Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

I always provide hay while trailering, although  after reading these I'm going to go get long bungee trailer ties  instead of using my short ones, they can't put their head down with. However I did have something to add, I have always put fly mask's on our horses to protect their eys's from flying debris,and then this summer a friend of mine had a horse get a eye ulcer.... from a hay particle, She now also uses then when trailering.

Jamie

heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

> > I was talking with some friends and was told just yesterday that an 'old 
> > timer' that one of the ladies knows insists to NEVER give hay while 
> > trailering. That is, do not put hay in front of the horse while you are 
> > driving. Stopping and giving hay is fine. He (over 70 years of 
> > experience) 'knows'
>  that horses MIGHT colic if eating hay while 
> > traveling. Something about horses possibly getting a type of motion 
> > sickness like we do, eating and not being able to burp.
>
>
> While there may be the odd individual who has trouble with hay while traveling, I'd be far more concerned about horses colicking from NOT having free access to forages on a long trip. The persistent nibbling helps to stimulate the gastrocolic reflex and keep guts working. 
>
> The only problem I've ever had feeding hay while traveling had nothing to do with colic--I had an old standard 2-horse bumper-pull with a manger, and some alfalfa fines had accumulated, which I did not remove prior to a long trip. I had a lovely mare (who was a bit of a hog) scarf them up and choke on them, and then aspirate because she could not get her head down. She died four days later of aspiration pneumonia. My only caution about feeding in the trailer is having a horse in a position where, if such
>  a thing occurs, they can get their heads below level just as they would if they were loose. And I continue to feed hay in the trailer (except for short hops when I sometimes don't bother) because of the obvious benefits.
>
> Heidi
>
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