How to Safely Tie a Hay Net

Hay nets are frequently used for temporarily feeding horses hay while at an event. You can’t rely on suitable grass at any venue to feed your horse all day and your horse shouldn’t go all day without feed. If you’re at a horse show, your horse will probably have time to eat between events. Hay nets should not be used on a daily basis.

The advantage of hay nets is the portability. The disadvantage is a horse can easily become entangled in a hay net if it is tied too low. This is a common and avoidable accident. It is a hazard to both the horse and the humans that must untangle it. There's no foolproof way to make hay nets absolutely safe.

What You Need

• Hay net
• Hay
• Tie ring, post, or sturdy rail.

How to Tie a Hay Net Safely

Here’s one way that may keep your hay net tied high and out of the way.

1. Fill the hay net with hay. They usually hold about 3 to 4 flakes from a small square bale.
2. Pull the drawstring so that the top closes.
3. Tie a knot so the bag will stay closed. The material hay nets are made of is quite slippery and rarely do they knot so tightly that you can’t easily undo them when you are done.
4. Loop the loose end of the drawstring through the ring or over the rail that you will hang the hay net from. This should be slightly higher than, or at, the horse’s head level. If you’re tying the hay net to a rail, be sure it is very sturdy as a pushy horse could tug on the net hard enough to dislodge a rail.
5. Find the metal ring on the bottom of the hay net.