Mini Hay Pillow - A More Natural Slow Feed Solution Designed Specifically for Minis
Allow your mini(s) to eat in a natural grazing position with a slow feed solution designed specifically for minis - the Mini Hay Pillow!
Easy to fill and transport, Mini Hay Pillows can be placed in multiple locations to encourage your mini to move between feeding stations, which helps to simulate natural grazing behavior. Movement also stimulates gut motility and increases the metabolic rate. Also popular for therapy horses on the go!
Please Note:
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Due to its capacity, the Mini Hay Pillow® is intended for miniature horses only.
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Due to the dangers involved in using any mesh material that can potentially get caught in a horseshoe, this product should not be used by shod livestock. We do not recommend use with horned animals or horses with blankets or halters that can potentially become snared in netting.
- If you have more than one individual in the same enclosure, we recommend at least one slow feed station per herd member.
Mini Dental Health Tip
Miniature breeds (horses and donkeys) are especially susceptible to genetic dental deformities. Although they have been downsized from a full-size - they posses the same number of teeth - which may not fit properly in the reduced head size. Routine dental exams are recommended.
Eating from ground level in a natural grazing position helps to facilitate natural wear of teeth by allowing the mandible (jaw bone) to come down and forward in the atlantoaxial and temporomandibular joints. This enables the mandible to move up and down, side to side, forward and back without any restriction - facilitating optimum mastication and reduction of particle size. Find more tips in our blog post: Feeding Miniature Horses & Donkeys: Why Slow Fed Forage is Best.
Choose from A Variety of Mesh Sizes
The Mini Hay Pillow® Slow Feeder Hay Bag is offered in a variety of mesh sizes: 1 ¼”, 1" and 3/4".
New customers: The 1 ¼” is the most popular mesh size and a great choice to introduce the Mini Hay Pillow® to miniature equines. Just ¼” can make a significant difference between a content or frustrated equine. Smaller mesh sizes do not necessarily equate to your equine eating slower; they may not be able to eat at all or become destructive.
Questions on Mesh Size? Review our Choosing a Mesh Size page, contact an expert by email or call 888-489-0022.
See How It Works!
Easy To Fill
Rugged & Designed to Last - Constructed with Made in the USA Materials
The Mini Hay Pillow® is constructed from the most rugged materials; 1000 denier nylon Cordura®, YKK® zipper and custom nylon (DuPont®) knotted netting. All made with American materials manufactured in the USA.
Our unique closures provide ease of loading and ensure hay is only accessed through the netting. The solid back dramatically reduces wasted hay and is ideal in windy weather.
The
Mini Hay Pillow® is the best choice for voracious eaters. They cannot tug or pull on it as it is not attached to anything when used loose on the ground.
We do not recommend hanging or attaching the Mini Hay Pillow® while in use - the solid back prevents most from being able to manipulate the hay properly, resulting in frustration. The bags are designed to be used loose on the ground. The tabs on the zipper end can be used to hang it to load hay, the tabs on the bottom are intended to hang the bags on a hook to dry or for storage. If you prefer to anchor or attach a slow feed product, purchase the
Hanging Hay Pillow (to hang) or
Day or Bale Nets which can be used loose on the ground, attached at ground level (for barefoot individuals), hung or secured in a tub/trough (for shod and barefoot horses). For photos and instructions see our
Mounting and Hanging page for further details.
Mini Hay Pillow Dimensions
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Overall Dimensions: 23" L x 19" W
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Netting Area Dimensions: 18” L x 11.5” W
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Volume: Holds up to 2 lbs. of hay (in flake form).
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Mesh Sizes: Available in: (3/4"), (1") and (1-1/4") mesh sizes
Washing Instructions
Machine wash cold, gentle cycle, line dry. Mild detergent, no bleach or fabric softener.
