We have received a detailed review from Rosalie de Kruijf, for which we thank you. Rosalie also describes her search for a roughage system and explains why she chose the FeedingMaster.
"I am now convinced that it is better to give your horse small amounts of roughage as often as possible. I notice from my horse's manure that his digestion has improved. The quality and composition of the roughage is still there. decisive, but the dosed feeding really helps with my horse's sensitive digestion."
November 2021, Review FeedingMaster by Rosalie de Kruijf.
Always roughage, without getting fat
The FeedingMaster provides enormous convenience for me and improvement for my horse. I only have to give roughage once a day, my horse is never without roughage and I have control over how much he eats! My horse's weight is much easier to maintain and the measured way of eating ensures better digestion. The FeedingMaster is also extremely easy to operate. Highly recommended.
Ease
One of the main reasons why I started looking for a roughage machine was practical. In the small boarding stable where I live, a hay net is hung twice a day. We arranged a 3rd feeding among ourselves, but this became increasingly difficult to carry out. I fill the FeedingMaster once a day and my horse can use it for 24 hours, which gives a lot of peace and convenience.
Better distribution of roughage
I did not achieve the now well-known guideline that your horse should not be left without roughage for more than 5 hours with 3 feedings and that bothered me quite a bit. Slow feeders also did not give the desired results. My horse was left without roughage for far too long, especially at night. With the FeedingMaster he always has something to eat. That gives me a lot of peace and I also saw peace in my horse from day 1. Of course he had to get used to the system and during the first few days he sometimes stood restlessly near his box, mowing with his front leg. But right from the start he was also sleeping and he no longer became restless during feeding time; When the other horses were fed, he simply stood or lay very relaxed, instead of waiting restlessly and focused and neighing. Clearly not hungry, just a full stomach.
Never without roughage and maintaining good weight
When I moved to my current stable I thought I would put my horse on unlimited roughage. Even though the roughage is nice and poor, my horse still became too fat. So I had to start feeding portions. It was a choice between two evils, because going without roughage for a long time and allowing it to become too fat entails health risks. Now with the FeedingMaster he never has an empty stomach and maintains his weight well. I think that's a really fantastic combination.
Advantages of Feedingmaster compared to other roughage systems
In my search I looked at various roughage systems. The biggest difference between the FeedingMaster and other systems is that the FeedingMaster does not work with feeding sessions. The device actually offers continuous roughage with short breaks. I have noticed that opinions are divided on how long a horse can go without roughage, but a general guideline is no longer than 5 hours. For me personally, an automatic with 5-6 feedings was also fine. Although I found several systems suitable, I chose the FeedingMaster for the following reasons.
The box is quite low in height, so it does not obscure the view into the stable. The other systems are quite massive.
The system is super easy to operate and set up, making it very user-friendly.
The controls are on the box itself, so you don't have to find a (dry) place for the control panel, which also has to hang out of reach of your horse.
The FeedingMaster is super quiet, so there are no startle reactions or annoyance for horses or humans.
The prices of the different systems do not differ much. I thought the FeedingMaster was a good price compared to the others because it is a professional and well-built device that complies with EC guidelines and safety standards.
After using it I discovered a few more advantages.
I am now convinced that it is better to give your horse small amounts of roughage as often as possible. I notice from my horse's manure that his digestion has improved. The quality and composition of the roughage is still decisive, but dosed feeding really helps with my horse's sensitive digestion.
You do not have to adjust feeding times when increasing or decreasing grazing and it does not matter whether he goes out to the meadow a (few) hours earlier or later.
You also don't have to take into account what time you are going to drive if you want to do so with a full stomach. Because there is always food available.
Because he eats from a bowl, waste due to dirty or trampled hay is virtually nil.
Are there no disadvantages?
Yes, I have discovered one disadvantage, it does not outweigh the advantages, but I want to mention it. If your horse is kept in the stable/paddock 24/7 (in winter) (so it does not get pasture) then the box may be slightly too small. This depends greatly on the size of your horse and the structure and length of your roughage. According to the guideline (1.5 kilos of dry matter per 100 kg of body weight), my horse can eat 8 kilos of roughage per day. Depending on the structure of the roughage, I get 7-10 kilos in the machine. That is sometimes too little. In addition, if I have just filled the trough, my horse can touch his lips to the blades the first few times during the non-eating period. Especially with long roughage, he pulls out large chunks and can therefore continue to eat. This decreases over time because the amount of roughage decreases and the machine presses the roughage each time, causing the space between the hay and the grid to increase.
I asked Valetudo Horse Products for advice and he provided a number of solutions. Such as filling it twice a day with 5-6 kilos and ensuring that you have short and fine roughage. Unfortunately, filling twice is not an option for me and I don't have much influence on the roughage because I live in a boarding stable.
For now, I'll take it for granted that he will eat more in the beginning, until he can't get any more during the non-eating time. And if I have very coarse roughage and can't fit enough in the box, I give him a portion of it loose. Not ideal, but nevertheless I still have all the advantages I mentioned above, so I am very happy with my FeedingMaster.
I look forward to the developments to come because Valetudo Horse Products has told me that in the longer term it wants to offer three different sizes, which will solve my problem, among other things. Really great! I think it's really good that Valetudo Horse Products does something with users' experiences and points for improvement.
Before purchasing I had some doubts because of the costs. I thought it was a huge investment, but considering all the benefits, it was well worth it to me. I think this is the future, because you can't feed your horse better (in doses) and it also provides convenience for humans.