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Implement Alley Discussion Forum

Horse Hay, Your Opinion

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roper6365

06-20-2005 10:16:36




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How much rain is to much? If downed hay gets wet once while drying is it ruined? I'm making all square bales and I know i'm going to have to dodge a few thunder boomers this week. Your opinions are appreciated!




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PITA horseowner

06-22-2005 18:41:48




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I am a horse person. I will pardon all the gasps and sighs. :) Rain isn't a huge problem with "horse people" unless it isn't dried properly. Granted, we would all like the best hay nutritionally, for the least amount of money but we're also realists...rain is a reality and most of us don't have the luxury of 1) touring the countryside to seek out perfect hay and 2) having unlimited income to buy it, whatever the price when we find it. I would tend to agree with the majority of the responses. Too much dust or moldy moisture pockets however, can cause horse health problems. Too much dust can contribute to heaves (lung/coughing problems) and too much moisture (mold)...as we all know...can be fatal. Anyone who doesn't believe that hasn't paid their dues or walked enough colicing horses at wee hours of the morning waiting for the vet. I think it can be simply explained in that hay that smells like hay is fine...hay that smells of heavy mold dust/actual mold should be fed very cautiously and in an ideal world...not at all. We give our questionable hay to our neighbors cattle. Some horses can tolerate it, the majority cannot.

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acmfmh

06-21-2005 12:26:15




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I am a horse person and have been putting up my own hay for years. I don't like it to be rained on, but it happens. I roll it until it dries and spread canning salt on the hay to help remove any moisture. Dusty is OK. Moldy hay I just don't like to feed to the horses.

The saying we use for some hay is "it beats a snowball in the wintertime." Better to have something than nothing.



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roper6365

06-21-2005 05:07:43




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Thanks to everyone for your input, The story is: I bought a farm with 30 acres and have agreed to cut the same fields that the previous owner did and supply the his old customers. But It rains so Darn much around here that I wondered if I made a mistake and should stick to my own fields for my belgiums. " they will eat most anything that"s not dusty". I want to sell good hay and have a good reputation and not loose sleep at night thinking i"m going to burn somebody"s barn down or kill thier horses. I"m going to take everyones advice, Flip it two or three times if I need to, bail dry and give them the best I can, If that doesen"t work i"ll stick to my own fields and get a few more rounds of golf in this summer. :)

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Joe(TX)

06-21-2005 04:18:57




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Rain won't hurt it if you can dry it out without it molding. It is a bit dustier though.
Most horse people won't buy some hay because someone else told them a wives tale. Most hay around here is coastal bermuda. They won't buy Johnson grass or sudan because they heard from someone it would kill a horse. We fed it to horses for years. My horses actually prefer it if it is baled before it gets too mature. A lot of people's horses just plain wimpy and finiky and the people have no clue. If a horse can't handle it, get a good one.
End of rant

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cannonball

06-21-2005 04:32:50




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to Joe(TX), 06-21-2005 04:18:57  
johnson grass will kill cows at the right time after it is cut..there is a time johnson grass is poison for about 3 hours that is what a vet said that killed my uncles cow..he said at a certain time period don't know how long it was dangerous..all i know is he lost a cow.....have nice day may god bless



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BobMo

06-20-2005 21:00:31




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Personally I don't sell hay thats been rained on (once) even though in most cases theres absolutely nothing wrong with it as far as quality goes. I feed to my animals and it saves any arguements. I know maybe everyone can't do this but it also takes care of any carry over problems you might have..



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Kelly C

06-20-2005 20:55:47




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Hay for paying customers is what its about.
Paying customers want Green, Small square bales, With no rain, No weeds.

I have a customer that buys some of my lesser quality stuff. Rained on, Bottom of the stack bales, Oats hay. He says. They are just hay burners for goodness sakes.

The thing is. Some Horse hay buyers want the good stuff for the discount price.
" Last time I got hay it was $2.25 a bale. $3 is just too much."

Some of the best hay you can get is oats hay. Horses will fight to get at it 1st.
Just cant get any horse hay buyers to buy any of it.

If I had horses I would be buying all the $1.50 bales of oats hay I could get.

Rained on hay gets rolled or squared and sold at the hay auction.

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Hayman

06-20-2005 16:57:56




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 everyone is different in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I bale all the hay into squares. Last year I had about 7000 bales of a some course stuff that got rained on twice. I was worried but it all sold and most to horse people. I didn't get alot for it but I had it priced fair. One lady said you wouldn't get an award for quality but you deliver, and it was put up dry. She used it for a filler in the winter as she feeds other stuff too.

As long as your honest up front and don't try and sell crappy hay as good hay normally there should be no troubles.

But like everyone I've had both extremes. Pefect hay that is no good for some people and poor hay I'm afraid to even show someone ends up being just fine.

As long as the hay was put up DRY its not too bad for horse's when feeding out side on the ground. But if it was put up too wet and it gets moldy or that white mold dust thats not good.

The stables that feed inside normaly only take the nice clean hay around here.

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FC

06-20-2005 13:35:09




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Been trying to figure out the deal myself on 'horse hay'. For the last couple of years I have baled small squares for sale. It is a mix of Fescue, Orchard Grass, Timothy, some Redtop, Red Clover, etc, etc. but mostly fescue. I had several calls last winter asking if there was fescue in it, and most of the time they would hang up on me as it was for horses. I had another gentleman who purchased 100 bales and never cared and he said he had show quality horses. I tried to sell a lady I work with some last week, and she said her horse only ate alfalfa and would never eat anything else. Who knows. One guy told me alfalfa would make a pregnant mare abort.

