Need to shred hay for an older horse


  #1  
Old 11-24-20, 06:15 PM
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Need to shred hay for an older horse

My horses teeth are wore down to the gums and he needs his hay shredded first.

I've never used anything of the kind so have no knowledge of what to look for. What I've found so far is horse hay will clod leaf shredders. But, the wood chippers may not touch the hay as it's too small???

If I put a lot of hay into the chute, won't that shred without clogging in a wood chipper?

Here is just one I've looked at and a few complaints re: small sticks passing through and if that's the case, then it won't work for shredding hay: https://smile.amazon.com/Sun-Joe-CJ6...6270363&sr=8-6

Anyone have experience or know someone who has? Ideas? Not looking for recommendations but that would be nice, really want to know if there is one out there that will work and what I should be looking for.
Price wise, $250 or less???

Thank You!
 
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Old 11-24-20, 06:47 PM
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Google feed grinder / tub grinder. Hay grinding is a big business in our area. They are called out and hired as needed.
 
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Old 11-24-20, 07:32 PM
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You might try second or third cutting orchard grass. That is all leaf with very little stalk. If you needed it finer yet, just run a lawn mower over it.
 
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Old 11-24-20, 07:50 PM
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Based on you profile, you may have options nearby...
Hilltop Feed Co. | Facebook

That being said- for 1 horse, you're, eh at 1/2 bale a day.
THAT is within the reasonable limits of some basic leaf shredder vacuums.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMmE...ature=emb_logo
 
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Old 11-24-20, 08:14 PM
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Oh, BTW the teeth on the HF leaf shredder are made of plastic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMmE...ature=emb_logo

BUT you CAN protect the PLASTIC teeth on the leaf shredder by hot-gluing METAL teeth from an aluminum foil roll onto the vanes. You DO have to balance after doing this, to avoid killing the bearings.

(Yes, I pull the metal cutting band off aluminum foil boxes before they go into the compost or fireplace)

Those punched metal blades that cut aluminum foil, parchment or saran wrap are VERY sharp, VERY light, and therefore VERY easy to re-purpose into shop tools.
 
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Old 11-24-20, 10:18 PM
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Just a wild thought but I googled and maybe not so wild. I have serviced all sorts of paper shredders and they can do a lot of cutting without jamming, at least with paper. Here is the link I ran into, let you read.
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/wi...-north.162300/

Bud
 
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Old 11-25-20, 02:04 AM
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I was looking at paper shredders. Some can shred 100 sheets or more. My friend thinks it will jam.
"I use a paper shredder, modified to unsafe standards to chop orchard grass hay." wonder what he means by modified to unsafe standards????
Also, would be hard to get the hay into the paper shoot and that may be what he means by unsafe as he fixed it so he could get the hay into it.
Also, I have to feed hay year round, will be used every day.
 

Last edited by Saddlebum; 11-25-20 at 02:20 AM.
  #8  
Old 11-25-20, 02:58 AM
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Here is the one I think I'll go with. There are a few reviews about shredding hay for an older horse which were very positive. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1
 
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Old 11-25-20, 04:31 AM
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I don't think a wood chipper is a good option but I would look at a leaf shredder. They operate differently and are designed to shred small leafy matter. They are available with different screen sizes so you can control the amount of shredding you want.

Many shredders act a bit like a hammer mill. Inside there is a rotating drum with many swinging blades that rotate quickly. These blades chop and smash the debris repeatedly until it is small enough to fall through a screen with holes of a certain size. I had one long ago and used it to shred straw for composting. With a large screen I got mostly straw chopped into inch long pieces. With a fine screen the straw came out mostly shredded.
 
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Old 11-25-20, 11:42 AM
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Pilot Dane, I can't seem to find what you're describing. I looked for hammer mill grinder, shredders, etc..
 
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Old 11-25-20, 12:59 PM
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I just searched online and MacKissic makes one and there is this Merry Mac on Northern Tool which might be the same thing. I also found this website that sells several models of Merry Mac.
 
