Sixty-one pounds of compressed hay questions

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GinChinSing

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Denver, Colorado, USA
I have been going to Petsmart for their 96 oz bags of hay. It's getting really expensive, so I found a feed store that will deliver. I'm excited but I have a few questions. The first, they offer compressed bales of hay that are about 61 pounds each. They are $15.99, plus the delivering fee. I've never bought bales of hay so I had a few questions.

The first, I assume compressed bales are like the ones you see in movies or around halloween that are rectangle and bound and come apart in flakes. Is this correct? If so, what is the best way to store it? I figure a brand new plastic trash can like people put in their garages will work. Or do I need to find something to keep bugs out? Also, how long do you thing 61 pounds of hay will keep before I have to start considering its nutritional value? I assume with my small group of rabbits (which now numbers 4), a whole bale will last at least six months.

Thank you.
 
I would like to know the difference between compressed and regular rectangular

I can get a regular rectangular bale from a local farmer for 5 bucks... going market price is 3. Maybe check to see if there is a horse farm in your area? Otherwise, it may be an economical choice if you can't do transportation from a rural area.

You will definitely get 6 + months out of it.
I store my bale in a christmas tree tote bin on my balcony - ensure it doesn't get wet/too humid.
 
When I buy my 50lb bales I store then in a hay bale bag cost about 30 dollars but it keeps hay fresh and not too messy. Of course you still have to provide the dark and dry place to keep it.
 
I bought a full bale of timothy from a feed store for $24. I don't know if it was considered "compressed," but I do know it was very compacted. It seems to 'grow' as I pull sections out. And the more inner portions are still green in color (not moist).

As I recall, I'm sure it weighed well over 61 lbs. I couldn't lift it. A young man could lift it but with obvious effort. It seemed to be a normal bale size as you described. (Maybe 40" at widest measurement?) I just had them put it in the back of our minivan.

I'm sure it will last my 2 bunnies a year at least. But I don't think it will have less nutrition than the bags in the petstores. I bet by the time those are packaged and sent to stores, they are not nearly as fresh.

I bought several large plastic storage tubs. It's so dry here in the desert, mold isn't a concern. I've heard others suggest poking holes in plastic tubs for air.

Good idea for you to get it by the bale. I can't even imagine how much $$ I've saved doing it this way. I can be very generous with the hay now and don't worry about waste.
 
The bales I get are around 60 pounds. I have a big rubbermaid tub that holds a bale. I do have to take a couple flakes out before I stuff the bale in or I can't get it out easily as the bales squeezes into the bin pretty tight. I keep the bin in the house and it is uncovered. I bale lasts me about 2 months with 7 rabbits.

My buns like the baled hay much better than store bought hay. I have a little bag of Oxbow timothy that they don't like. I guess they are spoiled.
 
if you're interested in buying a hay bale bag, I just ordered one today from this site, which was recommended by another RO member - http://www.tackwholesale.com/bale-bags-c-11.html (actually, I went with two of the half-bale bags - I figure if I can get them to break the bale in half for me at the place I buy from, that would make it easier to carry into the house myself and make it more convenient to store because I can keep one bag near the bunny pen and the other stored elsewhere, taking up less space in my living room)
 
I order 50lb bales of Oxbow Western Timothy Hay from Drs Foster and Smith. The bunnies love it and vets have told me it's really good hay. My rabbits don't recognize the store stuff in smaller bags as food and won't touch that;) It costs me $60. I put out a LOT of hay for my two, put it in dig boxes and I also use it in the litter boxes. It lasts me about 6 months. Am I paying a lot more than I need to for the hay or is there something different about what you're all getting and what I'm getting?
 
well, picking it up in person from a feed store will be a LOT cheaper than ordering online and having it shipped (plus, I'm sure you're paying a bit extra for having oxbow's good name attached to the hay). I had to drive 64 miles round-trip to buy hay and I get horrible gas mileage but it's still way cheaper than $60 a bale. (the alfalfa I bought was $16.50 for 50 lbs, if I go back for coastal it ranges from $9-13.50/bale)
 
oh wow... yeah, you're paying at least 4x what you'd pay at a feed store. another nice thing about feed stores is they have different kinds of hay and will often let you snag a free sample of each kind so you can have the bunnies "taste test" the options before committing to buying an entire bale.
 
The feed store bale of compressed hay is what I get for the Tipster. I'm not really sure the difference between compressed hay and hay bales (I think compressed hay is more hay in less space and is mostly what we think of as hay bales), and yes, it flaked off. I filled 13 trash bags full of it and have them in my closet. It's a boatload of hay. Qtip loves it, though!
 
