As an Equine Dentist, it is imperative to me that my horses eat in a low head position, which insures the correct alignment of the lower jaw and allows for a natural chewing motion, thereby preventing both dental and back problems and positively contributing to their overall health; and so I have always fed from ground level.
The HayLo feeder has given me great confidence in that it provides my horses with a consistent supply of forage which they can eat from the correct vertical low head position, whilst also encouraging the searching and ripping action, via the feeding holes, which allows for the even ware of the front teeth, as they are now engaged in their correct action as with natural grazing.
As an added advantage to me is that as their forage is now contained within the tub, I have eliminated all waste- no more daily mucking out of haylage mixed in shavings!!
Maria O’Rourke EQDT- Killiney, Co. Dublin
The HayLo Feeder works well, does slow down the horse’s eating and much reduces or eliminates waste.
Horse adapts quickly to it and seems quite happy to use it.
Once it is fixed in place opening and filling it daily is easy enough to do.
John Brennan MRCVS – Fennor, Co.Waterford
Having been involved in the trialling of the HayLo feeder for the past 3 months, I can honestly say it is the most well thought out and designed piece of stable equipment currently on the market today for feeding hay & haylage.
Providing my horses with a constant supply of forage is of paramount importance, as I have always found that this avoids boredom, stress and vices, particularly with the youngsters.
Prior to using the HayLo feeder, providing this continuous supply has resulted in a lot of wastage due to hay/ haylage getting soiled upon and also dragged through bedding- wasting both forage and bedding.
Eliminating this wastage has saved me time, labor and money.
I would wholeheartedly recommend the HayLo feeder.
Helen Sweeney, Briarfield Farm Livery Yard – Aughrim, Co.Wicklow
The HayLo Feeder does exactly what it has been designed for. After testing it with a number of two year old colts there has never been any wastage or forage left in the tub, and it has truly withstood the investigative front and hind legs of boisterous young thoroughbreds! This is a seriously robust piece of equipment.
Gerard Kennedy, Sherbourne Lodge – Glengoole, Thurles, Co.Tipperary
I am delighted to see the HayLo feeder has come to market having been involved in the trials of the first prototype through to the finished product.
I have trialed the feeder at my yard with 10 different horses ranging from 17hh warmbloods to 13hh unbroken ponies and have found it to be a fantastic and robust piece of equipment, and a viable alternative to haynets in order to both slow down the eating, while allowing for eating from a more naturally low head position.
As a yard owner the biggest benefit to me for using the feeder is being safe in the knowledge that the horses have a steady supply of haylage throughout the night and all waste is eliminated.
Jade Morton, Valleyview Stud- Killegar Rd, Enniskerry, Co.Wicklow
Many thanks for such a marvelous prize. A very clever way of feeding straw/hay. I used to place feed straw on the ground which inevitably resulted in waste.
The fact the Hay-lo is portable too means I can take it from the barn to the field. Also very useful that hay can be soaked if needs be.
We haven’t fixed it to the wall or fence so they can all get around it.
Gill Reynolds, Woodside Cattery – Lincolnshire
I am absolutely delighted with mine. The horses have adapted really well and have taken to them straight away.
I don’t have the worry of leaving nets low, or on the ground, and the horses getting caught up in them. Despite all being barefoot it still concerns me as the nets eventually weaken and holes can appear over night, so no more emergency patching up with bailing twine either!
The horses are happily trickle feeding without frustration and for considerably longer than using even small holed nets.
From my perspective, I have saved so much time and effort as I no longer have to lug heavy, wet nets around because you can use the HayLo for hay soaking or dampening down, as there is a bung in the bottom for drainage.
I’m really looking forward to the Winter when I will no longer experience a ‘sense of humour by-pass’ struggling with wet, heavy nets in cold, freezing weather as the Hay-Lo has made this a thing of the past!
My daily chore of haynet filling has reduced drastically from 9-12 nets to just 3 ! I really can’t praise the Hay-lo enough, they are robust but light to move, strong and extremely well made and thought out. Quality !
Lindsay Cotteral DAEP, Dip. IAZ – Chippenham, Wiltshire
The HayLo is a sturdy, horse friendly feeding system that does exactly what it should do. It gently limits the horse’s intake of hay through it’s clever grid device without frustrating the life out of the horse.
In this way it replicates the natural environment where a horse would trickle feed over a long period of time without compromising the horse’s natural grazing stance.
Once my horses had got the hang of it they were very happy to feed from it and my Exmoors thought it was very satisfactory indeed!
