what does your farmer's hay look like? I hope it's better than mine...

I finished off my 50 lb box of Oxbow hay and thought I'd get some farmer's hay since the Oxbow costs about $100.00 to get shipped to me. I got the bale of hay for $10 cuz my parents were supposed to pick it up but at the last minute decided to have the guy deliver it. It's pretty big about 18"x18" x36" (something like that) but it's mostly brown hay - it smells okay and the rabbits like it but there is a lot of waste and since I fill up the hay trays twice a day -because their tray is fairly small. They don't get much that they can actually eat. they manage to pick out all the green bits and leave the brown.

I bought another 50 lb box of Oxbow anyways and I'm glad I did. I may try a different farmer next time and hope for greener stuff - he said it was the second cutting - does this make a difference?

Is all farmer hay like this?Or did I get a dud bale? I mean it's only $10 but still I'm storing all that bad hayfor nothing

Great reason why to always check the hay out before purchase, Next time .

Im sure the hay is perfectly good livestock hay, however when it comes to bunnys we tend to be much pickier despite them still being able to eat it with no issues.

The main thing would be, is it dry? does it smell good? is it really dusty? has it been rained on? what does the middle of the bale look/smell/feel like?

There are plenty of "farmers" out there who grow amazing hay, you just may not have the best for local stuff. Try talking to a few stables and see if you can locate a transport company that brings in different types of hays for livestock. Often you will be able to get nicer hay from transport companys as they will bring the good stuff people are looking for into areas that dont grow the nicest hay. I get my orchard grass from a transport company. Its brought in from Washington and its AMAZING stuff.

With my hay, it always turns out looking nicer then the bagged stuff but we get our hay from a place with a reputation. Unless I had bought from them before, I would never have it shipped without looking it over, you never know what you will get.

Personally, I would recommend going somewhere with a reputation, a guarantee (Our place guarantees no mould, for example) and somewhere where you can pick out the bale you want. It sounds like you got a dud.

Depends on the quality & price you pay for it.
This last round of hay I got, the pictures online made it looks FANTASTIC. I got there and I was a little disappointed to find it wasn't as green as the pictures showed, but I bought two bales anyway. Luckily my rabbits are eating it. Next purchase will be from the feed store since I have less rabbits now, and also just to splurge a little around the holiday season.

Emily

The Oxbow stuff is amazing and green & smells wonderful. This stuff smells okay, it looks dry but I think it got burned by the sun. There's mostly brown bits - and the hay is softer (no hard stalks)

Mine prefer meadow hay, i tried them on a small bag of Timothy hay and they didnt like it as much so i went back to meadow hay.

I get a mix from our feed store (50% Timothy, 25% Orchard, 25% Meadow). It's $10 for 60 pounds. It is green and smells like fresh mown grass. You may also want to inquire if it is horse or cow quality. Horse quality hay is much better than cow quality hay. I think they use the best hay of a given cutting for horses because they can get a better price and horses are more picky.

Wish we had a choice. The best deal for us is from Drs. Foster and Smith.

I just bought my first bale ( to try it out) and I am a little disappointed too. First of all the feed store only had bales of alfalfa ( no Timothy) and when I opened it a bit in the corner I notice there is a lot of "crumbs". The grass is green but not manta stalks like when I buy I in the bag. Does this mean it's old or just maybe a last cutting? Unfortunately I can't smell it due to sinus ( can't taste anything either:grumpy. My buns are eating it but as they are all three "teens" is alfalfa bad for them?

MiniLopHop wrote:

Horse quality hay is much better than cow quality hay. I think they use the best hay of a given cutting for horses because they can get a better price and horses are more picky.

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Horse hay is generally higher quality because dust/mold causes respritory problems that stay with the horse their entire life and makes riding them far harder on them as they have trouble breathing. Considering horses are generally used for work, this is something you want to prevent. Also, if the hay is poor quality, it causes a 'hay belly'. Since eating horses is more rare then beef, not to mention a good horse will sell for a far higher price so it is in the rancher's best interest to keep their horses on good quality hay.

With cattle, it's generally fed to animals that are to be sent to slaughter, so they don't really care about something that is going to be causing long term effects that doesn't spoil the meat.

So it's not necessarily that horses are more picky (If they are hungry, they will eat whatever they find just like any other animal) but just that it is generally that people care more about their horses then they do their cattle.

jujub793 wrote:

I just bought my first bale ( to try it out) and I am a little disappointed too. First of all the feed store only had bales of alfalfa ( no Timothy) and when I opened it a bit in the corner I notice there is a lot of "crumbs". The grass is green but not manta stalks like when I buy I in the bag.

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When you say 'crumbs', do you mean leaves? Because that is generally what a good bale will look like. Horses love the leaves. It doesn't mean it's bad, I would actually consider that desirable when looking for horse feed.

I am VERY picky about the hay I feed my horses. It drives my hubby nuts every single time he finds a new supplier. LOL I will say that $10 is a bit ridiculous. We pay $3-$3.50 a bale, from various farmers in the area. Make sure it's green and not dusty/moldy. If you pull some apart and you can see dust, don't feed it. No white patches or any white on the leaves/stems (that's mold).

wendymac wrote:

I am VERY picky about the hay I feed my horses. It drives my hubby nuts every single time he finds a new supplier. LOL I will say that $10 is a bit ridiculous. We pay $3-$3.50 a bale, from various farmers in the area.

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Wish we could find decent bales that price. With Alberta being such an agricultural province, we have tons of places with hay. Unfortuanatly, almost 80% of it is disgusting, so you need to pay $9 and up before finding something that is suitable for any animal.

We're very picky with our hay as well for the horses. Buzz, our rescue, has pretty bad heaves from being on poor feed on we need to monitor what he takes in, which means hay with as little dust as possible. Cheap hay is dangerous around here and I've seen too many horses in our area with heaves, it's sad

Wow! I'm glad the farmers around here realize they'll get more for good horse hay than they will cattle hay.

I've shown horses for years, and it saddens me to see how many develop breathing problems. My AQHA All-Around gelding has been shown heavily since he was 2 (still going at 17). I've been watering his hay down for the last few years, just in case. He's breathed in a LOT of dust over the years, and I'm not taking chances. When I first started campaigning him, everyone told me he was going to burn out...he wouldn't last, etc. They're still eating those words, because he's just as good now as he was when he was 2. I say it's because I didn't scrimp on his hay, like many do. It's even worse now, when most of the people around here are laid off.

Wow, thanks for the explination on why the horse hay really is better.

I was thinking of this thread when I got in my car last night. I got the new bale of hay a week ago and took it into the house the same evening. My car still smells like fresh mown grass from the little bits left. I havn't had time to run the shop vac yet.