6 Great Reasons To Feed From Ground Level

By Monique Warren

Learn about the physical, mental and emotional benefits of eating in a natural grazing position & more when you feed your horse from the ground.

1)  Natural Wear of Teeth & More

A natural grazing position allows the mandible (jaw bone) to come down and forward in the atlantoaxial and temporomandibular joints. This alignment:

• Enables the mandible to move up and down, side to side, forward and back without any restriction
• Facilitates natural wear of teeth - along with optimum mastication and reduction of particle size

2)  Less Strain on the Skeletal System & Soft Tissue

A natural grazing position puts less strain on the skeletal system and soft tissue because a horse is designed to eat with the head down.

3)  Relaxed Mental & Emotional State

A horse’s emotional state is reflected in body position and posture. If we require a horse to eat with their head elevated, we are encouraging an alert and tense mental state. 

4)  Better Peripheral Vision

Ground feeders such as the Standard Ground Hay Pillows and Mini Hay Pillows® do not impair the horse's peripheral vision. If impaired, this can create tension psychologically. Horses are prey animals and depend on sight and sound to detect predators.

5)  Better Respiratory Health

Enables nasal passages to drain effectively thereby minimizing the inhalation of dust and particles. 

6)  Keeps Hay & Dust Out of Eyes

Eliminates the risk of hay and dust falling into your horse's eyes. 

*Note:   Shod livestock should not use any netting device on the ground. Due to the dangers involved in using any mesh material that can potentially get caught on a horseshoe, it is not safe or recommended. We do not recommend the use of netting devices with horned animals or horses with blankets or halters that can potentially become snared in netting.​
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See our Slow Feed Solutions By Enclosure Type & Weather Conditions to learn more about appropriate choices for shod and barefoot livestock depending on your unique environment.

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​"As an equine veterinarian and dentist, I highly recommend the Hay Pillow to my clients. I use them for my personal horses and have been really pleased. I prefer to feed my horses in correct anatomical position - on the ground! They are durable, and keep my horses with hay for hours at a time with no mess/discarded hay. When they get dirty, we just throw them in the washer! Excellent product."
Diane Febles, DVM, CVA - Georgia Equine Dentistry & Acupuncture​

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Helpful How-to Resources for Slow Feeding

• Sand Colic - The Surprising (Simple) Cure & Prevention
• Can Horses Eat More Hay Without Weight Gain? The Surprising Factors
• How to Introduce & Incorporate Free-Choice Forage: A Detailed Action Plan
• Slow Feed Solutions for Any Environment
• 6 Great Reasons to Feed Your Horse from Ground Level
• 9 Benefits of Slow Feeding Horses
• 7 Slow Feed Dos and Dont's for Horses
• 7 Easy Ways to Help Prevent Colic
• Never Exercise Horses on an Empty Stomach...Ever
  
• Why You Shouldn't Transport Horses On An Empty Stomach
• Keeping Horses Warm Naturally – Internally and Externally
• Why Most Horse Prefer to Eat Outside

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About the Author:
Monique Warren invented the Hay Pillow® slow feeder and is the owner of Hay Pillow Inc.
​Warren has been an equine guardian for over forty years and slow-feed advocate for over 10 years. She contributes equine nutrition and digestive and hoof health articles to publications such as Equine Wellness, The Journal, The Naturally Healthy Horse,  Natural Horse Magazine, Nicker News, Horse Back Magazine, The Horse's Hoof, and  Miniature Horse World Magazine. Equine nutrition and horses feet are her passions. She resides in Southern California.