Triple Crown Safe Starch Forage

[Marsha Cassada]

OK, here is the photo comparison! Three weeks on the Safe Starch. He is taking about 9 days to eat 40lbs now that I've got the delivery method sorted out. Here he is the day I started him on it:

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And here he is today:

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Slightly different lighting and unfortunately I cut his butt off in the first pic but he does appear to have lost weight and his crest is going down. Gained a hole on the girth of his harness. And...only one data point on this, but...he was not at all bothered by gravelly areas last time I had him out on the trail, areas where he would previously sometimes go bushwhacking to avoid walking on the rocks, he just tromped right down the middle.

He looks great. Im excited to start billy on it.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Pooh. I called today to enquire about my timothy cube order. Glad I did because it was NOT ordered. The guy I talked to this time said it would be in on Saturday.

 

[chandab]

Pooh. I called today to enquire about my timothy cube order. Glad I did because it was NOT ordered. The guy I talked to this time said it would be in on Saturday.

So annoying when they do that, not just that store, but in general; we've had it happen at various places for special orders.

 

[Bennysmom]

Pooh. I called today to enquire about my timothy cube order. Glad I did because it was NOT ordered. The guy I talked to this time said it would be in on Saturday.

That's frustrating!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Picked up the cubes yesterday. Last night I gave him half cube and half hay, to help him transition. He gobbled the cubes right up, so it won't be a probably changing him to them.

 

[chandab]

They are new and a fun "treat", so likely very enjoyable right now. Might work to just go with a 50:50 mix, lower his carb intake some, but keep some long stem hay in the mix that takes longer to eat.

 

[MaryFlora]

Not sure if you need an idea, but I space out 3 - 4 flat feeding pans and dole out the cubes in each one, even if it is just one or two. The ‘grazing’ does slow down my muncher and he will go back and forth just double checking, so gets in a few steps.

Something I should do with a pan of brownies.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Not sure if you need an idea, but I space out 3 - 4 flat feeding pans and dole out the cubes in each one, even if it is just one or two. The ‘grazing’ does slow down my muncher and he will go back and forth just double checking, so gets in a few steps.

Something I should do with a pan of brownies.

I did that this morning and this evening. Thanks for the tip.

 

[MaryFlora]

You’re welcome! I hope it slows him down a little! Mine actually moves fairly slowly around the paddock searching, as I move the pans around a bit each day. It’s a bit of a game and he always wins.

 

[chandab]

If you are feeding them dry, you could also try a treat ball to provide entertainment and slow down the consumption.
When I had the Timothy Balance cubes, I did put ones I could break apart by hand into my stallion's treat ball (which is in a water tub, so he's not eating off the ground, if you have a harder surface than I do, so less chance of ingesting dirt with the cubes, on the ground is probably fine), and the ball slowed down his consumption.
I have an older (more expensive) treat ball, but this is what I am talking about: https://www.chewy.com/shires-equestrian-products-ball-horse/dp/265673 The Timothy Balance cubes are a bit smaller than standard hay cubes, and typically softer, so they load and fall back out easily, but not too easy.

 

[Abby P]

Just an update - Rowan after a couple of weeks figured out how to get as much of the forage as he wanted out of the muck bucket setups, by taking a giant mouthful of forage + net, dragging it over the side of the bucket, and shaking it so all the forage fell out onto the floor, and Hoovering it up. He's no dummy!

So yesterday I moved it into a 3/4" net hung from the middle of his shed so he can't press it against the wall and get big mouthfuls out. I'll check on him tomorrow and weigh to see how much he ate in two days, but my friend poked her head in there today and said he doesn't look sad or frustrated, but is definitely very busy poking the swinging net with his nose and then picking up the tiny rain of bits that fall down. I also ordered a 1.25" net that I will try double-netting with the 3/4" and placing in the corner, to see which setup he eats faster out of.

So if anyone is interested in a couple of muck bucket toppers...

I think next spring I may also buy a string trimmer to really punish the grass around the edges of his track - I think he gets quite a bit eating along the fencelines and given the crestyness and possible foot tenderness he had this year I just don't want to risk more serious issues.

 

[MaryFlora]

I admire your patience Abby and Rowan’s problem solving skills!

They definitely keep our brain cells moving!

 

[chandab]

Just an update - Rowan after a couple of weeks figured out how to get as much of the forage as he wanted out of the muck bucket setups, by taking a giant mouthful of forage + net, dragging it over the side of the bucket, and shaking it so all the forage fell out onto the floor, and Hoovering it up. He's no dummy!

So yesterday I moved it into a 3/4" net hung from the middle of his shed so he can't press it against the wall and get big mouthfuls out. I'll check on him tomorrow and weigh to see how much he ate in two days, but my friend poked her head in there today and said he doesn't look sad or frustrated, but is definitely very busy poking the swinging net with his nose and then picking up the tiny rain of bits that fall down. I also ordered a 1.25" net that I will try double-netting with the 3/4" and placing in the corner, to see which setup he eats faster out of.

So if anyone is interested in a couple of muck bucket toppers...

I think next spring I may also buy a string trimmer to really punish the grass around the edges of his track - I think he gets quite a bit eating along the fencelines and given the crestyness and possible foot tenderness he had this year I just don't want to risk more serious issues.

Try double netting your bucket toppers and see if it helps any, if you can put two on a bucket.

 

[Abby P]

I am not actually sure you could put two on a bucket. What I have found with double-netting in general is that both nets have to be under tension, and the same amount of tension, or else the horse pulls the inner net out through the holes of the outer net.

I think the tub toppers would be OK for Rowan if I was able to fill them daily with his ideal amount, but when he can work at them 24/7 he just gets too much!

 

[Abby P]

Well that was a spectacular fail. Apparently, once the forage loosens up inside the hanging net, it becomes VERY easy for a solid bop with a pony nose to send a large amount of the chopped hay flying. So there was very little left inside the net, and a great deal on the floor, or presumably also a great deal inside the pony. I left him today with some inside doubled 1" knotted nets (since I know from prior experiments that is at least semi-acceptable), and tomorrow I'll go and set up a 3/4" plus the 1.25" that I just received today and see what happens with that.

 

[MaryFlora]

Don’t you just love spectacular stuff?

I bet Rowan can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings for fun and games!

Frankly I’m curious too!

 

[Abby P]

I'm sure he'll find some way to make it work to his advantage!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

The Forage sure seems to encourage additional plumbing! Not that I'm complaining, but the compost pile is getting higher...

 

[Abby P]

So, so far, the 3/4" plus 1.25" doubled net setup is the best. It slows him down a lot but he isn't angry and I don't *think* there is any way he can game the system with it.

 

[Abby P]

Been about 3 weeks in the new net setup and his intake seems to have leveled off at near-winter levels (chilly nights the last couple of weeks). I estimate he's eating about 7lbs a day which is in line with his historical tendency to nearly double his hay intake in cold weather. He hasn't gained weight and may have lost a little more and his crest seems to be slowly diminishing.

I also discovered that I can indeed fit 10 bags of the forage inside my car so that's a plus.