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Old 11-25-20, 01:05 PM
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Too pricy but it gives me somewhere to begin, thank you.
 
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Old 11-25-20, 01:09 PM
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Farmers who feed hogs will use that type of mill to grind shelled corn. In the process they'll throw in other stuff to complete the feed mix. Hammer mills were pretty common on farms and commercial feed outfits.

What hay are you grinding up for your horse? If you use first cutting forage you'll have the stalk and seed. You get out of a lot of that with later cuttings - more leaf less stalk. Also higher protein content on a shade tree critter can plug things up.
 
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Old 11-25-20, 01:38 PM
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IIRC, the actual term is "kibbler"

"Historian Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn recreate the running of a farm as it would've been in the Edwardian era"

Running an Edwardian era "Kibbler" to prepare livestock food
 
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Old 11-26-20, 04:13 AM
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Hal S, thank you, love the pic and will start looking for a kibbler. 3 times a year there is an auction at a farm where everyone brings everything and anything to sell on consignment. I will start looking for one of these.

marbobj, my hay guy sold me 2nd cutting instead of 1st, some alfalfa but not much, mostly grass. I will buy a leaf shredder and use that. I started him on beet plulp pellets which I'm grinding up, gosh they are hard, and that appears to be helping somewhat.
 
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Old 11-26-20, 04:49 AM
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I see. I sell hay to some guys with older horses and donkeys. Usually the later cuttings of orchard grass or timothy works well. In a dry or warm summer the timothy is just one cutting with stalk and seed heads. That is a little tougher for older horses. The orchard grass, though will get two or three.

If you can get in and cut it when you like you have soft hay with short leaves. It's about like yard grass clippings.

I never ran across the grinding hay though. That makes sense. I hope you get something that works well for you.
 
  #17  
Old 11-26-20, 05:20 AM
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There is a dedicated chipper which seems like it would solve your problem...

It grinds up hay for my horse with no teeth

VERIFIED BUYER- Tim- August 27, 2019
14 Amp 1-1/2 in. Capacity Corded Electric Chipper Shredder (harborfreight.com)

However, I've found the smaller blower / leaf vacuum-shredder works nicely for mulching leaves into compost. I like that the leaf uses a vacuum to lift the leaves, this keeps it from sucking up dirt and stones. You can leave the blower nozzle on shoot shredded material out, instead of collecting it in a bag.
Here it is propped up with a garden aerator, removing yellowjackets from a nest; BUT you could lay it horizontally, just feed stalks of hay into the vacuum tube and blow shredded food into a burlap bag.

 

Last edited by Hal_S; 11-26-20 at 05:41 AM.
  #18  
Old 11-26-20, 07:01 AM
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Marbobj, do any customers have donkeys who suffer from founder? My poor donkey has and recently, after a expensive vet. check, found out they probably got into some Hoary Assylum. We couldn't find any in the hay but did find a little bit in the pasture. My horse stocked up all fours and was very tender to the touch, another symptom of H.A.

I will ask for 2nd cutting orchard grass from now on. Did not know that about timothy. I had to run down to my hay supplier and pick up a bale (3'w x 8'L x 3'h) in my pickup of his 1st cutting, late harvest hay and it seems to be working for the donkey. The donkey is 21 yo but has excellent teeth.

Thank you all for these ideas! So helpful to have some kind of reference.

Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone!
 
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Old 11-26-20, 09:47 AM
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Most of the founder on either cattle or horses in the area I grew up was over eating. Access to alfalfa fields or corn would do it.

The timothy was always the go to horse hay from way back until the orchard grass varieties progressed in nutritional value. Now it's seems to be more the way you think. The timothy is really nice in a second cutting, but it's a cool season grass that shuts down in the summer. One cutting is all I've gotten. Orchard grass is cool season, but does a lot better coming off first cutting.

Have a great Turkey day yourself.
 
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Old 04-14-21, 12:28 PM
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Earthwise shredder.

It works great but would like one that could hold more alfalfa cubes at a time. It also works on hay.
 
 

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