Mini Hay Pillow Testimonials
"I recently adopted an almost 30 year old mini gelding, Ridler. He has horrible old man teeth that are very worn down and has a history of choke. Unfortunately with his poor teeth and possibility of choke he has to eat a lot of mash, but really enjoys when he still gets the chance to "graze" on some hay with his new mini brother! Our vet highly recommended Hay Pillows a few years back and my horses loved them, and she felt this would be a great option for Ridler now too! The others benefited so well from still eating off the ground at a natural position but cutting down on the amount of sand they ingested or how quickly they blew through a meal! ~Mackenzie R~
"I love the Mini Hay Pillow because it easily allows me to provide hay to my mini in his evening pasture. The Hay Pillow is so much easier and cleaner than a regular hay net. No fumbling with strings, no acrobatics to wrangle a flake in the net, no looking for a safe place to hang. Just unzip, load, zip and place anywhere!" ~Darbie~
"My minis LOVE the mini Hay Pillow 1 1/4" mesh size. They actually prefer eating out of them when given the choice of loose hay or the pillow. We are hooked!" ~Lovie K.~
"Love the Mini Hay Pillow! The 1 ¼” size works best for my Shetlands. I know fiber is the best way to prevent colic! Hay Pillows are a great way to provide hay all night while they are stalled in the barn. I have cameras on my stalls and I have watched how often the ponies wake up and nibble on the hay pillow then return to short periods of sleep. Eating hay all night is a great way to keep forage in their tummies all night...and they seem to enjoy pulling hay from the pillows!" ~Claudia~
"I absolutely LOVE the Mini Hay Pillow. These slow the boys down on scarfing down their hay. Keeps it off the ground and mimics grazing. I have already seen a HUGE improvement in Charlie's cough because he can't stick his whole head in the hay bag and breath in hay particles. Big huge thank you to Monique once again for taking care of my boys." ~Ronica - Little Horses Big Smiles Inc-Charlie & George Miniature Therapy Horses~
"This product has improved not only the lives of my mini horses, but my goats and sheep, too. I can now leave hay out all day for them to eat in a more natural way... not to mention the money I am saving in less waste." ~Tiffanie~
"My boys Jake and Orey love their Mini Hay Pillows. There are very nice and with the solid backing I have less wasted hay than with hay nets. It is difficult to find safe slow feed products for minis. I appreciate the option for 1 inch mesh. Jake has such tiny feet he got his foot caught in a hay bag a couple of years ago with 2 inch mesh and was injured. Thank you!" ~Diana~
"Before I started using The (mini) Hay Pillow, I tried every other slow feed method I could find and nothing worked as naturally as The Hay Pillow. Hay bags made them stand in one spot and twist their necks in unnatural positions. The Hay Pillow lets them eat in a healthy position and helps them move around more naturally. In addition, my gelding has lost 100 pounds since changing my feeding methods....I forgot to mention that they are incredibly durable and my ponies use them hard." ~Lori H.~
"Our little mini is a chronic colic and founder case. We have struggled tremendously to keep her healthy. We have implemented a "track" style to our paddock, very little to no grass and 4 Hay Pillow products placed on each side of the paddock. The two of them move each other between the hay pillows all day, encouraging and aiding digestion and increasing circulation to the all-important hooves. We've tried several other more expensive products, but yours work the best! Thank you!" ~Mandy~
"My minis LOVE their mini hay pillows!!! Even if there happens to be some loose hay around, they leave that & go for the hay pillows. Keeps them eating slower, head down position & saves hay!!" ~Diane~
"A friend at the barn has one of your hay pillows and let me use it to see if it made any difference, and what a difference it made!! With the hay pillow, what Jack my Cushings pony usually consumes in an hour, took him more than three to eat!! Additionally, I think it kept him amused as well as he seemed to like carrying it around the paddock! Now that he knows what it is, he tries to steal it from under the fence when the other horse had it out in the field!!" ~Kim ~
"We are loyal users of the mini hay pillow size 1 1/4" since 2014. Every time I sell a mini I send a hay pillow with them - like a security blanket. I know the mini would be lost without it especially at a new home." ~Joan ~
"Scooter loves his new mini hay pillow! It keeps him entertained for hours and I like that it encourages him to move around and play instead of stand around in one place like his old hay net. I will definitely be purchasing more in the future!" ~Hailey~
"We recently purchased 2 mini hay pillows for the Grevy’s zebras at the Sacramento Zoo. The girls love them! All three of our older gals spend more time moving around the exhibit eating in a natural head down grazing position. And they love to throw the pillows around as well. Wonderfully enriching for our animals and great for the guests watching them eat and play." ~Melissa~
"We have two miniature horses - both just a year old and we love the mini hay pillows. We started with two mini pillows and just ordered two more. Bubba and Mr. Brown love them!! We even tested the minis several times to see if they preferred eating loose hay or hay in the hay pillows and they chose the pillows every time!" ~Sue~
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