Posted: 4th January 2017 | Back to news feed
WHEN Ellen Chapman’s horse Sully became seriously ill she needed to find a way to control his hay intake. He had to eat very slowly, but he didn’t want to!
At a loss when he destroyed every small hole net on the market, it gave her the idea to launch a revolutionary new version.
Here Ellen takes up the story:
“I found Sully in Northern Ireland, quite thin and injured by a stallion. I looked after him on a private yard in Londonderry and quickly realised he was a handful.
“Although he was a challenge I quite enjoyed that quirk about him and soon fell in love with the chestnut gelding and brought him back to England.
“Our partnership grew strong and for 14 years we had lots of good times, but I became concerned when my boy was struggling to keep weight on.
“It didn’t matter what I fed him, I tried many different feeds and supplements but nothing improved. He lacked energy, and looked poor. So I called the vet.
“On the initial visit Sully was misdiagnosed. He progressively got worse, resulting in him not only continuing to lose weight but he also went lame. Looking at him, I could swear he looked laminitic. He was uncomfortable, and pottered around. Though I couldn’t understand how this thin horse could have laminitis.
“Blood tests were taken on the second visit and revealed that Sully’s condition was Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS) His insulin levels were out of control and he was indeed suffering from laminitis.
“Unbeknown to me, the daily exercise I gave Sully was keeping this condition at bay. When I became pregnant his exercise decreased and insulin levels shot up, which made Sully extremely unwell.”
For 10 emotional months, Ellen did everything she could think of to save Sully and nurse him better, but all the veterinary support, dietary expertise, medication and tests failed to ease the chronic pain Sully was feeling.
Added Ellen: “Controlled diet is fundamental for recovery and management of laminitis. Sully needed constant access to forage to ease the stress of box rest, and keep his gut healthy but also needed strict control on rations and sugar levels.
“I had to find an effective method of trickle feeding him. I searched far and wide for a small hole hay net that would slow the rate of hay consumption, but struggled to find one that was effective or tough enough to withstand his abuse.
“There was no feeding net with small enough holes, and nothing at all that would stand up to a determined horse’s teeth! Double and triple netting didn’t work. It was time consuming, the nets would get ripped, or he would just line the holes up to make one big hole.
“I decided I would have to make my own, so I began to research materials and the ideal hole size. I soon discovered that such a strong net cannot be made on a machine. Still today all of our products are handmade.”
After many prototypes with Sully as guinea pig, Ellen created a net that was strong and robust enough to withstand him destroying it and he could graze on his forage for much longer, thanks to the small holes…The Trickle Net was born.
Sully used the Trickle Net during his 10 long months on box rest. It helped greatly with his management, easing his stress enough to give a glimmer of hope on some occasions. Ellen did everything to make her special friend as comfortable as possible, and he even held on to meet her new born baby daughter.
Eventually, after the bravest fight Sully lost his battle.
Said Ellen: “The Trickle Net is a legacy to my good friend, and he lives on in a product which now helps thousands of horses around the UK and Europe.”
For further information please visit: www.tricklenet.co.uk
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