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Is wrapped hay good for horses?
Wrapped hay This is particularly useful if you need to store your forage outside, but because the moisture content isn’t high enough to encourage fermentation, sugar levels may be higher than other forage options and the capacity for dust reduction may not be as good as in haylage.
Why is hay wrapped in white plastic?
Plastic wrap is most commonly used in high-moisture baling. In this method the forage crop is cut sooner, immediately baled, and wrapped in plastic to ferment like silage. Because forage is at it’s highest quality when cut, baleage is higher in protein and more palatable for livestock than dry hay.
Is hay or haylage better for horses?
Haylage is, however, higher in protein, and more digestible than hay giving it a higher DE content. As a result, horses generally tend to do better on haylage, so it’s often not ideal for overweight horses and those prone to weight gain, metabolic and laminitic horses, unless it is a high-fibre, lower DE variety.
Why do farmers wrap their hay bales?
Most farmers seem to have their preference on moisture levels. Bales at lower moisture may have little to no fermentation, but wrapping protects them from spoiling. On the other hand, moisture levels too high can cause clostridial fermentation with resulting high levels of butyric acid and ammonia.
Why do farmers wrap dry hay?
The increasing cost of hay production and resulting value of quality hay may provide a good reason for spending extra time and money to reduce storage loss. Wrapping dry hay allows farmers to protect feed from the weather without building more structures.
How much does it cost to wrap a bale of hay?
It does come at a cost; he said the family purchases plastic wrap every year, and it typically costs around $4 to $4.50 per bale. Each bale is evenly and tightly wrapped in eight partially overlapped layers.
How much plastic do I need to wrap Hay rolls?
Some producers who have limited inside space for storing dry hay rolls have successfully wrapped dry hay for outside storage. Typically only enough plastic to cover the bale is needed, usually 2 layers with about a 20\% overlap at the edges.
What can I use instead of a hay bale?
Another alternative is the use of round bale “sleeves.” These plastic covers are open on both ends of the bale and are meant to protect from precipitation above and wicking from below. If handled carefully, they can be reused for two years.