Do hay bales last forever?
You can store hay indefinitely if the stack is managed correctly; although, in humid climates, using hay within three years of harvest is ideal. Hay growers need to bale it at correct moisture levels because if it’s baled too damp the hay will generate heat, which leads to molding.
How many bales of hay does a horse eat a month?
Q: How many bales of hay does a horse eat per month? A horse can eat anywhere from 15-25 pounds of hay a day, which generally equates to a half of a 45/50-pound square bale of hay per day (~15-30 bales per month). Always remember to take into consideration the quality of your hay.
How long does a round bale of hay last one horse?
Hay contains 12% moisture. So 2.5% of 500kg is 12.5 kg . 12.5kg x 112/100 = 14kg 14 kg x 2/3 = 9.4kg . So basicly a 200kg round bale should last a 500kg horse with part grazing a minimum of 21 days.
How do you know if hay is bad?
Signs that your horse hay may be bad include a lack of color or dried-out appearance, a moldy smell, excessive dust, visible mold, or excessive heat towards the center of the hay bale. Because hay provides your horse with so many essential nutrients, you must provide your horse with the best quality hay available.
What happens if cut hay gets wet?
If rained-on hay is not again dried fully, mold and mycotoxin growth can occur which can put livestock health at risk. Furthermore, baled wet hay can combust due to the temperature increase caused by microbial growth – putting a producer at risk of barn fire.
Why is my hay so dusty?
Senior Member. Depends on what you can dusty too, any hay short of silage will produce dust but abnormal dust is usually mold spores from wet hay. A very slight pat with your hand on a moldy bale sends up a cloud of spores that is what we call dusty hay. You break that sucker open and it will be very dusty.
How do you make hay not dusty?
What most of us think of as dusty hay is a white mold. To avoid this we bale when the hay is lower than “20% moisture” of better yet when the hay is no more than 18% moisture. The same applies to larger bales but using 16% moisture as the magic moisture.
How do you get dust out of hay?
Feeding dampened hay. Dipping the flakes or full haynet into a large container of water and pulling it right out will dampen the hay enough to get rid of some dust and fine particles.
Is Brown Hay bad?
Brown. Nutritious hay is rarely, if ever, brown. If a tobacco-like odor accompanies extremely off-colored hay, this is likely due to overheating during storage caused by excessive moisture and fungal growth. Palatability of low-quality brown hay is usually poor.
What is bad quality hay?
Poor-quality hay may be damp and moldy with a musty or fermented smell. Hay that appears weathered, straw-like, or brown is likely low in nutritional value. In addition, hay cut late in maturity usually shows a large percentage of stems, with fewer leaves2. Moldy hay can be toxic to horses and should be discarded.
Is sun bleached hay bad?
Hay that is bright green was typically cut at a desirable stage of maturity and rapidly cured. Overall, slight discolorations from sun bleaching, dew or moderate fermentation are not as serious as the loss of green color from maturity, rain damage or excessive heating or fermentation.
Can you bale hay green?
If you scrape the wax off the stem easily then it is too green to bale. But if the wax does not come off the stem easily then it is ready to bale.
Is sun bleached hay bad for horses?
Color. Bright green hay indicates that hay was cut at a relatively early stage of maturity; rapidly and properly cured, with no damage from rain, molds, or overheating during storage. Light green or faded hay is often due to sun bleaching and is generally not a concern for quality.