Can't believe I am having to steal and hide my own hay!!

[Dogstar]

Spent this evening hiding bales in my trailer and stashing it in my feed store- CowMan, who has livery cows with ours, has been working through our hay at such a rate there isn't going to be any left for my laminitic for the Summer! Whenever I have raised this, CowMan says in a typical bloke fashion 'it will be fine, there is plenty left' NO there isn't, the 16 horrible bovines are munching their way through up to 8 bales a day and it is still only March and the weather is foul. Aggh- running out of places to hide said hay, wondering whether I could sneak it into the garage?? Or the spare bedroom...

 

[somethingorother]

So he is stealing your hay? That's breaking the law. Maybe he needs this fact pointing out to him, very bluntly. Unless you share it? In which case i think a clearer and more official way of sharing it out needs to be found. Something written as part of the contract. Who buys in the hay?

 

[Dogstar]

Definitely not stealing. Some sort of too-vague contract between him and my Mother who owns half the cattle. Cowman makes the hay from our fields and charges us cost price. He keeps the cattle with us and shares hay for free and does odd farm jobs in exchange. It has all worked really well for years, the only problem is there are about 5 more cattle than previous years! I have no gripe with him at all, he is great, but he is being over optimistic about the hay quantity (or I MIGHT be panicking...) but things aren't looking very Spring like yet..

 

[somethingorother]

He sells it to you but then shares the sold hay? Why would he not just keep what he needed and then sell you surplus? If you feel that the deal is no longer advantageous then you could always tell him this and buy your own hay. He may realise he is unintentionally taking the pee and change his ways. Otherwise, it sounds like it could still work out cheaper than buying in hay normally. So if it runs low, you can just get some from a different supplier and that would be your own which you would have to make very clear to him and keep it seperately somehow so as not to get mixed up.

Sounds like it's just bad luck though from the hard winter, that both of you are suffering from it and so are your hay supplies. Spring has started, it will be here soon!

 

[Dogstar]

Thanks..Yes it would be much better really to keep it separate, but not practical in one big barn....also, I cannot really interfere as not my arrangement. If we do run out, I am pretty sure CowMan could source some more. It is nice to have your own hay though, as you know it's not got anything nasty in it. Yes roll on the Spring weather, it is still a clay bog round here (sigh).

 

[fatpiggy]

Trouble is though, cows can chomp and digest almost any grade of hay, without any ill effects. Horses are a whole different ball game. He isn't going to be too bothered if he can only source dusty or semi-rotten hay, is he?