Slow-feeders benefit horses

When Jess Walton, Emmy award-winning actress from "The Young and the Restless," and her husband author John W. James moved to Sisters two years ago they had no idea they would be designing slow-feeders to benefit horses.

James and his wife had visited Sisters a few times and ended up falling in love with the small-town charm and its snow-capped peaks. They bought a 10-acre horse ranch on the outskirts of Sisters and ended up adopting two rescue horses.

"We've never had any horses before," says Walton. "We started looking at rescue horses at Equine Outreach in Bend."

Equine Outreach's primary goal is to rehabilitate horses in need of placement into responsible and compassionate homes.

"We decided to foster two mares, Layla and Summer," said Walton. "Then we adopted them."

Layla is an 8-year-old quarter horse and Summer is a younger mustang.

"I saw them just standing around and not getting any exercise. It just didn't look right for a horse," recalled Walton.

Then Walton noticed Summer didn't seem well. They found out she had colic.

Colic simply means that a horse has abdominal pain, and this can occur for many different reasons. The trick is to determine what is causing these symptoms. Colic can be caused by too much food eaten very quickly. It can also be a result of boredom and lack of movement.

"They would just stand in one place continuing to eat," recalled James.

Walton decided to do research on the healthiest ways of feeding and maintaining your horse.

She found out that horses in the wild browse between 65 and 80 percent of the time and that they have very small stomachs. Equine anatomy demands that horses eat small amounts almost continually.

"I was researching on Amazon one day and found a book by veteran hoof-care professional Jaime Jackson called 'Paddock Paradise,'" Walton said.

The premise of the book is to stimulate horses to behave and move naturally according to their instincts by creating a natural boarding or paddock for horses.

When horses are grazing naturally in a field, they tend to eat slowly. The basic design of their digestive system is best served by slow and steady eating. Stabled horses tend to eat hay rapidly because they become bored.

James became very interested in the concept of creating a natural horse paddock with slow feeding. He talked to his ranch manager, Rick Davis, about designing a natural paddock and slow-feeders for their own horses.

James had already purchased the book Paddock Paradise and decided to follow the design templates for making his own paddock. Slow-feeders hold smaller portions and would be placed around the paddock appropriately so the horse will continue to travel along to each of the feeders.

"It's important that we keep our horses moving," says James.

Ranch manager Davis then talked about designing slow-feeders to builder and contractor Brad Warren, and Leonard Remington, a ranch hand who works for James and his wife.

Through trial and error and considerable hard work, James and his ranch staff ended up with two different slow feeders made of sturdy ranch plank wood which includes a grate on top to hold down the hay.

James and his staff then positioned the feeding areas with his slow-feeders as suggested in Paddock Paradise.

The results were astounding.

"Summer's colic disappeared and she lost the weight that she needed to," said Walton. "Now they both get exercise and are healthier."

"I would like to expand people's awareness about how beneficial slow-feeders are. In doing that, everything else benefits," says James.

James and his staff donated their time modifying the feeders at Paso by Paso Equine Rehabilitation Ranch in Sisters so other horses can benefit as well.

"One of our slow-feeders is for sale in Sisters Feed & Supply," said James.

To learn more about slow-feeders visit John James' website, www.ranchwoodconcepts.com.