Mangers That Slow-Feed Horses

Mangers That Slow-Feed Horses LIVESTOCK Feeding Equipment Mahlon Yoder designed his grazing mangers with horses’ stomachs in mind The unique design mimics natural grazing “I wanted to slow down the eating process and get horses feeding in a natural position ” explains Yoder M D Y Horseshoeing & Harness Shop Yoder notes that horses will naturally graze for up to 18 hrs a day Anything they eat moves out of their stomach within 2 hrs Spreading their intake throughout the day keeps something in the stomach and as Yoder puts it “makes for a happy horse” His feeders promote the effect of grazing by collapsing against the hay as it is removed In the case of the large bale feeder the two opposing feeding sides are hinged at the bottom and collapse inward from the top Leaves and small stems that break loose fall to the floor of the manger to be eaten later not to the ground where they will likely be stepped on One side panel swings open for loading bales Small bale or loose hay feeders have a top grate that presses downward as hay is removed Two vertical rods on one side of the feeder secure the grate while allowing it to float downward as hay is removed The top of the rods are shaped like candy canes This allows the grate to be lifted up and tipped to the side when refilling the feeder In both basic designs the small holes in the grated sides or top prevent the horse from pulling large amounts from the feeder “Other feeders allow the horse to reach up and pull down hay but with mine they are either looking ahead or down and are limited in how much hay can be pulled out at one time ” says Yoder “By stretching out the process with the grazing manger you will see less boredom waste ulcers cribbing bossiness and obesity ” The mangers are made with all-welded all-steel construction powder-coated for long life The large grazing manger with room for a large square or large round bale is priced at $1 500 with a rain roof Small bale or loose hay feeders are available in multiple sizes including a 3 or 4-bale feeder that can accommodate several slabs from a large square bale These smaller feeders stand 30 in high with drain holes in the floor They start at $295 “The large feeder has 6 ft of feeding space on each of the 2 feeding sides and can accommodate from 1 to 5 horses ” says Yoder “The smaller feeders also work well with sheep and goats ” Yoder also makes wall-mounted mangers with or without a detachable feed box Contact: FARM SHOW Followup M D Y Horseshoeing & Harness Shop 1455 S 1100 W Middlebury Ind 46540 ph 574 825-8161

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