have way too much experience with stall rest…sorry you will be dealing with it as well!
Jolly ball with a hole in it is a great treat dispenser. I have used it both hanging from a rope or just given free. I use cookies or cut up carrots, or for the IR horse, celery sticks.
Only dog toy I tried was a big Kong type thing (Bounzer, I think they call it?) that ended up being too soft and my horse got pieces out really quick. He also destroys jolly balls, however, but not as quickly.
Thanks and I think I will do something with the Jolly Ball - like I said it was secondhand so no great loss. Hopefully the stall rest is only a couple weeks but I already know he gets bored easily (like me!).
When my horse went on stall rest recently I got him a jolly ball, LikIt, and Kong. The first two he pretty much ignores but he is crazy about the Kong. I posted this recently so sorry for the repeat but here’s a video: http://trainingcupid.blogspot.com/2014/08/boredom-relief.html
For a home made toy that provides hours upon hours of playtime set up a section of fence, this will be best used by the horses if made of very expensive materials.
The geldings will play hour upon hour over the fence toy without fear of tearing the toy completely down
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