There is nothing as wonderful as the smell of fresh-cut Timothy or Alfalfa hay.  When I was up north we would bring in a whole tractor trailer’s worth of hay, with the amount of horses I was keeping at my barn, it would last until the next years cutting.  I like second cutting the best.  First cutting was usually not cut on time because the field would be too wet to get into.  The local hay down here just doesn’t have that wonderful aroma.  It was always more cost-effective to buy large quantities.  We had a three story barn so we had plenty of room for 655 bales or more.

Down in Florida we do not have that kind of storage, and I wouldn’t want to.  The humidity makes it extremely difficult to store hay.  Unless you keep it in a room, that you can keep the door closed, regulate the temperature, and keep a dehumidifier on, you’re throwing your money away.  It may not be moldy, but the dust will kill you.  I have asthma, so it does a number on me.  And if it does a number on me, I’m not giving it to my horses.  I’ve seen horses with breathing problems, and you don’t want to deal with that.

My horses are on pasture all spring, summer, and fall, but I usually have about 15 bales left over.  It’s good to have on hand in case you get hit with storms where you want to keep your horses in the barn.  BUT it’s dusty!  Now the hay isn’t moldy, just dusty.  So what is one to do?  Well if I’m feeding it outside for any reason, I shake the dickens out of it (with a mask on of course), but if I’m in the barn, I’ll either soak it for a while or spread it out and hose it down.  The horses don’t mind that it’s wet, some of them like to dunk their hay in the water while they are eating it anyway.

This is not just a southern problem.  When I had left over hay up north, before my delivery of new hay, I would do the same thing.  It doesn’t take that long and it’s so much better for the horses bronchial tubes and lungs.

Don’t forget, as you work your way through that bale, to look for mold.  That should go without saying no matter what time of year it is.  If a bale of hay isn’t cured right, there are many possibilities.  Or you could have had a leak in the roof that you weren’t aware of.  If it’s wet in the middle when it’s baled, it cannot only mold, but can burst into flames and burn down your whole barn.  You can check this by forcing your hand down into the middle of the bale.  See if it’s wet, or hot.  You can break the bale open and let it dry and let the heat out before it molds.  Same thing if your hay gets rained on.  Open it up and let it dry out.  Even though I trust my hay men, now and in the past, I still always keep close watch on what’s going on with my hay.  I lived in New Jersey, but my hay either came from Pennsylvania or Canada.  If he would hit a rain storm on the way down, he would cover the hay with a tarp.  This would trap the heat and moisture in.  He would always warn me that he had done that.  He would also make good for any hay that was not to my liking.  I was also instructed at a very early age how to stack hay, so that it could breath.  You never stacked your bales with the strings up, always the cut ends up.

These are a lot of words just to say “Watch Your Hay.”  But be mindful, and remember, a belly ache can kill.  It’s just not worth it.