Table of Contents
What does poor quality hay look like?
Signs that your horse hay may be bad include a lack of color or dried-out appearance, a moldy smell, excessive dust, visible mold, or excessive heat towards the center of the hay bale. Because hay provides your horse with so many essential nutrients, you must provide your horse with the best quality hay available.
When visually evaluating hay Which of the following is the best indicator of the nutritional value?
As a rule of thumb, two-thirds of the hay protein is in the leaves. Therefore, the higher the leafiness, the higher the nutritive value of a hay.
Is Brown hay OK for horses?
Sun damage usually affects only the outside of bales, so much of the hay in these bales is probably salvageable. Brown. Nutritious hay is rarely, if ever, brown. Due to the predisposition to mold and unpalatability, this hay should not be fed to horses.
How do you test quality of hay?
The best technique for sampling baled hay is to use a mechanical coring probe. The serrated edge of the probe is placed on the side of a hay bale that is most resistant to puncture. This is usually the round side of a round hay bale or the small end of a square bale. A sample is obtained by drilling with a brace.
How can you tell good hay?
Evaluating hay quality
- Maturity – High quality hay will have a high proportion of leaves in the bale, with few or no coarse stems or seed heads.
- Condition – High quality hay will contain little dust or mold.
- Color & odor – High quality hay generally has a bright green color and a sweet, fresh odor.
How do you analyze hay?
Reading a hay analysis
- Optimum horse hay moisture ranges from 10 to 15 percent.
- Hay under 10 percent moisture may be too dry, leading to brittle hay.
- Hay over 16 percent moisture has a chance of molding (without a preservative).
- Hays over 25 percent moisture are at risk of severe heat damage and potential fire hazard.
What affects hay quality?
Essentially, hay quality is affected by five major factors; stages of maturity, leafiness, color, foreign matter, and odor and condition. Out of all of these factors, the stages of maturity are the most important. The growth stage of the hay plays a huge role in the quality of hay you feed your livestock.
How can I tell if my horse’s hay is good quality?
When selecting your horse’s forage, keep these six signs of good quality horse hay in mind: 1 High leaf-to-stem ratio. Think about the leafy greens you eat. You likely prefer greens with leaves rather than just… 2 Small diameter stems. Stems smaller in diameter or finer are also indicators of higher quality horse hay. Small stems… More
What does it mean when Hay turns black?
A bleached, yellow, brown or black color may indicate aged hay, mold or poor storage conditions. Storage condition and age have a significant effect on vitamin content of hays. Many vitamins, such as vitamins A and E, are not stable over time and lose biological activity.
What is an Hay balancer for horses?
Hay balancers help provide the missing essential nutrients the horse requires in the diet. In some cases, they can replace hay in the diet entirely. Feeds like Equine Junior ®, Equine Adult ®, Equine Senior ®, and Omolene ® #400 Complete Advantage offer built-in forage for situations where hay is not available in a horse’s diet.
What does it mean when Hay has no seed heads?
Few seed heads or blooms No matter the species of plant, hay with little to no seed heads or blooms indicates a younger, early maturity plant, and thus a higher quality hay. For example, timothy hay should be cut in the pre-bloom or early-bloom stage when you see little to no seed heads; and alfalfa should be cut when you see few to no blooms.