Is sun bleached hay bad?
Sun-bleaching decreases carotene content and palatability of the discolored hay. Sun damage usually affects only the outside of bales, so much of the hay in these bales is probably salvageable. Brown. Due to the predisposition to mold and unpalatability, this hay should not be fed to horses.
What is bleached hay?
Bleached hay is an important factor in dry hay production. Bleached hay in production is a direct impact of exposure to the sun, rain, humidity, and ultimately oxidation of Beta-carotene. Hay contains the Vitamin A precursor Beta-Carotene that is converted to Vitamin A by the animal.
Why is some hay green and some yellow?
Hay that was cured quickly and stored properly is usually a bright green color while hay that was cured slowly or damaged by rain after partial drying may be pale yellow or brown because of bleaching and/or leaching.
Can horses eat yellow hay?
Yellow throughout: it was overly mature when cut, which indicates reduced nutrient value and palatability to horses. Dark-brown or black: stay away. Hay this color was baled when wet, and doesn’t offer adequate nutrition. It also could make your horse sick.
Is sun bleached hay OK for horses?
Yellow/Beige: Hay can become yellow—or sun-bleached—if the hay has been stored in the sun. If your hay is sun-bleached, usually the only sides that become discolored are the sides that are in direct sunlight. While the hay that’s been sun-bleached may lose some nutrients, the inside of the hay should still be OK.
Can hay be baled green?
The more of the hay and the longer it is exposed to the sun the more it is going to be bleached out to a brownish color. The faster you can get it dried and into a bale the more green color the hay will have.
Is Brown hay bad for horses?
Horse hay should be bright green and smell slightly sweet. Brown hay indicates either a problem in the baling process, such as being rained on, or age. Acrid or musty smells generally indicate the presence of mold. Hay that has too many hard, woody stems is difficult to digest.
What kind of hay is bad for horses?
Timothy hay is a popular choice because of its easy digestibility and may be more suitable for certain life stages. However, alfalfa hay has higher calcium to phosphorus ratio, which makes it unsuitable for younger horses. Timothy hay has a balanced calcium to phosphorus ratio.
What color should horse hay be?
bright green
6. Hay Color. Good quality hay should be bright green in color with little fading. A bleached, yellow, brown or black color may indicate aged hay, mold or poor storage conditions.
Is lucerne hay the same as alfalfa?
Lucerne hay is also known as alfalfa in some parts of the world- for example in North America. And while some horse lovers praise Lucerne hay as an extremely valuable component in horse digestion, others avoid it at all costs.
Is Bluestem hay good for horses?
Native warm-season grasses also can provide good summer pastures for horses. Warm-season grasses that horses graze well include blue grama, big bluestem and sand bluestem, sideoats grama, sand lovegrass, and indiangrass. So they can be used for horse hay even if they make poor horse pasture.
What is the most nutritious hay for horses?
Timothy hay is one of the most popular hays fed to horses. It can be quite expensive, depending on whether it has to be shipped long distances. Timothy must be harvested in the pre- or early-bloom stage to ensure a high nutrient content.