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Yes, you may now call me a
Horze ‘ho. Albeit within the confines of a most basic TFS Commandment:
thou shalt always receive open, honest feedback!
I continue to enjoy our appallingly stylish (
if you’ve read for a while, you know my trendiness aversion!) bell boots & gloves (
week two: still no holes!). But the goodies don’t end there: check out two more!
#1: Tired Of Losing Money In Trampled, Peed-On, Rolled-In Hay?
Another
equine product that makes you want to throw things & scream: the Hay Net. The holes are too big. The holes are too small. That drawstring at the top has demonic intent to prevent the loading of any actual hay. If it doesn’t have a drawstring, the holes are too big...again. If the holes are just right & it lacks an evil drawstring, well, you must have entered a parallel universe of impossible fantasies.
Currently, I hang a
small-hole drawstring net in the trailer. Yes, it makes me want to scream very bad words while filling it. But I love that I no longer lose huge quantities of
$$$$$ hay onto my trailer floor. It frustrates the crap out of Encore; unless I pull out a bunch of “starter clumps” for him to grab, he believes it’s too much work & gives up.
*insert eyeroll here* In the fields, I dole out flakes on the ground or in an old trough with a pin-holed bottom. I don’t. do. round bales. (
Unless someone wants to mail me a $300 net & a spear for the tractor…)
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| Mine!! |
The
Horze Slow Hay Feeder Net looked like a promising solution:
HUGE open top with perfectly-sized holes with a simple hanging design that I could move between trailer & run-in in a snap. While slightly more expensive than my $11 trailer net, at $24 it was still half the cost of the $55
wall-mount from CinchChix & more flexible.
Loves:
- I can walk up with 4 flakes balanced on one arm, pull the top wide open, & dump them in without loosing a bit
- Easily holds at least 1/2 a square bale
- Two simple mounting loops give you endless hanging options, including my carefully engineered “tie it to the rafters with hay string” technique
- Two sets of short “shoelaces” are sewn into the top binding so you can dissuade Dobbin from just shoving his entire head in
- Since the boys love to camp in their shed on rainy days, it lets Solo continue to “graze” under shelter & holds so much hay, I don’t have to worry about mid-day refills (not tested on Princess Encore-I-Like-To-Pee-In-My-Hay yet)
- After I add a double-ended snap to each hanging loop, I can hang or move it anywhere by simply unclipping & don’t have to mount anything permanent
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| Awesome MSPaint arrows indicate shoelaces |
Minor Design Struggle:
- The enormous top-load is amazing; it could be even better if the “shoelaces” were not both sewn onto the same binding edge. I weave them to the other edge a couple times & tie a slip-knot for easy release, but it’s a bit awkward (hey, some people have weird, super-logical brains that struggle with lopsided things).
- Alternatively (& what I initially thought the “shoelaces” were), a simple drawstring inside the top binding with a cord lock, like this, would be awesome!
One Sad Discovery:
- Because the netting is softer than a traditional hay bag, it is easier for the horse to snag the hay, & hopefully will be less frustrating for Encore. However, after about 5 solid days of Solo-use, the net string on a bottom corner is unraveling & pulling out of the side binding. Mr. Shiny loves his hay & is serious about getting every scrap; it appears that the string is not strong enough for full-time shed residence.
Despite this initial material failure, though, it shall receive some hay-string patching for continued use! Horze DOES have a
30-day "happiness guarantee," should you have problems with any product, as well.
While not cut out for full-time “grazing,” I still think it has great functionality for trailering, temporary show-stabling, & other less “aggressive” situations where easy filling & hanging are key!
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| Probably not the helmet I'd choose for deer season... |
#2: Serious Safety
While there are many things I love about the Carolinas, fall is not one of them. It’s perfect riding weather, the trees break out their technicolour dreamcoats, the demonic insects begin their retreat. What’s not to love?
Oh, it’s also rifle season for white-tailed deer.
A Little Perspective
As an employee of my state’s natural resource agency & a wildlife biologist, I get to see both sides of this…interesting time of year. Nearly all of my co-workers hunt deer, as well as ducks, doves, turkeys, & feral hogs with bows, muzzleloaders, shotguns, & rifles, as personal preference varies. And they do it right: each one is careful, responsible, ethical, educated, & experienced.
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| MN wins the prize for Best Safety Graphics |
Unfortunately, just like horse-world, riddled with double-edged swords, a conscientious participant in hunting-world is not a guarantee. Outside of work, as a horse & property owner, I must always be alert for the bad apples. It only takes one guy who thinks it’s funny to shoot a horse out from under someone, or brought a case of beer to the stand, or fires blindly at rustling leaves, or…it happens every year (and all over the country).
We Can & Should Share The Woods, But Be Proactive
As a result, many of us simply stay out of the woods once rifle season begins (
the bow hunters & muzzleloaders are so much better at paying attention). When we do head out on trails, we stick to state parks & private properties. Even then, I always wear my very sexy DOT safety vest from work (
sigh, trespassers…), attach a bear bell to my saddle (
I need to fix that), & wear bright-coloured clothing. I’ve got the vest on for tractor work too;
the favoured.30-06 rifle can send a bullet 2-3 miles, so at least no one will be able to say I looked like a deer through the scope!
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| Glow-in-the-dark Solo! |
TL;DR:
I have finally completed my seven-year quest for very affordable riding accessories that didn’t make my horse sweat & screamed “THIS DEER-COLOURED CREATURE IS NOT A DEER!” And the answer…is $4!!!!
A handy set of four hi-vis reflective sleeves with open ends, the Horze Bzeen String Covers, despite their odd name, incorporate the two best elements of product design: versatility & simplicity. I’m not sure if this is standard, but I received two that had velcro down one side & two slightly narrower sleeves that were sewn on both sides. I slid one of the latter onto a browband & velcro’ed both of the former on my martingale for a test run.
You can definitely see them! I’m very excited to have these additions to my safety arsenal & am already pondering how many I could fit on one horse! The nylon fabric feels thin, but sturdy & can get tossed in washing machine whenever needed.
My only “in a perfect world” very picky detail changes
- Either include velcro on every sleeve or give the buyer an option
- Offer them in blaze orange, the universally (or at least in the US) recognized hunting safety colour
Thank you so much again to the super-friendly folks at Horze for giving me the opportunity to want more of their stuff try out their great products & helping me share them with you!
