rrb says:

It depends on the season and the type but a 1000 pound horse eats about a bale a week. Are you going to feed oat, forage, alfalfa or grass hay? Minis are cheap to feed. I’m paying $12-14 for a bale of alfalfa.

Jordan says:

I dont know what kind of horses some of the rest of you have, but in my experience my horses eat a lot more than 2 flakes a day! the current best for horses is to let them have free choice grass hay and then feed whatever grain and supplements you feel are necessary. I try to leave hay out for my horse at all times and she eats 6-7 flakes, from a normal small bale, a day and maintains a good weight with normal maintenance work. These bales feed her for about 3 days. she is 1000 lbs and is not on pasture. As the others have said I would assume a mini would eat less, maybe 3-4 flakes a day. Hay here in colorado is between $6-10 a bale, and in vermont is closer to $4. so it depends where you live and what you can find. craigslist usually lists hay for sale in your area. i would think a mini would eat around 2 bales a week if it didnt have grass to eat too, less or none if you have pasture that it can be out on all the time.