Sarah Weston, Logical Hosremanship – Fordingbridge, Hampshire
Thank you so much HayLo!!!
My two mares are out all day and stabled at night. I fill the feeders in the evening and they last right through to the next morning – where it is now a joy to come into the stables with no more wasted hay to muck out and throw on the muck heep!
The feeders have really saved me time in doing the beds and money in previously wasting good hay- plus both my horses took to them straight away and are really happy eating from them 🙂
Gail Weldon – Wicklow
I am so pleased with the HayLo Feeder, it has solved a few problems I have been working on over the years all in one go.
My vet first drew attention to the problem of eating from hay racks and hay nets for one of my horses who has respiratory problems in the Winter, it was suggested that I try feeding from the floor. At about the same time my horse dentist drew my attention to the abnormal wearing on the teeth of the horses eating more regularly from hay nets.. the snatching side to side motion was creating arcades and waves.
So, I tried feeding from the floor- problems were immediate massive wastage of soiled hay, extra time spent mucking out stables/field shelters, massive burden on the muck heaps, bored horses as edible hay went too quickly..
Hay bars did not work for horses with short necks and two of my horses could not resist tossing all the hay out and I was back to the above problems.
I tried nets within hay bars, but was still not happy with the adverse affect on their teeth. So, I was delighted to have a new idea.
The hay lo has worked perfectly.
A couple of the horses were slow learners, but did get the hang of it.
There is no wastage with hay and boredom is kept at bay.
No adverse respiratory or dental problems.
Easy mucking out and smaller muck heaps is an added bonus.
I am looking forward to using this in the Winter when all of the above issues become so much more important.
Carla Edmonds , Graygill, Staunton.
Just to say my HayLo Feeder arrived yesterday and I love it! Fan (Young wonder dressage horse) treated it as if it’s been there the entire time!
He tends to walk a wee bit so he walks his haylage into his bed and it drives me crackers, the haylage comes in neat little bags at €7 a bag!
Significantly less mess today, less walking and no haylage in his bed or out the door- Great result, no waste!!!
Shannon Cussen, Dollanstown Stud, Kilcock, Co. Kildare
I ordered a HayLo Feeder earlier this year and started off using the 90mm holes with a view to progressing to 70mm. My New Forest mare Bluebell had put on weight over the winter and i was keen to shed some pounds heading into spring. I was keen to get a HayLo so that she could continue to eat her soaked hay in a ‘head down’ position while being slowed down enough that she would eat less overnight but keep forage flowing through her digestive system
I started off getting Bluebell used to the HayLo leading her back and forth passed it. She quickly became interested in it and was happy to approach it and put her head in it. I then secured it in her stable.
The first weeks were a bit frustrating, Bluebell didn’t seem to be getting the hang of it. She’d eat through the holes but not try very hard so she wasn’t managing to eat much at all. She would just leave indents in the hay through the holes but not pull enough through for the grill to start to move down the Haylo. In the end I emailed HayLo. The support I received was incredibly helpful.
Gill thought that given Bluebell was forest born, the 90mm holes might not have been sufficient to trigger Bluebell into foraging mode. She suggested I try the 70mm hole grill. This had an immediate effect and Bluebell finished virtually all her hay.
Horses teach us some really interesting things. Without Gill’ s input I don’ t think I would ever have got there in realising that smaller holes would work better for her.
A month or so later Bluebell started to revert towards how she had been with the 90mm holes. I contacted HayLo and Gill followed up with a call. Again, HayLo were super helpful and sent a 50mm holes to try. Again this worked a treat and Bluebell ate really well with it for a few days but then seemed to be struggling with it slightly. I then reverted back to the 70mm and she’ s been going well with that again. I’m going to use the 50mm hole grill as a trigger to get her foraging from the HayLo as and when she reverts to not trying very hard with it.
The feeder has been well designed. It’ s very simple and quick to change the grills. Being light and relatively short it’ s easy to clean and move around. Not being the tallest person, I have struggled to reach the bottom of other hay feeders but I’ve not had any problems with the HayLo. It helps that the straps and clips that affix it to the stable wall are easy to undo and do up, with the feeder being light it’s easy to take to a hose to clean it.
Before having the HayLo when I got to the yard in the evening Bluebell would have finished her first lot of hay and would be lying down and have pooed for Britain. With the HayLo she’ s usually having a munch when I get there, has some hay left, but has signs of having had a lie down earlier and she’ s pooed less.
Hannah Chaplin, Parkfarm Livery, Kent
I’ve used the HayLo Feeder for my 4 yr old TB Phoenix now for seven months.