Hay or Haylage

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ClippityClop

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Hi this year i have fed big round bales of haylage (first time having to sort out own haylage as have always been on a livery yard) Anyways, got them, and quite a few bales are either quite moldy and am wondering would i be better off going onto hay?? (next year) Does it last you as long? and do your horses look as good off it??
 
I am not a fan either anymore!! Were as before i only had the one in a livery with a fat cob out on grass livery and they just got a big bale put in everyweek (between 6) were as this year ive somehow (Collected) a couple more and now have four!! (Within a year) and on my own! (got a friends 2 ponys too) How many splits of hay do u use a day per horse? R they stabled or out?
 
stabled at night - have 3 sections each with just over 3 acres good turnout.

i dislike haylage because i found it can be mouldy in places. you could get a big round bale of hay - eqv to about 10 standard hay bales (roughly)
 
My new girly wont eat the YO haylage so shes now on a mixture of hay and haylage. I have no real preference as long as the horse eats it and has normal droppings!
 
I have got some fab haylage from neighbour this year - lovely and mould free. We also get skerne leys haylage, which is never mouldy and very palatable. Haylage is cheaper for us this year.
 
Dancing Queen said:
i dislike haylage because i found it can be mouldy in places. you could get a big round bale of hay - eqv to about 10 standard hay bales (roughly)
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That's a rather sweeping statement. Haylage, just like hay, can be VERY varied in quality. I buy the best quality haylage I can get, and wouldn't consider feeding my veteran on plain hay at this time of year, as with even the best stuff, she'd never keep the weight on.

The haylage I buy is top notch. It's well wrapped and professionally analysed. If, on the very few occasions that I've opened a bale to find it spoilt, then I just phone my supplier and he will replace it :)

Incidentally, it's also better value for money than good quality hay is at the mo :)
 
Are the bales mouldy or is it just the (harmless) white yeast deposit that sometimes appears? If they are mouldy then you should go back to your supplier and let them know, locally they would be replaced if they were mouldy! I have to be honest and say this is what puts me off buying haylage in bulk, you could open bales and find a mouldy mess under the wrapping but we are lucky to have a supplier who makes quality and 'well made' haylage and hay, we buy both for horses and ponies. Our YO also makes lovely hay so we are well supplied from either source.

Our ponies are doing well on the hay, the haylage is too much for them, but they look well and have shiny coats so are getting enough from it. The horses are looking good on the haylage so I suppose it depends on what you have and what they need to thrive.
 
Its a farmer i get them off and some are them are so nice i could munch on them myself lol! But i then open another one and its dusty, and got this white stuff which is quite a googy substance and the layers are stuff. Hes such a lovely guy i dont like to complain! :o So i was thinking about getting about 10 large bails of haylage so when we have snowy weather here (which is little and not very often) i know ive got some too keep them happy. I then have a Sec A and 2 Shetlands which abv dont need to be on a large bail of haylage then got my to cob x which are in one will be a yearling next year. And then a friends traditional cob. So was wondering which is the best route to take? :confused::confused:
 
Ok, the white stuff is a yeast deposit, something to do with the water content in the bale when it was baled I think, bits that weren't quite dry enough, but they are harmless rather than mould, they can be quite 'creamy' in substance or sometimes damp lumpy bits. The dust is a bit different, I wouldn't be happy with that, but it is possible it is from one area of the cut that has a different type of grass and has dried differently, hope that makes sense!
 
I did kind of try and say it without saying i wasnt happy if that makes sence! hah! I just kind of want to know. Do your horses keep well on hay? Or is it nicer to have haylage!! Were still in this winter but i cant stop thinking bout next!! ARGGHH!! lol
 
I pay 20 per bale and get 30 bales, which hopefully last a week give and take between three and then handfuls taken off each day for a sec a and 2 shettys! But im only getting to use about 3 quaters with around a quater being to bad to eat!!
 
If you are losing a quarter of a big bale then you really should speak to him, ask him to come and look at it, he may be able to put your mind at rest or change it for you (which he should do really) or at least throw a couple more bales your way to make up for what you are losing! You don't have to fall out with him, just say you are not sure if it is ok or not. The ponies are really good on the hay but the horses are on haylage although I am sure they would do just as well on hay. I would be tempted to see what the summer and harvest is like before you make your plans for next winter.
 
I have been using haylage on and off for 30 years. The white 'mould' is harmless only worry if you have black mould and it smell mouldly, the plastic has probably been punctured. At the moment I buy big round bales and never have any waste. There is a variation between bales but thats normal, I just open the new one before the old one is finished and mix it in, it lasts me between 5-7 days
This year its tended to be more dry as we had such a hot summer and some was cut and baled the same day.
I use hay as well at the start and end of the year as when it warm it heats up once opened and starts fermenting. Then I have to unravale the hole bale to cool it down.
 
We were on haylage for a few years, but I often ended up throwing a lot away, due to it being a bit off, and its no mean feat without a tractor either. I persevered as it worked out cheaper buying haylage in big bales, but last year's batch seemed wetter, with more that needed throwing out, and two mares started with slight laminitus, so I switched to hay. Even though it is slightly more expensive, I don't throw any away. The horses do just as well off it (its really nice hay). The biggest pain with hay is storing it inside if you haven't got a barn, when the plastic wrapped haylage stacked outside!
 
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