|
Joe, Sorry for such a long post. Obviously, I do not know the horse owner, but there are a multitude of reasons why they want the analysis. As Scott mentioned, horse owners supplement with grain, but also with other feed supplements to meet the requirements of their horse(s). When I was in the horse breeding business, I bought hay from a dairy farmer who produced ~43,000 square bales/year and regularly tested his hay. Knowing this I always asked for a report. At first, he was questioning my motives, but then I explained that I was using the information to set up custom feeding programs for my animals. He then understood where I was coming from and wanted to know more. I explained what I was trying to control in my feeding program and the problem I had with the diversity of my stable. We had pregnant mares, pregnant nursing mares, barren nursing mares, barren mares with conception issues, weanlings, yearlings, 2 year olds, pasture pets and geriatric horses. Each needed its own feeding program for optimum health and minimum cost. Being a farmer, he obviously related with my needs and found it very interesting. We enjoyed sitting and talking about our experiences with our animals. He supplied ~1800-2000 bales/year to me for 5 years. He got to know what I was looking for and simply would set aside a couple of kicker wagons full of hay at the end of the day when he was working a field that would yield my kind of hay. I never returned a bale and always paid on delivery. It was a good working relationship for both of us. We have since moved 200 miles away and left the breeding business. We still remain friends and see each other a couple times of year. Hopefully, you have an informed customer who is just trying to do the best for their animal(s). Understanding what they are looking for and why may be the best thing for both of you. Mark
|
