Are Hay Nets and Hay Bags Safe for Horses? A Complete Guide for Australian Owners
Are Hay Nets and Hay Bags Safe for Horses? A Complete Guide for Australian Owners
For many Australian horse owners, hay nets and hay bags are everyday tools — keeping feed tidy, reducing waste, and slowing greedy eaters. Yet ask around at a show or agistment centre and you’ll hear very different opinions. Some swear by them as the best way to keep horses healthy and calm, while others worry about risks such as tangled hooves, tooth wear, or respiratory strain. So, are hay nets and hay bags safe for horses? The answer lies not in the products themselves, but in how they’re chosen, hung, and maintained.
What Are Hay Nets and Hay Bags?
Hay nets and hay bags are designed to extend feeding time, mimic grazing, and reduce hay wastage. While they can support digestive health and keep horses occupied, they also carry risks if misused. Key points include:
- Hay nets — mesh nets that release hay gradually.
- Hay bags — solid-sided feeders with openings that control intake.
- Benefits — slow eating, better gut health, reduced waste.
- Risks — entanglement, dental wear, or respiratory irritation if poorly set up.
The Benefits: Why Hay Nets and Bags Are So Popular
Horses are trickle feeders, designed to graze for 18–20 hours a day. Their stomach empties in just 25–30 minutes, which means long gaps without roughage can increase the risk of ulcers, colic, and stress behaviours. A slow-feeder hay net or bag mimics grazing by releasing only small mouthfuls at a time. This slows consumption, supports gut health, and keeps horses occupied — particularly valuable for good-doers who gain weight easily or nervous types who relax when kept busy. Nets and bags also cut waste, keeping hay off the ground and away from wind, mud, and manure.
The Concerns: What Can Go Wrong?
Like any piece of gear, hay nets and bags aren’t risk-free. The most common concerns include:
- Entanglement: Hooves, shoes, or teeth can become caught in netting if it’s too loose or worn.
- Dental wear: Very tight-packed hay or fine mesh can encourage scraping on fibres.
- Respiratory issues: Dusty hay or nets hung too high can irritate the airways.
- Frustration: Some horses become stressed when mesh is too fine to access easily.
The good news is that most risks can be managed with the right set-up and regular checks.
Safe Use Checklist
- Hang nets at chest height — head lower than withers but high enough to avoid hooves.
- Match mesh size to your horse’s behaviour and experience.
- Break flakes apart before loading; don’t overstuff.
- Inspect nets daily for wear, frays, or broken ropes.
- Use ground-level nets only with barefoot horses in safe areas.
Mesh Size: One Size Doesn’t Fit All
It’s tempting to think smaller mesh is always better for greedy eaters, but that isn’t always true. Too small and some horses scrape with their teeth or grow frustrated. A better approach is to start with a moderate size and adjust. Ponies and good-doers often benefit from finer mesh once trained, while nervous or inexperienced horses do better with larger openings. For foals or minis, always ensure mesh is smaller than hoof size. For shod horses, avoid large-holed nets at ground level.
Respiratory Health: Dust, Chaff and Mould
Respiratory problems usually stem from hay quality, not the nets themselves. In Australia, summer droughts and dusty storage can make clean hay harder to find. Reduce risks by feeding at chest height so dust falls away, soaking dusty hay before use, storing hay under cover, and using solid-sided bags in windy barns or floats.
Routine Maintenance
Small tears in nets quickly become hazards. Inspect nets and bags daily, repair or replace worn gear, check ropes and clips, and wash periodically to remove dust, mould spores, or manure build-up.
Seasonal Challenges in Australia
Summer: Dust storms, sandy soils and drought increase respiratory risks and sand colic. Nets elevate hay off the ground, soaking hay adds moisture, and electrolytes support hydration.
Winter: Mud and damp paddocks increase hay wastage. Slow-feeder bags protect hay from trampling, and digesting fibre provides internal warmth. Proper storage is just as important as how you feed it.
Alternatives and Rotation
Safety doesn’t mean one method only. Many owners rotate between nets, bags, and ground feeders depending on conditions. For example, use slow-feeder bags in floats, nets tied to tyres in yards for barefoot horses, or round bale nets in shared paddocks to stretch forage without waste.
So, Are They Safe?
The short answer is yes — when used correctly. Hay nets and hay bags are safe for most horses provided they’re chosen, hung, and checked appropriately. They remain one of the best tools for reducing waste, stretching hay, and supporting digestive health.
Delzani’s Safe Feeding Picks
At Delzani, our hay nets and bags are designed for Australian horses and conditions:
- Slow Feeder Horse Hay Net Bag — heavy-duty polyester with ~50mm mesh, steel bottom ring and marine-grade tie rope.
- Deluxe Slow Feeder Hay Bag — 600D Oxford denier, 2+ biscuit capacity, reinforced quick-release straps.
- Canvas Hay Feed Bag — tough ripstop canvas, reinforced seams, ideal for travel and stables.
- Hay Bale Carry Bag — 1600D fabric with moisture-proof lining for transporting or storing bales.
Feeding smarter doesn’t mean sacrificing safety. With the right set-up, hay nets and bags can support your horse’s natural feeding patterns while saving time, money, and hay.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are hay nets safe for shod horses?
Yes, if hung at chest height and checked regularly. Avoid ground-level nets for shod horses to prevent shoe entrapment.
What mesh size is best?
Start with medium openings and adjust. Finer mesh suits good-doers; larger holes suit nervous or inexperienced horses.
Can hay nets cause respiratory problems?
Only if hay is dusty or hung too high. Use clean hay, soak if needed, and feed at chest height to reduce dust inhalation.
