We tried every type of commercial grazing muzzle on our easy-keeper horses. We had issues with reliability, tooth wear and discomfort. Most of all, the horses hated wearing them and would turn away when we had to put them on.

One day, Jen commented on how our horses loved foraging through their OptiMizer nets and encouraged me to make a grazing muzzle out of the netting. So I did. And our horses did not even seem to notice wearing them. Yet, I observed a significant reduction in the amount of grass they were able to forage. I estimated that it was taking them twice as long to consume the same amount of forage, resulting in a very significant reduction in calories per day.

We tested the Nuzzle system with hundreds of horses and refined the design with the goal of making an effective grazing muzzle that horses could safely and comfortably wear 24/7 and not hate using it.

The Nuzzle consists of OptiNet that is laced on a breakaway leather strap. The leather strap is attached to a breakaway halter with releasable cable ties.

The netting significantly moderates the consumption of forage. It also allows normal activities like drinking water from a trough or automatic waterer, licking salt and mutual grooming.

Grazing is tough on netting and OptiNet will wear out and develop holes over time. When the netting wears out, simply replace it with a fresh OptiNet patch. If all 3 wear out, then you can try the UltraNet version. 

The Season Pack includes 3 OptiNet Nuzzles and 1 UltraNet Nuzzle with sufficient leather straps and fasteners. It is designed to last the typical horse for the grazing season.

A Note About Safety

Any halter or grazing muzzle can get stuck on things (fencing, branches, horseshoes etc.). The Nuzzle has several breakaway features. When/if the system gets snared on something, the zip fasteners or the leather strap are designed to break. The netting is also breakaway. Please ensure that your halter is breakaway.

It is possible that a horse will lose a Nuzzle over the season. We consider this a good thing. It is designed to break away to prevent potential injury. If your horse loses its Nuzzle, simply replace it with another one from the Season Pack.

A Note About Effectiveness with our herd

In the Summer of 2024, we created an hour glass track system on 8 acres of ungrazed pasture. Our goal was to study the effects of managed grazing (with Nuzzles) and natural movement in this environment, 24/7. The horses were offered a fresh grazing patch of long pasture every day plus hay when needed in their OptiMizers. There are a few photos of our horses in their pasture.

Our 3 horses wore Nuzzle prototypes for the entire grazing season. An independent equine nutritionist (Madeline Boast of Balanced Bay) consulted on the study and measured the body condition scores (BCS) of the horses at the start and end of the study period. Their report cards are in the photos. Here are the highlights:

Whisky – palomino horse in photos. DOB June 1999, Kentucky walking horse gelding. The boss and quite athletic despite his age. BCS of 4.75 on September 6th, 2024.

Jasper – chocolate brown horse in photos. DOB 2009, Rocky Mountain horse. Easy Keeper. Borderline metabolic with laminitis in July 2022. BCS dropped from 6.9 on May 20th to 5.6 on September 6th, 2024. Blood work and hooves healthy with the Nuzzle and a “long pasture” diet.   

Tom Thumb – black and white, hairy pony in photos. DOB 2007, Gypsy Vanner. EXTREMELY easy keeper. BCS dropped from 8.4 (gasp) to 6.6 in this time frame. A very significant improvement for my perky pony, living 24/7 on the track and grazing ad lib with his Nuzzle.