This years hay - when is it ok to feed?

WelshD

WelshD

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Literally just this second secured my winter hay which was baled today and will be delivered tomorrow

I have always had hay over a year old before, when would be ok to feed the new stuff? I'm wondering if I have a potential gap to fill between the start of stabling and the hay being ok to feed
 
Please don't take this as gospel, but I was always told a minimum of 6 weeks post baling - and longer was better. And in the dim distant mists of my youth (50+ years ago), most people fed year-old hay to horses, don't know why.
 
Year old would be less nutritious but fine to feed to a fatty as long as not dusty.

Six weeks is ideal.

However if you make it on 1 July you can feed it on 2 July ! as long as you have some of last years left and mix it in gradually in increasing proportions.
 
Thanks. I have standing grass for the good do-er from Oct but the Wuss pony will be stabled overnight from around then so he should be ok to eat this new hay then...

Phew! For some reason I thought it couldn't be fed for six months or more!
 
Oh my god, I've been feeding hay baled just one day, having 2 on box rest I ran out of hay, so contacted my supplier who was baling that day and delivered the next, horses weren't that interested in the new hay, despite standing in, what are the likely consequences of feeding new hay.
 
Newly baled hay is still fermenting, so it could cause upset and colic. Mostly it just gives 'em the runs. But you should mix it with something, even clean straw.
 
I've had no choice about feeding new hay; it's the only stuff I have! So I've been opening the bales completely before feeding. I hope it will be ok; there's been a big shortage up here.
 
Newly baled hay should not still be fermenting. It should either be dried hay or wet grass/haylage. I own a large hay farm and we bale and feed the next day if needs be. If it's dry hay, then it's hay, simple as. Yes it might be fuller in vitamins or nutrients but it's hay. If the hay is not dry enough then it shouldn't be made into hay :)
 
I've fed the next day quite happily. First year i would open and spread the bale in the sun before feeding which was mainly for my benefit.
 
I've always fed it straight away, but opened the bale to air out 24 hours before feeding. Yes good quality hay shouldn't be still fermenting but even hay is not bailed 100% dry and some heating will occur in the best of bales.
 
Agree with spring feather. Hay does not ferment. If its not completely dry before baling it will not keep well and will produce mould during storage, damp fermenting grass is haylage and should be wrapped to complete the process. I always consider 12 weeks minimum for feeding haylage.

In the old days new hay was not fed until after Christmas but the only difference between brand new hay and stored hay is nutritional content,so for overweight good doers the older hay is preferable.
 
hay DOES NOT FERMENT at all when making it dries.

the reason for it being ideal to leave for a minimum of 6 wks is that the quality of the nutrients and the levels of the sugars in each bale have had time to become less variable-yr old hay is lower nutritional value and if not dusty ideal for fatties.

we currently have one on box rest and the day we cut i was feeding her some cut grass (that was from the hay crop) along side each hay net.


haylage is damp cut grass that is wrapped to keep the air out to STOP FERMENTATION, if it is fermenting you should not feed it
 
Hay is dried grass....it does not ferment....
I have been making hay for the past 30 years and have fed the same day as baling.
The reason behind waiting 6 months in years gone by.....was that the majority of the horse population had no turn out, and people believed the new cut hay would be too rich for them...
Interestingly... today I gave my lot the haylage from last year......and the new cut hay....and they totally ignored the haylage:)
Your beasties will be fine. :)
Bryndu
 
We also baled and fed the next day. Our hay also wasn't totally dry ( had to be baled and brought in quickly as rain was forecast) and it is definitely still fermenting and warm inside. Horses aren't dead yet though, so it can't be all bad! :D
 
Bigrob your hay is NOT fermenting. It is heating up which is potentially dangerous in two ways.
1. If the bales are tightly packed into a barn you could have the lot go up in flames.

2. If the bales were baled damp you will have mould growing in them before too long, dangerous feed for horses.
 
New hay is different from older hay in a number of ways. Firstly ,moisture content ,usualy 13-14 % against 10-11% which is why old hay can be dusty. In addition there are still many biochemical processes going on (which produce heat ) These have nothing to do with going mouldy ,they are enzyme catalysed reactions . Grass is like a complex chemical refinery, you cant just switch it off by cutting it. It needs to gradualy stop. (And of course in the wrong circumstances it does exactly what a chemical refinery can do:cool::eek:) New hay is more like grass than old hay,so a horse at grass has a gut flora which can usualy deal well with new hay. However a stabled horse on old hay only ,would recieve a far more severe jolt to his system. Gradual introduction of the new hay here is essential.
 
The biggest reason for not feeding hay immediately is in case there is any damp which will cause mould. If you know the hay was good and dry when baled then it will be fine.
 
I suggest you ask your question on a farming forum if you want a serious and informed answer!;)

If the fodder is well made and properly stored, it will keep almost indefinitely and still be safe to feed. I will often throw a broken bale over the fence to my ponies when I'm making hay and there is no problem. But it is hay, not partially dried grass with putrefaction already established. Your nose is your guide. Lawn mower clippings are said to be lethal for this reason.

BTW, I have been feeding three year old hay to clean out the barn and it is perfect and the ponies love it. My customers were raving about the 2 year old haylage I was selling over winter. Both were well made and properly stored. And, no, the hay is not dusty. It is feeding rubbish that harms horses.
 
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