Soaking Hay

[WallisM]

How do you guy's soak your hay ?
I have a bin which I fill with water, Fill a haynet and soak the hay for about 12 hours (over night ) then tie it up and let the excess water drip.

 

[eventingdiva]

i soak mine in clean water for 20 minutes, then pull out to drain, and feed when its finished dripping! x

 

[CSYMolly]

I soak mine for about 15 mins or so, don't think my horse would eat it if it was soaked for 12 hours doesn't the water go all manky over night?

 

[Stasha22]

My mare wont eat hay if it has been soaked for more than half an hour, let alone 12 hours!

Do you soak for 12 hours to reduce the nutritional value?

 

[WallisM]

Yeah it doesn't go a very nice colour, But my lads have never turned their noses up at it. I do change the water every day though.

 

[Nic]

Don't think you are meant to soak for more than 45 mins

We put 1/2 a bale in our modified wheelie bin slot a pole through 2 holes on the top to wedge hay in. Plug hole in bottom of wb fill to top. leave for 10 mins then remove plug!

Move over Einstein

 

[crackerjack]

[ QUOTE ]
Don't think you are meant to soak for more than 45 mins

We put 1/2 a bale in our modified wheelie bin slot a pole through 2 holes on the top to wedge hay in. Plug hole in bottom of wb fill to top. leave for 10 mins then remove plug!

Move over Einstein

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds like a clever invention...a little complicated for me!

Soak mine in a large bin of water for 15 mins...i would have thought the hay lost all nutritional value after soaking for that long?

 

[WallisM]

Why aren't you meant to soak for than 45 mins ?

Well my boy's are going in next weekend so I'm going to try soaking it for about 15mins won't do any harm.
Really am not sure why I soaked it for soooo long maybe thought it was better in the long run.

 

[the watcher]

Because any longer and you soak out all the nutritional value..in some cases this might be desirable, getting fibre through a laminitic for example. but for COPD and other dust settling reasons, 15 mins should be plenty. Or put hay in the bin, tip in kettle of hot water and steam..less mankey water, softened dust free hay and some nutrition left in

 

[WallisM]

Hey Cheers that is a good tip, Will get my kettle sorted hahaha

 

[frannieuk]

I fill nets in the morning, then hang them outside stables and let the rain run through them
<runs away in shame

>

My current hay is very good quality and doesn't really require soaking, if its a dry day and the hay was at all dusty I'd probably just run the hose through it for 5/10 mins

 

[pixie]

Nutrition and antispore wise, 10 minutes is the optimum soaking time. I certainly wouldn't do it for more than 30 minutes, let alone 12 hours as it will have no nutritional value. It sounds like you're just being lazy.

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

I soak my hay for about 30 minutes but in the winter when I don't want water over the floor & freezing I put the hay into an old shavings polythene bag, pour in a kettle of boiling water & tie it up. The hay then gets steamed, has the same result as soakimng but without the icy puddles.

 

[WallisM]

Can I just ask how do you think I'm being lazy ????

 

[tuscanyD]

Have to say I thought the lazy comment seemed a bit harsh!

But I did think the hay soaking business had all been sorted out in the 80's!!

We'd been soaking hay overnight for years then suddenly lots of scientific proof turned up stating that the nutirients were all soaked out after that length of time and that the hay basically turned into raw sewage.

The optimum time for soaking varies according to your source but anything from 10 minutes to an hour.

 

[Bossanova]

On the yard we have a very cleverly designed system using a winch and a very large metal container with a tap at the base to empty. It is emptied and cleaned out about once every 3 weeks. We can soak any number from 2-4 bales at a time, and soak up to 8/day. It saves big time on water usage and is far less labour intensive.

 

[pixie]

Well, from what you say it just sounds like you chuck it in a bin at the end of the night and fish it out sometime in the morning. You even admit that it goes a funny colour, yet you continue to feed it. If you want to know more about the subject then see if you can get a hold of this article: Warr, E.M. and Petch, J.L. (1992) Effects of soaking hay on its nutritional quality. Equine vet. Educ. 5, 169-171.

 

[ljm]

My pony has COPD and vet advised me to soak hay for 12 hours, in a bin of clean water, tip away water and let it drain. Other horse's hay just gets sprayed off.L

 

[WallisM]

If you read back a few post we were discussing the water goes a funny colour not the hay. You are obviously reading my post in the wrong way as I don't chuck it in a bin anf fish it out at all. God I was only wanting to know how people soak their hay to get some tips, which I have found very useful and gonna use next weekend and am getting called lazy.

 

[Dotilas]

We have an old bath that has a short hose, and we hang our nest above it, and hose and leave to drain... No wet floors

And also, you can bath the dogs in it

 

[pixie]

Don't worry, I have M.E. and people call me lazy all the time, it doesn't mean that its actualy true, its just what others perceive when viewed for a few minutes from the outside. No offence meant, really!

 

[sammys ma]

slightly patronising and uncalled for response don't you think?

She was only trying to get some feedback, and has since taken on board some very useful advice.....which is what this forum is intended for!!!!! Not for having unpleasant assumptions made of her!


Surely in the light of recent HHO events, you could have been more considerate and less cutting in your response?

 

[tuscanyD]

"Surely in the light of recent HHO events"

What events? Fighting? - ooh where which thread?

 

[pixie]

Actually, I missed the bitching post last night. I still have no idea what it was about, as obviously I'm not in any of the "in" crowds, so don't know who said what to who and why. Atleast I say what I have to say under my own nickname and try to provide links to journals/books that back up what I'm saying.

Anyways, as I've just posted, people often make assuptions of me. If you know that a comment made about you isn't true then you might as well just ignore it, or have a look at your life to see if there is a reason that you are being perceived as being that way.

 

[sammys ma]

got deleted i'm afraid....

was childish and tedious and not worth the bother...

( nb. was nought to do with me!

)

 

[SirenaXVI]

[ QUOTE ]
Don't think you are meant to soak for more than 45 mins

[/ QUOTE ]

If there are circumstances that dictate otherwise, i.e., laminitis, you should soak the hay for 24 hours - this leaches out the nutrients and makes it safer for a laminitic to eat, allowing you to up the quantities and keep those very important fibre levels up.

 

[sammys ma]

i do appreciate what you are saying, but that is the problem of public forums, as comments can be percieved in a variety of ways, as the tone and manner of the sentence doesn't come accross

Also to add, I am sorry about the M.E. I can totally understand how you feel.
I suffered from it for years, but it was then diagnosed as something else last year when i had a relapse.

 

[vicm2509]

Personally I dont soak my hay at all. The only time I do soak it is around spring time when the hay starts to look a bit worse for wear and quite dry after being stored all year then I just soak it for about 10 mins.

Can I ask for what reasons good quality hay needs to be soaked? The only people who soak on out yard seem to those with COPD horses.

 

[pixie]

I've had it for about 3 years now, so I'm used to it. Perhaps I'm just a bit grumpy today from not getting enough sleep (<5 hrs, erf )

 

[the watcher]

[ QUOTE ]

Can I ask for what reasons good quality hay needs to be soaked? The only people who soak on out yard seem to those with COPD horses.

[/ QUOTE ]

when my horse is in, I soak or steam for precisely that reason, I also soak the hay of horses in neighbouring stables to cut down any airborne dust. The only time I don't is if it is really fresh