Mesh Questions
Mesh Questions
Our new web store has been up and running for a few weeks; there have been a couple of hiccups, but I believe its much better than our old site. It is a challenge learning new software during our busy time of year but I am getting it done. More improvements to come.
There have been a lot of questions recently regarding what mesh size to use. This is a difficult question to answer because the ideal mesh size depends on the horse, the type of hay an individual has, and how often you want to re-fill.
Some horses are artists with their lips and can empty small mesh nets (3/4” or 1”) in the same time other horses take to empty a larger mesh (1-3/4 or 2-1/4”). My big mare (Morgan/Percheron) has NO problem emptying a bale out of a 1” mesh net within a day J, while our Paint horse would empty the same bag over two days. With my personal horses, those accustomed to grazing muzzles (like my big mare) seem to be much more skilled at eating from smaller meshes than those not accustomed to grazing muzzles.
I personally don’t put much merit in some of the studies out there on the web about which size slow feeder mesh will yield X results (X=weight gain, maintenance, weight loss) for the reasons above. Horses are individuals with different metabolisms, hay can very in nutrition based on grass and harvest times, and again some horses are more skilled at eating from slow feed nets than others.
Thus, the slow feeding challenge!
One size definitely doesn’t fit all in our book, which is why we at Hay Burners Equine LLC offer such a large variety of slow feed mesh and bag sizes, along with custom nets.
Laurie