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Hay                 

Choosing the type of hay to feed you equine friend can be largely dependant on what is available in your area.  Hay that grows well in the southern states may not be readily available in the western states.  Hay normally makes up 40-100% of the horse’s diet depending on work load and stage of development.

 A couple of ways to evaluate the quality of hay are visual appraisal and chemical testing.  Visual appraisal will give you a good idea of the quality of hay but only chemical testing can give the nutritive value. 

Visually inspect hay for mold and/or dust.  Mold will smell musty and will look like a grayish white flaky substance or dust.  Hay with dust or mold can inflame a horse’s respiratory tract and impair their breathing, called “heaves.”   Some horses can actually develop permanent lung damage after consuming significant amounts of dusty or moldy hay.  Mold can also have other negative effects on the horse such as digestive problems like colic.  Hoses may refuse eat the dusty or moldy hay or eat very little of it.  This can cause loss of nutrient intake resulting in loss of body condition. 

While you’re doing your visual inspection of the hay bales look for evidence of hay that was cut and baled when it was overly mature.  As the plant advances in maturity the percent in protein and energy digestibility decreases while the percent in fiber and stems increases. The color of the hay can be an unreliable measure of hay quality.  Different shades of hay are influenced by the type of hay, sun bleaching, and if the hay was fertilized.  Also hay will gradually lose its color with storage. Also look for significant amounts of foreign material that has been baled in the hay such as;  broken glass, wire, thorns, thistle and an over abundance of weeds.

Feel the hay bales and reject the bales that are excessively heavy for their size and/or feel warm to the touch.  They could contain moisture that eventually will cause mold or worse, spontaneously ignite and start a fire.

After purchasing hay, it’s always a good idea to feed the hay within a year of harvest to be assured that your horse is still getting all of the nutrient value. Hay can lose nutrients at varying rates depending whether it’s covered, not covered or barn stored.  Now barn stored hay can retain most of its nutrient value up to two years; however, long-term storage may increase the dryness and possibly the level of dustiness due to the dryness. 

Bales come in several different sizes; the smaller, more manageable bales, the large round bales or the larger square bales.  The availability of equipment large enough to move the big bales to the feeding area will impact your choice.  Large round bales that are free of mold are great to feed in situations where there are enough horses to consume the hay bale in a short period of time.  If there aren’t enough horses and the hay is exposed to the elements, mold can quickly develop.  Horses are also prone to overeat causing several different problems.  The amount of wasted hay may be greater than you would experience with the smaller bales.

If you're unsure about what type of hay to feed, how much to feed regarding sustaining your equine's special energy level, etc. consult your veterinarian or a qualified equine nutritionist to help formulate your horse’s energy requirements. 

By Linda Ghent

Linda Ghent is a 22 year police officer (retired) who now is part owner of Star Amazing Grace Performance Horses with Terri Kinney.  Linda has a full time Equine Sport Massage practice.  You can contact Linda at  www.StarAmazingGrace.com  or StarAmazingGrace@aol.com