I have always bought hay by the bale. The place that I normally buy it from sells a 125lb bale for $30, and this is for the BEST Timothy hay that I have EVER found. (I once got the last bale that they had even, and they were not getting any more in for the season). 1 of those bales would last me 1 year with 30+ rabbits. Hay is good for over a year. There is only 1 haying season so farmers have to feed the same stuff for the whole year. I can just about GUARANTEE you that Oxbow sells hay that is close to a year old. The way that I normally store my hay is I just leave it in a garage (that does not have cars in it ever) or in a barn/shed. I do cover it or anything like that. It NEEDS to breath. My problem now is that my parents to not want a bale of hay in their garage loose (makes a big mess). So with this new bale I got from a different feed store I store it in cardboard boxes. This bale is another good bale of Timothy. It weighs 65lbs and cost $16.

I think that you will REALLY like hay by the bale. It is SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much cheaper than pet store hay. + rabbits like it better.
 
Compressed bales are slightly different than the normal rectangle string bales, which is what most people are familiar with. Compressed bales use straps that are stronger so the bales can be compressed to be smaller and take up slightly less space. Be careful when cutting the straps, you may just have hay POP out everywhere :)

The important things with hay are if it was dry when baled, did it ever get rained on or get wet. You don't want moldy hay. Also is it weed free, and the cut, if you care about what cut it is. I personally like a later cut with thicker stems and more fiber, as opposed to an early cut that is usually softer grass with more protein. Just depends on what your buns like. Some hay is also dustier than other.

When storing it, you also want to keep any mice off of it because mice can carry parasites that will affect your rabbit. Storing also somewhere where there isn't direct sunlight as that will bleach the hay and decrease the nutrients in it.

The spontaneous combustion would only occur if the hay was wet inside the bale. In that case you wouldn't be able to use it for your rabbit in any case. It would be a good idea to pop open the bale at the feed store to make sure the hay looks good on the inside of the bale. Then if it isn't good, you don't go all they way home and find the hay is bad. If you do cut it open, make sure you bring bags or something to put all the hay in cause it will be messy.
 
JBun wrote:
Compressed bales are slightly different than the normal rectangle string bales, which is what most people are familiar with. Compressed bales use straps that are stronger so the bales can be compressed to be smaller and take up slightly less space. Be careful when cutting the straps, you may just have hay POP out everywhere :)
Click to expand...
Hmmm.. I wonder if mine was compressed then? I knew to only cut 1 of the straps or, yes, it would be everywhere. I just pulled out hay as needed until I had to cut the last strap. It was then that I switched the hay to the plastic tubs. It sure seemed to expand then.
 
I get the normal hay bales that are about 60 pounds for $7, but I pick up at the farm. I get a timothy and an orchard grass so it lasts a bit less than a year for 6 rabbits. Each time I pull off a flake it is nice and green on the inside and decently green even on the exposed areas. I store it standing up in a cardboard box with a sheet over it in the house.
 
I use orchard grass from Drs Foster and Smith. Usually get about 70 pounds and shipping is free. It's much cleaner than timothy and I'm not allergic to it like the timothy. It comes in it's own box too. Costs about a fifth of what the equivalent 96 ounce bags would cost at Petsmart.
 
I'll have to ask what they consider the difference to be with compressed and regular. I was planning on them delivering because I don't drive (never learned). I'm sure I'll be able to move it once it's in the house as I regularly move 100 pound turtle tanks. I also didn't know that hay could explode, but it makes sense. When I get a bale, I think breaking it up would make the most sense. I usually keep all animal food stored in plastic containers in a closet, so mold/pests shouldn't be too much of a worry.

I'll have to have to do some searching for price comparison. The feed store I contacted is the closest, so it's the most convenient. I figure even if it is twice as much as many here are paying, it's still cheaper than Petsmart. I could probably find $15 in change just around my house.

@Jenny, I burst out laughing when I read about the hay popping out. I just say it clearly in my head and the reactions of all my animals to it. Thanks for the image.

@Jennifer, thank you for the link. I may looking into getting a hay bale bag as well. I think I'll know more after I see the bale in person. I'm also sure that I'll eventually be buying bales of other flavors of hay/grass too, so bags may be better.

@Julie, thank you for the link to the pdf on the combustion of hay. I haven't read it yet, but will do so as it looked very useful to have.
 
Normally the bales of hay that I buy have 3 thick mettal wires holding them together. It is a pain in the but to cut them even with a good pair of wire cutters. I always cut all 3 bands from the begining. I find it easier to get a section off that way. When I had my rabbitry some days I would go through 1-2 sections a day with the 30 rabbits, and I was not giving them each very much. Now with my 2 current girls I have yet to go through 1 section in a couple of months. I guess that my girls are not big hay eaters.
 
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