Clever pony...

After quite a hot ride on my Welsh Cob (Vigo) yesterday, I decided I really ought to lower his feed a bit. I've done it before so no problem on the quantities, but I thought I should equally try to slow him down, since he gets frustrated if the other horses are still eating and he's finished.

Lots of people will probably disagree with this but I was taught by a vet that the best way to slow a horse down is to swamp the food in water just before giving it to them and to put a rock (larger than their mouth of course) in the middle of it, so they have to slurp and eat around it more carefully. I've been doing it for months to pace the thoroughbred I'm looking after temporarily, since he shares a field with my Arabian, who has teeth issues.
But Vigo?
Clever pony sniffed the rock once, picked it up, threw it away and then started his dinner, something none of the horses I've had before have ever thought of.

Just proof that you can't cheat a native pony when it comes to their feed.

Bahahaha My mom's dog did that with a tennis ball when I was trying to slow her down.

Another idea, although I'm not sure how feasible it would be is to try and find a large tray and spread the food out to slow him down. For my mom's dog I ended up using a muffin tray and spreading the food out in each little section so she had to lift her head up between sections. I'm not sure how you could up the scale for a horse on that one though.

Fast eaters are little punks. I water my cats food down soooooooo much and they still finish their food within minutes.

Quote from an about.com article that may be helpful:
"Some people find that a few big rocks in the bottom of the feed bin are enough to slow down a greedy eater. But some horses can be clever about flipping the rocks aside. If your horse is smart enough to get around the rocks easily, try screwing down tough balls, like the indestructible ones made for dogs, or other tough, non-toxic, non-splintering pet toys to the bottom of the feed tub."

You could also get a large feed pan that rests on the floor and spread it all out into a thinner layer.

Good luck outsmarting a clever horse... unless I mix any powdered supplements with something like applesauce, mine will literally use his lips to eat all of the pelleted feed, brush off the powder and leave it in a little pile at the bottom of the empty feed bucket. Thank god he doesn't need supplements anymore XD

There is such a thing as a grain slow feeder for horses, similar to slow feeder dog bowls.


This one is called the PRE-VENT feeder. I don't know if the manufacturer ships outside of the US, though. I suppose you could also rig a muffin pan or something similar, as long as the horse can't turn it on its end and spill all the food XD