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FC

06-21-2005 04:57:35




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to FC, 06-20-2005 13:35:09  
After rereading my post I noticed I said Alfalfa would make the mares abort when actually I meant to type fescue would make them abort. Fingers werent listening to my brain again....



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BobMo

06-20-2005 20:43:44




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to FC, 06-20-2005 13:35:09  
Unfortunately your informate is wrong. Its fescue that will make mares abort but, not all fescue. If you certified endophite free fescue it probably won't be a problem. The later its baled the more toxic..... .



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Steve KS

06-20-2005 14:50:05




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to FC, 06-20-2005 13:35:09  
Roper - I'll try to answer your question. It all depends! The old saying is that the best horse feed is whatever meets their requirements for the lowest cost. When buying hay the owner would naturally want the highest quality for the money. Hay that's been rained on still has a market, but you can't expect to sell it for the same price as hay that hasn't been rained on. The main concern here is the possibility of mold.

FC - The reason horse people don't want hay w/ fescue in it is the possibility of fescue toxicity. This can occur w/ the presence of an endophyte fungus which can be deadly to horses (and other animals) it is especially a concern for pregnant and lactating mares. The fungus seems to be the worst during the summer months - that's why fescue pastures should only be grazed (and hayed) during the spring and fall. By the way, alfalfa has no effect on pregnant mares.

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Iowa Jim

06-20-2005 12:47:05




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 Different Tack on Horse Hay in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I collect samples from every lot of hay we produce to determine the nutritional content. I use these analyses to maket hay to my horse customers based upon the nutritional needs of their animals and NOT based upon what looks like horse hay.

Jim



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Iowa Jim

06-20-2005 12:34:57




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 Different Tack on Horse Hay in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I collect samples from every lot of hay we produce to determine the nutritional content. I use these analyses to maket hay to my horse customers based upon the nutritional needs of their animals and NOT based upon what looks like horse hay.

Jim



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VaFarmer

06-20-2005 12:00:00




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
Ill tell ya this. I have a friend who has 8 show horses, she swears are valued at 15 grand apiece. She buys all her hay from me which is about 80 rolls and 300 sq. Each year for the past 4 years she only buys about 20 rolls of good hay(excellent orchard grass and timothy no rain real pretty hay) and about 100 sg bales of the same. the rest she wants my crap hay, and she has bought some real crap from me, i mean real crap. First year i made her sign a waiver saying i wasnt responsible for deaths of her horses. Thats the year she wanted and bought 200 sq bales of molded out grass hay. Example last year: She wanted 40 rolls of oat hay i was goin to dump in the gully on the back side of my farm that was molded all the way thru the roll, Hay i wouldnt have fed to goats. She bought them i delievered it to her over a period of 2 months and thats the only thing those 8 horses ate those 2 months, she hasnt lost a horse, she still shows them and they look just as healthy as when i delivered the first roll of hay 4 years ago.

Then i have people who see the faded outside layer of the bale of hay and refuse it. no matter how green it is inside. Saying they arent feeding that crap.

Totally gets me Horse people and there hay.

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Colorado Curt

06-20-2005 11:52:37




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
We had some hay this year that was rained on twice. We kept on turning it until it dried and got it baled. The pickiest horse lady says it is good horse hay. Horse people can be very particular about their hay and tend to be very picky when they are buying. The good news is if you are a seller and have good grass hay, you can get a premium.



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ChrisLSD

06-20-2005 11:39:15




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
alfalfa is probably ruined more on the secpnd and third rains than grass....

Also dust in hay is a lot worse if your horse doesn't eat outside or get to go outside



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old

06-20-2005 11:39:07




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
As long as its not in windrows it isn't hurt badly, and even if in rows if you can get it turned over a couple times its still good. I also have horses and goats and do my best not to get it rained on but it happens. Biggest thing is if it does get rained on makeing sure its dry enough to bale since its a little mort likely to mold after it gets rained on



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old

06-20-2005 11:38:17




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
As long as its not in windrows it isn't hurt badly, and even if in rows if you can get it turned over a couple times its still good. I also have horses and goats and do my best not to get it rained on but it happens. Biggest thing is if it does get rained on makeing sure its dry enough to bale since its a little mort likely to mold after it gets rained on



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Illinois Boy

06-20-2005 11:37:54




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
I don't have a problem with too much rain - except in the spring.
Hay will not be ruined if it gets wet. It will lose some nutrients, but I'll bale it anyway after it drys. (I'm growing orchardgrass, but don't think it matters in my opinion as to what you are harvesting) Just watch raking it too much as you knock off leaves and that's the part you want. Just make sure it's dryed sufficiently before baling... that is crucial.

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Nebraska Cowman

06-20-2005 10:22:53




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
In ranch country the horses have to eat what the cows eat. No, it's not ruined.



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Nebraska Cowman

06-20-2005 10:19:19




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to roper6365, 06-20-2005 10:16:36  
In ranch country the horses have to eat what the cows eat. No, it's not ruined.



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roper6365

06-20-2005 10:33:44




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to Nebraska Cowman, 06-20-2005 10:19:19  
Thanks Cowman, I'v just started bailing my own hay rather than buying for the last 4 years. Everyone has some reason why the hay has got to be perfect for horses or they will drop dead. I know that much is not true because I haven't had one keel over yet due to a little dust on the hay.
I quess i'm just a bit paranoid being it's my first year.



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roper6365

06-20-2005 10:32:45




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 Re: Horse Hay, Your Opinion in reply to Nebraska Cowman, 06-20-2005 10:19:19  
Thanks Cowman, I'v just started bailing my own hay rather than buying for the last 4 years. Everyone has some reason why the hay has got to be perfect for horses or they will drop dead. I know that much is not true because I haven't had one keel over yet due to a little dust on the hay.
I quess i'm just a bit paranoid being it's my first year.



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