More Hay Problems

[LittleRibbie]

Horses hate the new orchard mix. More stems then my other hay,not as green ( but just cut )but there is nothing wrong w/it...they just prefer the other hay that I fed previously. That hay was 20.00 a bale delivered, very green, orchard w/little alfalfa and extremely soft,soft soft! BUT EXPENSIVE!!I cant afford 7 horses eatting hay that is costing me this much money but they are only eating small amt. of the new hay. I bet I rake 1/3 of each feeding and toss daily...never thru any of the other hay away.

Right now they get 1 cup Strategy AM and 1 cup PM, Then ( and this is the part that I think im doing wrong )lunch is either 1 cup Enrich 32 or 1 cup beet pulp soaked so its about 2 juicy cups.They get a couple of supplement things too. Oh and maybe a handful of oats once in a while but its really just for a treat and I dont consider it part of their food. Their hay totals about 1 flake each per day spread out thru out the day. All are turned out to graze about 1 hr. only, late in the day.They are not stalled during the day but do tend to just hang out in stalls because of the heat but they can go out into their dry lot sort of pasture area if they wanted to.My horse are not skinny and are wormed but could loose some weight so Im thinking maybe Im just feeding too much hay and they dont want it all.

With dogs if they dont eat I pick up the bowl and thats it untill next feeding...cant do that with the horses hay they dont seem to even go back to eat the less favorable stems,

Should I just try giving them less and figure if they are truly hungry they will eat it all or do I give them more to compensate for the stems they will not eat.

P.S. I tried mixing some of their favorite hay in but it just makes them know that " hey, there is better stuff in the feed room...if we just hold out alittle longer the old lady will give us some more good stuff" They will not even touch the new hay!!

Do I give them more of the Enrich...I wonder if even 1 cup daily is enough or if its even needed. Please help with suggestions. Thanks

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I cannot help you with the supplemental feed question, but I can relate to horses not eating certain hay. Mine will not eat bermuda, which is the prevalent hay in my area. Everyone else's horses gobble it up, but mine won't eat a bite. They are on pasture most of the time, but in the summer I like to put them in a dry lot at night for weight control. I give them a little hay to keep them busy in the night. The bermuda is always still there in the morning, in the hay bag or scattered around the area, peed on. I've tried leaving it another day, or wetting it, or getting it from a different part of the bale, or different hay growers--

I got a load of timothy recently and offered them some last night. They enjoyed it. At $13 a bale, compared to $4 for bermuda, I'm glad I only have 2 little hroses to feed it to occasionally!

So how hungry would they have to be to eat a hay they don't like? I am fortunate I dont' have to find out.

 

[Magic]

P.S. I tried mixing some of their favorite hay in but it just makes them know that " hey, there is better stuff in the feed room...if we just hold out alittle longer the old lady will give us some more good stuff" They will not even touch the new hay!!

Your horses call you "old lady"??? I'd not stand for it, lol!

I've dealt with this in the past when we've gone from a mostly-alfalfa to a straight grass hay. Alfalfa must be TASTY stuff.

What I did was give them less of the new hay so that it wouldn't get wasted so much, until they got used to it and ate it better. If you offer a child a candy bar or broccoli, they are pretty much guaranteed to pick the candy bar every time right? Not a completely realistic comparison since a child couldn't survive on just candy bars and alfalfa is "real food" for horses, but just to make my point, ya know?

Since you say that your horses could stand to lose a little weight, I wouldn't worry too much about them not eating it well right now. Wait and see if they get used to it and eat it better over time. As for the other stuff you are giving them, I couldn't say. Most horses can do just fine on hay alone as long as they are getting the minerals and vitamins they need, but every horse is an individual and every area is different as to what the hay is like in that respect. If you had a steady supply of hay from the same grower it would make sense to have it tested so that you knew exactly what else, if anything, your horses needed. Good luck!

 

[Matt73]

I had no idea how much you guys have to pay for hay

Crazy. My alfalfa/timothy/grass mix was $2.50/bale. If we had to pay more than $5.00/bale I, honestly, don't know if we'd have horses. I feel for you

 

[muffntuf]

I understand your frustration, and at $20 a bale, that would make me go balistic. I am hoping its at lest a 70 lb. bale.

I have had to convert horses to not so desirable hay from their favorite candy (beautiful grass hay and alfalfa hay bales), they don't like it, it takes them a few days of being hungry before they decide it isn't so bad after all.

My comment to the neighs and whinnies when I fork out the new hay is "This is the hay tonight, get over it."

Since then they clean it up, regardless of what I give them. You just have to have a bit thicker skin if you stay with the hay you just bought. If its good hay, won't hurt them, you just have to let them get over it.