Related Equestrian Guides
Horse Hay Net & Feed Bags
Protect horse health and reduce hay waste with Delzani hay nets, hay bags, and slow feeders. Smarter feeding solutions built tough for Australian paddocks, floats, and stables.
Horse Hay Nets and Feed Bags: Smarter Feeding Solutions
Hay nets and slow feeder bags support horse health by promoting natural grazing, reducing colic risk, and cutting waste. Learn how smart feeding with Delzani hay nets keeps horses calm, aids digestion, and works year-round in tough Australian conditions.
Hay Net vs Hay Bag vs Hay Bale Bag: Feeding Solutions for Australian Horses
Choosing between a hay net, hay bag, or hay bale carry bag can transform feeding from messy to efficient. Discover how each option helps your horse eat healthier, saves hay, and keeps your stable, paddock, or float tidy — with Delzani’s durable designs.
Seasonal Hay Feeding Challenges in Australia
Hay feeding in Australia comes with unique challenges — dusty summers, muddy winters, and messy float trips. Learn how to reduce waste, protect horse health, and keep feeding efficient all year with Delzani’s tough hay nets, hay bags, and carry solutions.
Colic in Horses: How Smarter Hay Feeding Helps Reduce the Risk
Colic is a leading health risk for horses in Australia, but the way you feed hay makes all the difference. Learn how Delzani’s hay nets, hay bags, and bale carry bags support natural digestion, prevent waste, and help reduce the risk of equine colic.
Privacy Policy
Delzani is committed to providing you with a high level of customer service. This includes protecting and maintaining the privacy, accuracy and security of your personal information. We are bound by and will abide by the National Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act (Cth) 1988 . This is in addition to our existing obligations under the Privacy Act.
What personal information do we collect and hold?
In the process of conducting our business we are likely to collect a wide range of personal information about you. The type of personal information we collect always includes your name, residential and billing address, email address, telephone or mobile numbers and products and services we provide to you. We don’t store any credit card information on our web site. We pass it onto our bank for processing.
How do we collect personal information?
Delzani collects personal information directly from you when you submit it online at Delzani.com.au . There may be occasions when we collect information from publicly available sources or third parties. This information includes names, email addresses, telephone numbers and social media profile name sourced from permission based marketing activities.
Cookies and Web beacons
A cookie is a small text file that is stored on a user’s computer for record-keeping purposes. We use cookies on this site. We use session ID cookies. We use session cookies to make it easier for you to navigate our site. A session ID cookie expires when you close you browser. If you reject cookies, you may still use our site, but your ability to use some areas of our site will be limited.
Some of our business partners (e.g. tracking utility company) use cookies and Web beacons on our site. We have no access to or control over these tracking technologies.
Delzani advertises with Google. Google may show you our ads based on your having visited our site. If you do not wish to see these ads you can opt-out by visiting the Google advertising opt-out page here http://www.google.com/privacy_ads.html.
Rate and Review
If you provide a review or rating for a product available through Delzani Online we reserve the right to publish part or all of your review or rating together with your first name and suburb.
Links to Other Sites
This Website contains links to other sites that are not owned or controlled by Delzani. Please be aware that we, Delzani, are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage you to be aware when you leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every Web site that collects personally identifiable information. This privacy statement applies only to information collected by this website.
How do we use personal information?
In order to improve and better our offers and service, we may keep track of patterns of use in the e-mails and social interactions we send. By supplying us your information, you have given us permission to communicate to you via mail, e-mail, SMS, MMS, social media and telephone to inform you about services we deliver relevant to you indefinitely.
Disclosure of personal information
We may use or disclose your personal information to organisations outside Delzani for purposes relating to the management of your account with us. Such organisations include: Service providers who manage the services provided to you; mailing systems which organise delivery of the products you have purchased; live help service providers, maintenance and repair services; market research; and our professional advisers, accountants, lawyers and auditors.
We require these organisations to adhere to strict confidentiality of your personal information and also seek to ensure that they adhere to the National Privacy Principles. These service providers may not use your personal information for their own marketing purposes.
Security
Delzani takes reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is secure. We have robust systems and procedures in place to protect your privacy whenever we collect, store and use or disclose personal information. We are continually upgrading these systems and reviewing our procedures to ensure the highest standards of security are used to protect your personal information.
How to access and amend personal information
If you wish to obtain a copy of our data privacy policy, access the personal information we hold about you or your personal information is inaccurate, incomplete outdated or to unsubscribe, please direct any queries regarding your privacy rights email sales@delzani.com.au.
The release of information is subject to some exceptions such as information relating to existing or any anticipated legal proceedings, together with exceptions provided by the Privacy Act. Our objective is to respond to any request within a reasonable timeframe and no later than 30 days.
How your information may be shared
Except for the purposes outlined in the Delzani Privacy Policy, we never sell or disclose your personal information. However, we may release personal information under the following circumstances:
-
when requested by the courts or laws (for example, a subpoena) or regulation or is requested by a government agency;
-
where we deem a company or an individual may be engaged in fraudulent activity or other deceptive practices that a governmental agency should be made aware of; and/or to appropriate persons, where your communication suggests possible harm to others.
Changes in this Privacy Policy
If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes to this document, the home page and other places we deem appropriate so that you are aware of what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it. We reserve the right to modify this privacy policy at any time, so please review it frequently. If we make material changes to this policy, we will notify you here, by email, or by means of a notice on our homepage.
Shop Now. Pay Later.
Always interest-free.
Add your favourites to cart
Select Afterpay at checkout
Log into or create your Afterpay account, with instant approval decision
Your purchase will be split into 4 payments, payable every 2 weeks
All you need to apply is to have a debit or credit card, to be over 18 years of age, and to be a resident of country offering Afterpay
Late fees and additional eligibility criteria apply. The first payment may be due at the time of purchase
For complete terms visit afterpay.com/terms