What
are the differences between the three and what price do
you pay for each ? I ask as I am considering changing
from hay to something more quality assured as hay can
vary so much between bales never mind deliveries !
Also I have seen on the Dengie site a hay replacer ?
What is this and does anyone use it.
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Hay
is grass that is cut and left to dry for at least three
days to a high dry matter content (i.e. it isn't very
wet!). It is then baled (using twine only) and stored -
technically you should leave it for 6 months before
feeding it to horses - although I have used some before
this time when desperate.
Silage is again grass but it is cut and either baled or
put in a silage clamp (like a big bunker) immediately,
or it is left to wilt a little (around 12 hours).
Wilting is done so that there is less silage effluent
(liquid stuff that is very polluting and corrosive) to
come out of the stored silage. Once it is baled or
clamped it has to be sealed from oxygen by wrapping in
plastic - if continuous oxygen is present it degrades -
gets hot - and goes very nasty and smelly due to the
effect of nasty bacteria. If it is sealed then nice
anaerobic bacteria use sugar from the grass and pickle
it by producing lots of acid. Silage can be fed to
horses but you have to know what you are doing and you
have to be able to recognise the smell and appearance of
silage that has gone off / or contains botulism.
Haylage is halfway between - i.e. it is cut and dried a
bit before baling with plastic wrapping to pickle. As
the dry matter content is higher before wrapping there
is less likely to be any 'bad' bugs in it and it is
safer.
Both silage and haylage need to be used up within a few
days of opening the plastic wrapping - as they do go
off. Hay just gets dustier!
Hay replacers tend to be either chaff / chaff and
alfalfa either loose or in compressed blocks. I once
used a nugget type thing but because it had sharp edges
by horse blistered her tongue and had to be off work for
a while - not very amused!
I feed hay - because it is grown on the farm where I
keep my horses and is generally ok. I don't have to soak
it which is lucky but I do use Horsehage for anything
that coughs.
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How long
should you leave haylage for after it has been cut?
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At least a
couple of months to let the fermentation take place
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What is
Horsehage - is that a form of haylage
commercialised ?
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Horsehage is
just a brand name that everyone says when they mean
haylage - just like people call vacuum cleaners Hoovers
when they might actually be another brand.
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What kind of quantities do you feed of horsehage - bale
wise (I have seen it in my feed shop in bags a bit
smaller than the alfa A bags) I know it is about £5 a
bag but if I need similar quantities to hay then I need
to win the lottery if I want to feed it !
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I used
to feed haylage and would generally go by half the
amount I would have fed in hay. (think that was it
anyway - so long ago!)
God, I'm trying to remember now. I think it was the same
sort of weight but because the haylage is heavier it
looked about half. Or was it half the weight??...
I used to up the alfa or chaff ration in feeds though.
Bear in mind that if you don't use the whole bag in a
few days it goes off and you have to throw the rest
away.
Also, if a bag gets punctured you must either use it
straight away (if a new puncture) or throw it away (if
you don't know when it happened).
I used to get one that wasn't Horsehage but the same
stuff - similar size bag for about £4 when the
Horsehage round here was about £6-7.
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I had always been told not to feed haylage to laminitics.
Is this true? If so, why?
I only ask as I have a mare who has had laminitis in the
past and a Welshie who although hasn't had it yet (and
hopefully never will) but is the type of pony that will
be prone to it.
Is hay or haylage better for weight gain or is it all
down to amounts? My other horse, a TB,
appears to lose weight a the drop of a hat.
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I have been
told haylage is good for weight gain as I have a TB who
is exactly the same. This is why I was asking
particularly about the difference between horsehage and
haylage.
Also how long would a bale last (I know it doesn't keep)
for a TB in at night ? Would I end up wasting it or
would I need a bale a day ? He is currently on ad lib
hay.
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As to the quantities you should reduce the amount fed by
one third - yes it is slightly wetter but it is normally
more energy giving which is why you shouldn't feed it to
laminitics. This reduction in amount fed can cause
problems if the horse does not have as much to occupy it
but that is why they bought out the nets with small
holes - although some greedy horses don't take any
notice. If you keep the same amount of haylage as hay in
each feed just remember to knock off the concentrates!!!
You can get three sizes of haylage bales - one is the
mini size (same as Horsehage) and is between £4 - £6
depending on the shop, you can get the midisize which is
double the mini size and a bit more difficult to handle
(you have to roll then as they are too heavy to pick up)
and are normally about double the price but better for
you if you have a couple of horses; and the large size
that cost about £20. I would advise the larger size if
you have the number of horses and the handling capacity
(or large round ones) but make sure that the person /
farmer / company who make them know that they are for
horse consumption and have not added any additives that
may affect horses. Additives are added (either acid /
bacteria or special chemicals) to ensure a correct
fermentation but these have not been tested on horses
and we all know what a sensitive lot they are!
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A few years
back I was feeding big bale haylage and found that, once
opened, it was fine for about 3 days if kept under cover
but completely unwrapped. (it does dry a little but
that's not a problem.) If you leave part of the bag
around it, it sweats and can develop mould.
Quantity wise, I fed the same by weight as I would hay -
but reduced the concentrates as it is higher in feed
value. If you feed less, you'll find horses
lacking 'gut fill' and they start on the bedding! |
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