When shopping for hay, assessing the
proportion of leaves to stems is a good in- dicator of maturity at cut ing. Hay cut at an earlier stage will have a greater proportion of leaves relative to stems. Pay at ention also to whether mature seed heads are present as this also indicates maturity at cutting. Many horse owners are very interested in
the hay cut ing with fi rst-cut ing hay oſt en be- ing discriminated against. While fi rst cut ing harvests are at greater risk of being delayed due to rain (and therefore being harvested past optimal maturity) or being rained on once cut (which can increase the risk of mold), later cut ings are at risk of being harvested when overly mature. T ere can be a lot of variability within a cut ing. In fact as long as hay that gets rained on is allowed to dry properly, there is no greater risk of mold, and it can be a very good choice for horses who need to eat lower sugar forage because the rain washes out some of the soluble sugar. Price can be favorable, too, due to the fact there is not such a great demand for fi rst cut ing hay. Hay should always be qualitatively assessed
before feeding. Is it a nice green or pale gold color, depending upon the variety? It should not appear brown or dull or have obvious white or black areas of mold. Mold occurs as a result of the hay being baled when too moist, causing it to ferment while in storage. T is gen- erates heat, which can damage sensitive nutri- ents and cause discoloration. In some extreme cases, overly moist bales have been known to self-combust, so for this reason hay purchased off the fi eld should be stored very carefully. The external edges of bales stored outside may have faded during storage, which is to be expected; so be sure to check out the center of the bale. As long as the interior of the bale is the desired color, external sun bleaching will have lit le impact on nutritional content. Good hay will smell sweet and should not
make you gag or cough as a result of mold or dust. Hay that is baled under extremely dry conditions can suff er from a condition known as leaf shat er. More common in alfalfa than grass hay, it can lead to a lot of dust and also wasted forage. Texture is also worth consider- ing as some horses dislike overly coarse or soſt hay. Hay should always be checked for weeds and other contaminants such as trash. While hay grown this year is prefer-
able, hay from previous years that was put up well and stored properly can still contain more nutrition than many people believe, and prices can be attractive, es- pecially as new hay comes in and produc- ers are wanting to empty out their barns.
30 | June 2013 •
WWW.TRAILBLAZERMAGAZINE.US
“There can be a lot of variability within a cutting. In fact as long as hay that gets rained on is allowed to dry properly, there is no greater risk of mold, and it can be a very good choice for horses who need to eat lower sugar forage because the rain washes out some of the soluble sugar.”
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