Walking through the barn, you will notice some horses munching on hay balls and treat dispensers. Our dedicated volunteers and Lesson Treatment Assistants (LTAs) fill them twice daily for the horses to enjoy.

The Shea Center uses hay balls and treat dispensers as supplemental feeding to encourage the horses to engage in natural behaviors. These feeders are a unique way to feed horses in their natural grazing position. The round design allows horses to push the ball on the ground as they walk, like grazing in a field; it also encourages the horses to graze longer.

While not all horses show interest in these feeders, we continuously seek to accommodate the preferences of our herd by adding more hay balls.