I like the analogy of the broccoli and candy bar - cuz that is exactly what it is.

 

[LittleRibbie]

Thanks and yes...I do just have to put my hoof down and only let them eat this hay and no more sneeking in anything else. Take it or leave it I guess.

There is cheaper hay around but honest to goodness...most of it would barely be fit for cattle IMO and there is one guy that has pretty cheap Orchard ( 11.00 )that he brings from Ohio but I have to go through it w/a fine tooth comb before feeding...beer cans,birds,huge sticks... and if any one lived on Linden Street.....your street sign turned up in my bale of hay!!Most people feed coastal and seem to like it for their horses ( its only about 7.00 a bale ) but my vet thinks it too much like string and really recommends that I not feed it. I can get t/a for about 12.00 but it usually has way too much alfalfa. Primarily it was the ease of just 1 call,consistant quality of hay, having it delivered on time and real respectful/courteous delivery drivers that had me paying 20.00 a bale but I just know I cant afford it and was hoping they would get used to the new hay...hopefully they will with more time.

Lisa, yes they were heavy almost 60.00 lb. bales and beautiful..they ate every blade..it really didnt even break away in flakes...just sort of fell apart.

 

[muffntuf]

I would look into getting it shipped in from PA or something then?

 

[shorthorsemom]

I have too many problems with stemmy hay, my guys get belly aches. I only feed fine grass hay. I just bought a bunch yesterday. Worth it, they clean up every blade. I have a local guy that when grass hay gets scarce he gets it shipped in from Canada. I could get nice grass hay in the middle of winter. Hope you find a solution.

 

[Itsy Bitsy Acres]

Do any of the feed stores in your area carry bagged hay? I have an older (35yr old) Shetland that hardly has any teeth, so I went on the hunt for some hay he could chew. Most of the feed stores around KY carry chopped and bagged hay in a variety of choices ranging from $9-15 bucks a bag (50lbs). I liked it so much that I switched all of my guys over to it. It is primarily leafy so horses with no teeth can chew it, so it is also good for helping to prevent pot bellies and colic issues. Also much easier to store and handle. Another pro is if your feed store keeps it on hand you don't have to use barn space to store 100+ bales at a time saving you room. The only downfall I have found is you can not use hay racks with it, and it requires some kind of feeder or tub to go in because it is chopped into about 5 inch pieces.

 

[fastrack]

You might try beet pulp instead of hay. We had an aged pony that couldn't bite off grass or chew hay well. Switched her to beet pulp & she gained weight.

 

[Marty]

I really think your hay is beautiful cause I have the same stuff and mine love it and aren't wasting any of it. Go figure. They are pigs. I really think the problem is that you give them too much, its horribly hot, and also you've fed hay with alfalfa in it a lot and they are looking for that. Once your subtract the alfalfa, they get very fussy, like "where's the beef?" To me, that would be like someone taking away my pepsi and replacing it with club soda. Or offering me peanut butter and jelly, when they are eating at Subway. Get the idea?

Also I do think that as long as its summer, what they really want the most is grass. When mine come in and are full on grass, I don't offer them any hay until later on.

 

[LittleRibbie]

Itsy Bitsy, I thought of the bagged hay but Im thinking they will eat it so fast then just stand around being bored till next feeding...I like the idea of grazing on hay piles.

Marty, I know you have told me that you think I over feed hay and I think I do too but I am really cutting back. I know I should weigh it but I dont think they get more than a lb. each horse each day. Guess I just have to buy a scale and see exactly how much I truly am feeding.

Fastrack,thanks for your advise and I do feed beet pulp but I dont want to pull them off hay and only do the beet. I would understand if the horse cant eat or digest the hay but these horses have full sets of teeth, stomachs all in working order, all young and healthy..albeit just very picky!!

 

[Ashley]

For the most part my horses are not to picky. I do have a few bales left from last year that they are not thrilled about but the need to eat that before this years. I do like some others, either they eat it or they dont, but they dont get anything else. well the old guys get their grain so they get away with it a bit more but the ones that dont get grain have to deal with it.

 

[ruffian]

It sounds like to me that they just aren't hungry. Horses will eat trees if they are hungry enough! 2-3 plus cups of grain, plus 2+ cups of beet pulp, plus a cup of oats, plus grass sounds like are getting plenty to eat. They ate the alfalfa for the same reason I eat potato chips and popcorn-I like it (and it shows!!) It sounds like you are feeding 7 leaves - almost a bale - a day? I'd cut back on the hay to perhaps half that If they are cleaning that up, then increase it. If not, Cut down again.