There is a lot to consider with horse feed. One of these considerations is feed room security. The place where you store your product is vital to your horse’s long term health. So, feed room conditions are crucial. Failing to store everything correctly can be hazardous. Feed storage areas need specific characteristics. What we want to do is discuss them to ensure you can do the best for your animals.
Key factors
Firstly, you need a dry and well-ventilated environment. Feed needs protecting from moisture. Bags can’t be stacked directly on your floor or moisture could be absorbed in the bottom ones. This can lead to the feed moulding in the bag.
Any storage containers, like plastic bins or boxes, must be pest and water resistant. Moreover, you should fully empty and clean them regularly. If you are storing feed in bags, ensure old feed isn’t allowed to accumulate; use it before you open newer bags.
You also need adequate lighting as well. It is vital that you are able to clearly see the condition of your feeds in your feed room. The same goes for supplement items. Horse feed and any supplements are generated under controlled conditions. After they leave a mill or factory, they could be exposed to other conditions in transport and storage. Thus, it is wise to be able to clearly see the condition of your products each time you feed your animals.
Cleanliness is also important. You must keep the storage area/feed room clear of spilled feed. You can’t have dust or other possible contamination sources either.
Pest control
Feed has a habit of attracting rodents, insects, and birds, no matter who it’s for. The pests will do their best to try to get at it. Your job is to stop them. Keep in mind that some pests are carriers of Equine Protozal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) and other diseases. Therefore, it is even more important to keep them away from feeds.
When pest control proves to be necessary, you must take care to ensure certain rodenticides and pesticides can’t contaminate the feed. Animals should not be able to access the pest control material either. Moreover, the hay storage area has to reduce the danger of exposure to pests.
Security
Finally, there are the specific security measures. Make sure horses and other creatures cannot access the feed storage area. Maybe there is a Houdini in your property that opens the stall and accesses the feed room. If this is the case, there is all sorts that could go wrong here. Ensure you can securely lock the feed store to keep everything out. This will reduce the risks.
Furthermore, you might have many species. Here, you have to keep the horse feed separate from all other animal feeds. In particular, you have to do this with swine, poultry, and ruminant feeds.
A great source of horse feed
At JS Hubbuck Ltd, we supply plenty of high quality feed products. They are the ones you should rely on whenever you are short on nutrition. By making us your partner, you can ensure the health of your animals.
So, if there’s anything in particular we can help you with, such as horse feed or other health products, please let us know. We’d be happy to share our knowledge.