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I feed hay every day in some proportion.
In the summer, it's a smaller amount as they are in the big corral over night (security reasons) and out on pasture during the day. They go in the corral after they've finished their grain (fed once in the evening).
In the winter, hay is out 24/7 even though they still have access to the pasture during the day. I use mangers that my husband built; the hay is put out at night while they are in the barn having their grain. If the weather if bad, they'll stay in the barn overnight and get hay at that time as well.
Re feeding hay: As mentioned above, horses are designed for pretty much constant eating so it is better for them to either have constant access to hay or fed multiple times during a day (as in 24 hour period). I recognize that one can be tricky if your time table doesn't permit or if you have horses with special eating needs.
Re grain after hay: There are some folks who feel that feeding the grain an hour after hay gives the horse a better chance of getting all the nutrients out of the grain/hard feed. The argument is that the horse eats the grain first then the hay and the grain is pushed out of the system (ie stomach and intestines) too quickly before proper digestion can happen; by letting the horse fill up on hay first, the grain will stay around longer and be digested better. I do not know if that has merit or not.
In the summer, it's a smaller amount as they are in the big corral over night (security reasons) and out on pasture during the day. They go in the corral after they've finished their grain (fed once in the evening).
In the winter, hay is out 24/7 even though they still have access to the pasture during the day. I use mangers that my husband built; the hay is put out at night while they are in the barn having their grain. If the weather if bad, they'll stay in the barn overnight and get hay at that time as well.
Re feeding hay: As mentioned above, horses are designed for pretty much constant eating so it is better for them to either have constant access to hay or fed multiple times during a day (as in 24 hour period). I recognize that one can be tricky if your time table doesn't permit or if you have horses with special eating needs.
Re grain after hay: There are some folks who feel that feeding the grain an hour after hay gives the horse a better chance of getting all the nutrients out of the grain/hard feed. The argument is that the horse eats the grain first then the hay and the grain is pushed out of the system (ie stomach and intestines) too quickly before proper digestion can happen; by letting the horse fill up on hay first, the grain will stay around longer and be digested better. I do not know if that has merit or not.