Hay Quality?

[Wichita&Abilene]

I've been buying bags of Kaytee Timothy Hay at my local non-pet-selling family run pet supply store and I've noticed in my last couple purchases that I always inspect the outer bag and it seems pretty green and fresh but then I open it and after a handful or so it's overly-compressed and the center of the hay is more brown and clumped together. What's up with that? My piggers don't seem to want to have anything to do with it and I just get frustrated having to throw away about half a bag of hay by the time it's all said and done.

Has anyone else had a similar experience or suggestions?

Also, a shot in the dark, but does anyone know any good places to buy timothy (farm supply or something) in the northern VA area?

[envisionary333]

I've purchased Kaytee Timothy before and have had a wide range of results. I try to check the bag for brown hay and stems (I find tons of those in their alfalfa), but I've never noticed it deliberately hidden in the center. Kaytee is not a very high quality brand as far as pellets go, so I would presume their hay is not the best either. Unfortunately, weather conditions are a huge deciding factor with hay production so it's hard to tell if it's a bad brand or just a bad batch. I currently buy 50-lb bags of hay from Oxbow online for $26.00. It smells fresh and feel soft, but there is always some brown stuff in there, it's just the way it goes unfortunately. There are probably farms in your area that would be able to sell hay to you very cheaply- just keep an eye out, ask around, make a craiglist post, and search online- you are bound to find something somewhere.

[Wichita&Abilene]

Question - I've looked up the 50lb Oxbow Timothy and with shipping it'd come out to about $1 / pound which is much better than the ~$4 / pound I'm paying now so I might go that route... One thing though - what do you store that large amount of hay in to keep it fresh?

[catzeye21138]

I buy Kaytee at the moment and it always comes in long stocks with some more grass like pieces on the inside and a lot of dust. It usually looks pretty good but I'm looking for an alternative.

[heatherbunnie]

I purchased a 50lb box of timothy hay from Oxbow online, and with shipping it equated to only half of what I would have paid buying the Kaytee brand from Walmart.