Karin Antoni Strives to Help Metabolic Horses
How and why did you get started in business?
I was gifted a morbidly obese pony in 2012 and I like to say she was one carrot away from a catastrophic metabolic event! The ideal products I needed to rehab my new fat pony didn’t exist, so I had to think about how to solve the problems she was facing. I kept her at a self-care boarding facility near where we live, but since my kids were 1 and 3 years old at the time making many trips a day to the barn to give her small and frequent meals was very challenging. We built automatic hay feeders to simplify her care, but she was very adept at figuring out how to break into them. She kept us busy! I also sewed my own hay nets as it was impossible to find nets that were suited to feed on the ground as well as able to withstand daily soaking. Finding materials that can survive long term outdoors in Colorado weather is a challenge as well, as the extreme UV levels year-round and punishing winters make many man-made materials deteriorate quickly. I spent countless hours researching the perfect netting material for our hay nets before specifying our first order. I wanted to use a woven, knotless, polyester netting as it has better UV resistance than nylon and is incredibly tough yet remains soft over time even in harsh conditions. But deciding on the right pick and the correct tensile strength took a long time! Fortunately, I enjoy solving problems since the last decade of perfecting our inventions has provided many issues to mitigate. I wasn’t planning on turning our inventions into a business, we built feeders and made hay nets for friends and family until my farrier convinced me that I had to make our products commercially available due to the huge need for them.
What is your history with horses?
I grew up riding in Sweden where many of the native breeds are highly susceptible to metabolic disorders having been bred to survive in very sparse and challenging conditions. Obesity, EMS/IR, laminitis, etc. are common afflictions among the breeds I grew up with so I have seen firsthand how devastating they can be.
What sets your product or business apart from the competition?
Our experience and understanding of the challenges that come with feeding special needs horses. Whether it is EMS/IR, laminitis prevention/recovery, airway disease, ulcers, Cushing’s, PPID, etc. we have taken these requirements into account when developing our hay nets and feeders.
Our hay nets will save you a huge amount of time as they are the easiest and quickest hay nets on the market to open, load and close. Saving time is invaluable when you are loading many hay nets per day. We did a competition at out last expo and several people managed to open, load a pillow (our “fake hay”) into the hay net and cinch it shut under 10 seconds! Not only are they fast and easy to load, they’re safe to use on the ground as there are no loose cords to worry about; our closing mechanism is unique with a drawstring hiding inside a seam when the net is closed. We currently sell them in two mesh sizes 7/8″ for the fat ponies who need to be slowed down and 1 1/8″ mesh size for those horses who are less “hangry”.
Our automatic hay feeders are solar powered, portable, affordable, fence mounted and can feed a single serving of any feed you want at any time of day. You schedule the release time with an app on your phone and the feeder can be programmed to drop hay up to four times per day. They are extremely fast and easy to load, also with the intent of saving you time. The hay feeder is great for any kind of horse care environment, whether it is on a track system or in a single run at a boarding facility.
We also have several larger hay net products in the pipeline, like “tub toppers” and round bale nets, so our product line will expand further soon.
What can clients expect to gain from your product?
Products that function well for any type of horse—from a healthy, athletic, performance horse to an obese pony in recovery we offer feeding solutions aimed at making life easier for humans and healthier for horses!
Contact:
Fat Pony Feeders LLC
Karin Antoni
Phone: (720) 432-7773
Email: [email protected]
Web: fatponyfeeders.com
See this article in the September 2024 Online Digital Edition:
September 2024
The Northwest Horse Source is an independently owned and operated print and online magazine for horse owners and enthusiasts of all breeds and disciplines in the Pacific Northwest. Our contemporary editorial columns are predominantly written by experts in the region, covering the care, training, keeping and enjoyment of horses, with an eye to the specific concerns in our region.
