Is eating straw bad?

[Is eating straw bad]

I just read on a site that it is bad to let horses eat straw. it makes the guts have lots of straw and water in it and makes them have a big tummy. I feed my pony as much straw as he wants he has a big tummy. he is a fat pony and I was told to fed him straw to get rid of some fat.

[jill]

Very much depends on the straw. I fed a laminitic pony straw to give her something to do in the long days when she was stabled 24/7 to lose the weight. And I also fed quite a lot of oat straw years ago when the price of hay went through the roof, mixed with the hay. Problem I found can be coughing if the straw isn't absolutely perfect and golden, and it really needs to be oat straw. It has very little feed value (some say the calories used to chew it are more than are obtained from it) but it does provide fibre and something to do for an animal designed to eat all day long - better than learning stable vices through boredom.

[emmab]

please stop feeding him straw asap! it will give him a v bloated tummy, it wont get rid of any fat, it'll just make him hungry (as he's not getting any proper food) and will give him colic if you carry on.
if he's overweight, then keep him on restricted grazing, soak his hay for 12 hours to take much of the goodness out but give him plenty (especially in this cold) and hard feed with no sugar, p'raps just some chaff so u can put any additives he needs in that.

[KoLaTo]

I am surprised at that emmab as I feed oat straw chaff (on recommendation) to my two natives with no problems at all ? Wouldn't have thought there was a major difference between a bale and the chaff aside from it obv being smaller particles so possibly easier to digest? They have it in a tub trug ad lib so they don't get bored when they have finished their hay. I was advised that it was no problem feeding the chopped straw chaff to them as it contains virtually no calories and keeps them occupied.

[gem]

I give Holly barley and oat straw in her bed incase she runs out of hayledge so she has something to munch but isnt starving. This was on advice from my vet and nurtitionalist so I cant see there is any medical worries unless you feed wheat straw which can cause impact Colic.

[jor]

Oat and barley straw is great to feed to fatties or mixed with hay/haylage to those on restricted diets.
Obviously not great if your horse has a barley allergy of course....

[Cathy248]

Eating straw can lead to impaction colic so it is advisable not to feed it in large quantities and to try and prevent your horse from eating it if that's what he is bedded on. Only feed very high quality straw as a lot of it is dusty and not very clean! It's better to feed soaked hay - as someone else suggested - if you're feeding it to keep weight down.

[Isi]

I fed Oat straw to my ponies in the past. They were very good doers and only required the fibre/chewing instinct to be satisfied - even in the midst of winter!
I think the problems of eating straw occur when horses kept in stables resort to eating their beds through lack of forage in their diets in an attempt to satisfy their 'trickle feed' instincts when they run out of hay! This is because the straw used for bedding is usually barley or wheat straw and quite un-digestible in vast quantities.
Better to bed down on non-straw products and feed ample hay from very small holed haynet if this is your concern.
If you choose to feed Oat straw, make sure it is good quality and as dust free as possible.

[jill]

I'm amazed at some of the above on a so-called natural horsemanship web site (not that I feel natural is always good). What do we all think horses were designed to eat? And what do feral natives survive on in the winter when the grass has stopped growing? Dead grass. And what is straw but the stems of plants which were originally forms of grass? If anyone can come up with a SCIENTIFIC reason why straw shouldn't be fed, share it with us, otherwise I'll back my own experience over scare stories any day.
Sorry, but sometimes I do wonder about the horse world!!

[Isi]

Hi Jill, thankyou for your contribution.
Do you think you could find it in yourself to advise constructively bearing in mind your obvious superior and extensive knowledge and experience.
Instead of ridicule and exasperation I think we should encourage anyone to ask questions by using Intelligent Horsemanship by providing positive and constructive advice. We are not all experts but should never be made to feel stupid!

[jill]

Woah, sorry, obviously touched a nerve - isn't asking for scientific evidence being positive and constructive?

[misty]

When on a livery yard and horses were in for long lengths of time in the winter I mixed oat straw and hay so horses had a huge pile to keep them happy. Soaked hay would have been gone in no time. These were 15.2 PBA's, it was all gone in the morning and they didn't come to any harm. I also know people who feed oat straw and no hay with no ill effects. Surely the thing to do is to introduce it sensibly.

[Jem]

i always found when jester was on straw, he coughed alot as he was eating it. One i moved him on2 shavinings he was fine x

[pip]

What is Dengie Hi-Fi other than choped straw and alphalfa?

We are considering 2 different situations here

(1) horse doing hard/fast work - no I would not feed straw to this horse and I would discourage bed (wheat straw) eating.

(2) Fat native, feeling hungry, not doing lots of galloping or jumping - then, nice clean non dusty feeding straw (oat or barley) introduced SLOWLY to get disgestion working properly - over 7-14 days.

Horses do get colic from eating straw, that is if they haven't got enough hay to eat and they fill up quickly on straw it will impact. Wheat straw is not good for horses to eat, although it is OK if they just nibble a bit, as my own horse will do.

Straw can make some horses cough, it does not affect others.
It is supposed to be better for their feet than some othre bedding materials as it is tossed daily and air can circulate.

[Isi]

Hi Jill, No , no nerve touched. You were only expressing your frustrations. No offence taken and none meant. I am only saying that these discussions should be to encourage questioning of methods without the threat of ridicule. The original question was posted with total trust of the nature of this DG and I felt you were on the attack! If I read you wrongly, then you have my apology but please use your privilege of opinion with care.