Hydration Hay is now available and we can finally talk about it!

Hydration Hay Package, Block and Fully Soaked

When I show customers the Hydration Hay for the first time, I joke that this product is worth 7 years of my life. When I joined Purina in 2005, they were already working on a similar project that involved compressed hay blocks that could potentially slow down intake time and reduce glucose and insulin response to feeding. At the time, we worked with a company that made custom, handmade machinery for the compression and research trials were underway. In that process, we learned that A) horses found ways to eat the dry, compressed blocks more quickly than expected (picking them up with their mouths, dropping hayblocks on the ground, crushing them with their hoof and then eating the pieces) and B) our manufacturers were not able to keep up with the projected demand for the product. So we kept going back to the drawing board and the hayblocks even went back on the research shelf for short while until we figured out our next steps.




We started working on the hayblocks again and with a new supplier and manufacturer, we discovered through field trial testing how quickly each hayblock absorbed a substantial amount of water. When the hay was chopped and compressed a certain way, each block could soak up 5 times its weight in water and horses absolutely loved the hydrated hay block. Voila! Hydration Hay was born. From there, we began a series of manufacturing trials and horse research trials to determine formulation, manufacturing specs, animal response, uses and horse and customer preferences. We are proud to say we have a patent pending on the soaking technology and the uses we have found for the Hydration Hay continue to grow. Here are some of the best ways we have found to use Hydration Hay:

• For horses that are poor drinkers or need rehydration- each block soaks up over a gallon of water and can be fed in one meal. Therefore, each hydration hayblock your horse consumes helps to get 10lbs of water into the horse!

• Put them in front of horses on the trailer or airplane when they are traveling. We all know it is difficult to get horses to drink well during transport. Once they are used to eating Hydration Hay, most horses will eat it on the road as well, getting good quality fiber + water into them as they rack up the miles.

• Use the Hydration Hay to mask medications, supplements, dewormer, etc. Due to the palatability and large volume of feed made once the water is added, you can “hide” a lot of items in Hydration Hay that your horse may pick out of his feed. We have fed NSAIDS, antibiotics, supplements and even double dose dewormer to horses in Hydration Hay and they ate every bite!

• Hydration Hay is good for horses that require good quality fiber and water that needs to be introduced in a slow, measured way for a sensitive gastrointestinal tract. So, for horses being reintroduced to feedstuffs after surgery, horses on stall rest, horses with medical conditions, horses that have lost their appetite, etc. Hydration Hay can be an excellent tool for getting horses back on feedstuffs and especially hay. * Always work with your veterinarian for any type of medical condition that may be affecting your horse.

• Hydration Hay is also a great way to give your horse a “mash” while getting water into them and keeping the diet more consistent. I am not a fan of the weekly bran mash to keep horses “regular.” While they typically won’t hurt your horse, studies have shown that they do not have a laxative effect, cannot prevent colic and bran mashing typically represents a drastic change from what the horse is used to eating. Hydration Hay can be mixed with your regular concentrate ration and is more consistent as most horses are already on a hay product.  Hydration hay also provides even more water to the horse than a bran mash.

• We have found that Hydration Hay soaks up more water than beet pulp or alfalfa cubes. So if you are thinking, I already get water and fiber into my horse with these other methods, Hydration Hay takes it to the next level.

In the end, I am extremely proud of our work to develop Hydration Hay and provide a product and solution to horse owners. I encourage you to visit our website at http://purinahorsesupplements.com/?hayblocks and get a $10 off coupon towards your purchase of Hydration Hay. Once you try it, I know you will find many uses for it and keep your horses happier and healthier as a result!