feeding hay in the arena

[Risk-Averse Rider]

I've got a 25m x 30m arena that's fenced with chain link fence. The footing is sand.

Weather permitting, I leave the horses (2 full sized geldings & a pony gelding) out there as much as possible. So they end up getting fed out there, and I have water buckets hanging for them.

Because of the sand & the mess, I've been thinking I'd like to have some way of keeping the hay off the ground. (Then again, I know it's better for them to eat with their heads down than from hanging hay nets.)

I recently put a couple NibbleNets in their pens so that they spend longer eating overnight - I've been quite happy with this, because they don't seem as ravenous in the mornings.

One option would be to hang NibbleNets in the arena, but (a) they're kind of a PITA to fill, (b) I wouldn't want to leave them out 24 x 7 in the summer time (Arizona desert temps + sunshine), and (c) there's the whole "eating from the ground is better" thing.

So... any suggestions for something I could put in 2 of the corners that would help keep the hay off the ground? I drag the arena, but having something in the corners - even close to the ground - wouldn't interfere with that, because the drag doesn't get all the way into the corners.

Am I stuck with getting someone to build a custom holder for me, or does anyone know of an off-the-shelf solution?

Thanks.

[JB]

Mats in the corners

100 gallon water tub filled with hay

Either of those will still result in some of the hay ending up on the actual ground though.

[SmartAlex]

We hang the small hole nets and rake under them every day. Nets can be a pain, but I bought 3 sets, and I fill them all at once so I always have a full one ready to hang. It sure saves a lot on hay.

[rivenoak]

http://www.highcountryplastics.com/products/cf40.html

But then you can't ride deep into the corners anymore.

[Risk-Averse Rider]

Hmm... I don't ride that deep into the corners anyway... maybe that High Country Plastics thing would do the trick.

Thanks!

[TheHorseProblem]

Cheaper than mats would be carpet remnants.

[lindasp62]

http://www.highcountryplastics.com/products/cf40.html


Not real good, IMHO, for a herd setting...pecking order and all that... as if 90 degree corners weren't already bad enough for such a situation.

I second the mats idea, but they will pull it off into the sand invariably.

With troughs, you have the problem of head deep into i, inhaling any dust from the hay (semi enclosed area). If you do use troughs, it is best to shake the flakes into the trough instead of just putting in the packed flakes...otherwise they will just grab a whole flake, pull it out, and you've got hay all over the ground.

Keep an eye on sand ingestion. Good idea to rake up any trampled hay often, otherwise you will end up with quite a quagmire.

[monicabee]

Maybe this would be worth taking a look at:

http://forums.seattletimes.nwsource.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=73&t=157958&sid=a8b074bca857b710c74aa56925bfe716