Hay Bonnet™ Hay Cover

Marine Grade netting is abrasion resistant, UV inhibited, and built to be over-stuffed, which gives it a much longer life than typical feed-net materials. The Orange Slow Feeder uses netting with a 1200 lb breaking point. Brian Leary and his clients have used the same nets with their horses for nearly 4 years.

Slow feeders reduce hay waste and support a more natural, healthy way to feed, which can lower costs tied to hay, colic, and ulcer prevention. The bigger savings come from durability: if you replace cheaper nets every 30 to 90 days, those costs add up fast. Orange Slow Feeder nets are built to last years, reducing your long-term replacement cost.

The current square size is 1-3/4 inch. Additional sizes are planned, with 1-3/8", 1-1/2", and 2" squares listed as up-and-coming options.

The lineup includes the Small Trailer Feeder at $42.50, the Large Trailer Feeder at $57.50, the Pumpkin Net at $72.50, and the West Coast Net at $92.50. Larger options include the Round Bale Net at $215 to $345 depending on size, the Small Square Bale Net at $330, and the Large Square Bale Net at $390.

Yes. The nets are designed to be compact for easy storage and transport, while still offering a wide opening that makes filling simple — they can even be over-stuffed. That suits busy horse owners who often work jobs off the farm or ranch.

That is exactly the problem it was built to solve. Founder Brian Leary started the company after his own horses destroyed every net he tried, and customers report the nets are virtually indestructible. One client kept the same net in front of a known net-eater for 18 months.

You can call or click to order. Reach Brian Leary by phone at 253-363-7801, or visit the Orange Slow Feeder online at https://www.orangeslowfeeders.com to choose the net that fits your hay and your horses.

The standard mesh is a 1-3/4" square opening. Select nets like the Pumpkin Net also offer 1-1/4" and 2-1/2" square mesh, and the company can produce custom mesh sizes on request to match your slow-feed goals.

Orange Slow Feeder is a woman- and veteran-owned small business in the Pacific Northwest, founded in 2014 by Brian Leary. The netting and ropes are manufactured in Washington State, and the rings are manufactured for the company in Rhode Island, making it an all-USA build.

It started with horses. Owner Brian Leary was looking for a way to help his own horses, and as the company says, "The Original Orange Slow Feeders were built for our use with our horses." That personal need in 2014 turned into a product line of heavy-duty slow-feed nets.

On orangeslowfeeder.com, the Pumpkin Net is $75.00, Round Bale Nets start at $215.00, Square Bale Nets start at $82.50, and stall/trailer nets start around $42.50. Bulk netting and accessories begin near $17.00.

The company states the nets "Reduce Waste by 98%." Because the horse must nibble hay through the mesh instead of pulling it onto the ground, far less hay is trampled, soiled, or blown away, which is where most feed money is normally lost.

With everyday use, the nets are rated for roughly 1 to 6 years. Stationary nets that aren't moved around tend to last 1 to 3 years; rotating a stationary net to a fresh section of mesh about once a month helps extend its life.

Rarely. According to the company, "maybe a handful of horses chew through these nets," and that's typically only extremely aggressive chewers. The heavy 4mm marine-grade twine is built specifically to withstand the abuse of a determined or playful horse.

The netting has a 1,200-lb breaking strength, so as the company puts it, "The netting is NOT going to break. The shoes will get ripped off." Proper hanging is essential for shod horses, and for ground feeding with round bales, shod animals need the net protected or elevated.

Yes — they are ideal soaking nets. The netting does not hold water because, in the company's words, "The netting material is designed to drag along the bottom of the ocean," so it sheds moisture and drains rather than staying waterlogged.

The polyethylene material "does NOT hold moisture so it will NOT freeze" on its own, and stays pliable in cold weather even if it stiffens slightly. The one caution: if animals pack a ground net into wet ground, mud can freeze the net into the soil, so keep it off saturated dirt.

Pressure wash it, or soak or spray it with a vinegar-and-water solution. Cleaning out the dirt and grime that collects between the fibers also keeps the net from getting stiff, which is the usual cause of stiffness rather than the material itself.

For a single horse, the Pumpkin Net is the most versatile choice — it hangs in a stall, on a high line, or on the side of a trailer. For pasture or herd feeding, choose a Round Bale Net (4'x4' up to 6'x6') or a square-bale net like the West Coast or Colorado Bale Net to match your bale size.

The Pumpkin Net's open end is "large enough for one person to easily fill the net with 3 flakes of a 3-tie hay bale or 1/2 of a full compressed bale." Its top rope is strong enough to hang from a beam or eye-bolt for stall, high-line, or trailer-side feeding.

Yes. The company says, "Absolutely! Our usual mesh size 1-3/4" is a good size but you can always ask us for a larger size if needed." Custom larger mesh is available for livestock that need bigger openings.

Slowing intake keeps the horse chewing and producing saliva over a longer period, which buffers the stomach, and it spreads feeding across more of the day. As the company notes, "Horses are designed to graze 18 hours a day," so a slow feeder more closely matches a horse's natural grazing pattern than meal-style feeding.

Wet, moldy, and trampled hay is wasted money, and that loss adds up quickly over a feeding season. The Hay Bonnet keeps hay dry, cool, and clean so far more of every bale gets eaten, which is why the company says it pays for itself in the first year and longtime owners credit it as one of the best investments on their farm.