Haylage - would you?

[Governor]

I went to pick up a few bales of haylage today as our usual delivery has been delayed (by fairly tragic circumstances). Anyway these are the thick plastic bagged Horsehage type.

I split one open today and saw a small 50p sized circle of white mould on the surface of the bale - there weren't any splits or snags in the bag - and as I pulled the bale around a bit more I saw a few more on the surface. The bale smelt absolutely fine (its quite rich stuff anyway).

Being a bit of a haylage novice and generally paranoid with regards to my horse I called my YO who said as it was white it was 'blooms' and perfectly safe to feed...so I did.

I was just curious as to who would have binned/returned the bale and who would have fed it?

 

[Rocky01]

If the bag was sealed before you opened it I would have fed it. Horsehage lasts about a week open then it has to has to be chucked. Good luck.

 

[Blizzard]

White is fine, dont feed if its black mould though.

If it smelled fine etc then dont worry, we make our own and sometimes find the odd white bit.

 

[Hels_Bels]

it's its white its ok to use! its if its green u should never feed it ya horse

 

[Cop-Pop]

White is fine esp if it smells ok - it's a by product of the fermenting process I think. If the mould is black or any other colour then don't feed it.

 

[Grassman]

It's not unusual to get a little white mould on bagged haylage.
Quite often this is due to a little excess air caught up the the wrapping or bagging process, certainly nothing to worry about and it certainly doesn't mean the product is off or bad.
As stated previously very aware of other coloured moulds or stale smells. That's a sure fire sign things aren't right.

 

[lilym]

the white "mould" is actually a form of yeast and is a harmless, effect of the fermentation process

 

[Donkeymad]

Don't worry about it, absolutely fine to feed.