How long does a round of haylage last before it starts to go off

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micra

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I have two horses, a 15.3hh and a 13.3hh, feed them ad lib hay. However I can't find a consistant hay supplier with dust free hay, it's so dusty and has thorns in. I can soak it but I don't like the dust and thorns myself either lol. They sell haylage at the same price, a round bale, but a round lasts me 3 weeks right now- would the haylage last that open or would it go moudly, my horse likes to eat lots but pony tends to pick at the hay! It would be stored in the back of the indoor barn next to my stables so dry and ok temperature, thank you 😊
 
Depends how much moisture there is in it. Mine (big square bales) is almost but not quite dry enough to be hay, and it lasts a month once it is opened. But that is the front slices keeping the air out of the ones behind. Can you just get one to try?
 
It really depends on the haylage I buy what I call light haylage it's almost like a dust free hay with a slight smell of haylage to it and it is fine to use for a few weeks for my 2 over the winter months, but it will heat up when it's warm but I find it I unwind it and leave it loose in my barn it just sort of dries out and is fine, so I think it would be best to go and look at one and see how haylagey it is so to speak.
 
As above, it depends how wet it is and how it’s stored. When I fed it it lasted 2 weeks easily but it was quite dry to begin with and stored with plenty of air. If it’s cold it lasts longer. I seem to remember it lasting 3 weeks once during the winter.
 
very dry almost hay round bales here, cover them with an old double duvet cover to keep them tidy but allow them to breathe.............last 3 weeks easily even in summer but is stored in a cool dark brick building out the sun.
 
Ours is made on the yard and will generally last a fortnight. However, if the bale seems damp, we do usually unwind the lot and leave it loose as pinkvboots says. Apparently the contractor has baled it tighter this year so I suspect it may not last as long but we shall see! Generally, we keep an eye out for any mould or any unpleasant smell and bin it if necessary.
 
Depends on the air temperature it is kept in. The problem with a round bale is that you can't open it up/spread it around like a square bale. I've a friend who makes/supplies hay and haylage and she told me ideally haylage needs to be used within 14 days. Putting it on a pallet helps to keep it from heating up.

Hope this helps :)
 
Storage is key, a cool building will prolong it. I unwind it give it a shake and fill as many nets as I can find and hang them somewhere cool. The autumn has been so warm and humid I have held off opening haylage as I could not use it quickly enough with temperatures at 17+ degrees.

Once the temp is below 10 degrees most haylage will keep really well for over two weeks.
 
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