Feeding last year's hay this winter?

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oldhat

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Hay there!! (Groan!) this year we bought some lovely hay from our local merchant, good seed hay, very clean, baled into heavy small bales and delivered (makes a change for here!). They have just told us that they still have loads of this same hay left and if I want I can have it around July time, seing as how our two have done so well on it (Haffy and pb Welsh cob). My question is does anyone else feed last year's hay as a matter of course/practise? I have heard that it loses some of its goodness so wouldn't be so rich which is fine for our two. I doubt if it will be any cheaper (more's the pity), but seeing as we always steam or soak their hay, do you think I may have a problem with dust accumulating? Do you think I'd be better of forgetting it and just buying new season stuff as both horsesin the past have suffered a bit from coughs and have ended up on ventilpulmin, however, this year we managed to get on top of this very fast. I don't want to jeopardise their breathing. Wat do you peeps think??
 
I will always try to use 18+month old hay going into the winter, usually till xmas-ish.
This year, I was on 2012 made hay up till 3 weeks ago, suits mine well as they are good do-ers & it was not dusty as stored well :)
If you are happy with the ways its been stored & it isn't dusty, and that you can have it at a good price, then Id get it :)

However, if its the same price, and not as good qual as 2014 made hay (when it comes) I would leave it.
 
I'd snap it up. It might have lost a little feed value but if you don't have performance horses, or you can supplement with a good balancer, it will be fine. I doubt whether dust will be a problem, and even if it is, steaming or soaking will deal effectively with that. I've got 2 year old haylage and 1 year old hay to see mine through next winter.
I suspect there will be a shortage this coming winter. Any surplus in barns around here has been donated to the farmers on the Somerset levels, added to which some of the hay meadows won't have recovered after the flooding/waterlogging to get a decent crop.
 
I often use old hay for my 2, they are both good doers and as long as its not too dusty or mouldy I think its much better for them as not as rich as new hay.
 
I would happily feed it, we do at work we are still feeding 2012 hay currently and we have a good few months of that left.

BUT I would expect it to be considerably cheaper as they need to clear storage for this years hay
 
I feed last years hay to my Haffy and NF x and they do great. I always get it at a reduced cost. I have about 30 small bales of 2012 hay left, then when this years is cut, last years 2013 hay will drop in price and ill move onto that. To be fair its been really good stuff. The last 50 bales not as good, but more than sufficient to keep 2 native fatties with full tummies and not too fat.They do live out so have the hay loose in the field so I don;t worry too much about dust (not that there is much dust in it)
 
Thanks for all the replies, it is tempting to say yes to it, but I have a feeling that the price won't get any lower as they are major feed merchants and supply the highlands and islands so can sell it whatever the price! My main worry is that the hay can start to go very 'sweet' if you know what I mean, it smells almost like haylage (smells delicious!) and of course they love it, I know that this is because it's stored in round bales then rebaled and it does I suppose start to ferment a bit due to the warmth. It already is 'sweet' to smell - do you think it could just ferment more? I know that nobody can really say unless they have had this experience, so I will probably just have a look next year. Does this sweetness imply any change in the quality or richness of the hay??
 
During the winter of 2010/2011, I was feeding six year old hay to my Highland ponies to clear the barn and they loved it. Last winter I fed three year old haylage but there was some white mould on it and it did have 8 layers of wrap. The white "mould" is actually a fungus and not harmful.

I would be happy to feed old hay provided it smells sweet (and it sounds as if yours does) and isn't dusty but I would only pay 50% of the usual price at this time of the year because I have to store it for four months extra and it could be argued that it has lost some feeding value (which I believe is nonsense anyway!).

So, if you have anywhere to store it, offer 50% of the usual price. They may accept it. If they don't, it is certainly worth haggling as there is prejudice and they will find it harder to sell. Why haven't they sold it already? They also probably need the space -- and the cash! It used to be said that you should only feed hay that is at least a year old to horses but that is another myth.
 
I also think "losing feeding value" is complete claptrap.

As long as it's been stored well, still has some green in it, it hasn't lost anything.

If its gone yellow and dusty and brittle then yes but you only have to look at and smell a bale to see if it's good or better as bedding - you can tell if it's been exposed to the wind and rain. I tested some hay years ago for my laminitic and i sent three samples. The two year old coarser hay had MORE sugar in it than the current years hay which was fine and green.

It all depends on the condition its in when its being cut and dried. If you've had a good hay year, you will have good hay. If its been wet and cold then it's going to be leached and you'll have pretty poor hay.
 
I'm still feeding 2012 and it's fine as i know it's been stored well. I always ask my OH to hold back 9 (don't sell out) at least 4 large bales of the previous year's hay, when he's haymaking the following year as he knows i want it for my native! That way i know that i'm feeding at least 18 month old hay more often than not.
 
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