Has anyone used the jolly hay ball on the ground vs being hung up? My boy is on stall rest and let me know today he needs some toys! There is not a good option to hang anything from the ceiling in his stall. I was looking at the jolly hay ball online and without seeing it in person I wasn’t sure if it would be safe for him to just have on the ground? He is a 16.1 hand thoroughbred. It looks like the gaps are small enough he couldn’t get a hoof caught? Thank you
I have the ‘hay ball feeder’ from Smartpak. Horses do fine with it and it works great, but my donkey got a hoof stuck.
I have these (similar, not this specific model) for my three boys and they love it. The 2 year old will finish his ball before going to the hay in his feeder. I’ve had them close to a year and never had any issues (all full size horses).
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Maybe it’s just me, I am the mom that hates playdoh and glitter or sand…but depending on how often his stall is cleaned and how much he walks around, I could see it becoming a mess maker quickly.
The other question I have is why is he on stall rest? If it is leg injury related, wouldn’t rolling that around on the ground and chasing it around cause a lot of unwanted walking, twisting and turning in a small space? Not being snarky just pointing out the first two things that come to my mind. I would worry it would 1. Push back recovery and 2. Cause a very messy stall.
What if you hung one in a corner, but had one of those hay ball things hung up somewhere too?
Having seen several horses play with them, I’m not actually sure that they are that great for horses on stall rest due to injury. There is too much rolling around and risk for hyper extension or twisting that the horse shouldn’t be doing.
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I have a Shires Ball Feeder and toss in alfalfa pellets and few treats and my horse really enjoys it for a few days. We do have very fine shavings/sawdust, so if you had flake shavings or straw I don’t think it would work well.
Whatever you use, get a couple of different toys and feeders and swap them out. My horses will get “tired” of a toy after a week or so. If it disappears for a few days and reappears, they are again highly interested.
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I’m not a big fan of toys on a stall floor because they end up getting rolled through manure and urine. Even if you tie it to a bar on the stall or a ring to hang the water bucket, they have to work at it while it swings. It doesn’t hold a ton of hay so it won’t occupy them for long. Having tried one, I don’t think they’re better than a small hole hay net in a stall. Their real value is in the field where they have room to roll.
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