Hay turning yellow!

[san_sam]

I pick up fresh Bermuda hay for my piggies every week in my neighborhood.. I kep it open and still it turns yellow and a lot of hay goes waste because piggies won't it. Any suggestion to store the hay properly? My mom wants me to refrigerate it but I think it a bad idea.

[bpatters]

san_sam, you don't say where you are, but it sounds to me as if you're not getting properly dried hay. Hay that has been allowed to dry before it's cut should last for months as long as it's stored where it's not rained on and there's some air circulation. Mine easily lasts six months in my garage. I think what you're getting is just freshly cut, which should be fine for your GPs, but won't last in storage. You need a new hay supplier.

[loveurpetalways]

Get a hay supplier that dries the hay out, that way it lasts for months and months to come.

My two piggies go through 60 Ibs of hay every 6-8 months with proper storage. I poke holes in the bag it comes in- lots of holes, and store some of it in storage bins that is kept open so air can circulate around it.

Wouldn't keeping your hay in the fridge take up ALOT of space? Hahaha I have no space to do something like that, . It's not necessary to have to keep hay in the fridge with proper storage.

How are you storing your hay, and where? A nice cool place like a basement might work.

[Silverbeat]

If your hay is properly dried out, like the others said, it should not be turning yellow. Is it fresh Bermuda grass you are getting, or hay? If it is actually grass, then there's nothing you can do to keep it from going bad other than drying it properly. if it's hay, you'll need to keep it out of direct sunlight, because that can cause hay to yellow and lose its nutrients. Either way you do not need to refrigerate it.

[Stauffer]

another thing to note--hay that is not properly dried before being baled is much more prone to growing mold. I once bought 200 bales for my horses from someone I had bought from for years...he cut his hay too early, let it set outside too long, it got rained on, and he still tried to sell it to me. It looked nice at the time, but I busted open a couple of bales before we carried it up as I knew we had been having a wet season and it was DISGUSTING. Yellow, starting to get mold, slimy in places. I told him no thanks and have since been using someone else who does properly bale hay...and I'm getting a better quality hay for about 75 cents less a bale!
It also makes me wonder if you have gotten older than this years cutting of hay that was not properly stored. I know I have a couple of old bales of hay from 2 years ago I tossed in the garage a few weeks back to use for bedding in the dog boxes. It's still good hay, but the ponies would not have wanted it...Just from sitting in a dry garage, right on the concrete, it is drawing moisture...and it's really yellowed out. It was two years old and still pretty green two weeks ago. You need to make sure air can circulate under they hay as well so it doesn't draw moisture up into it from the ground.

[san_sam]

Thanks a lot for the replies guys... I am giving them from Bermuda grass actually.. I live in India and I can't find Timothy here. Is it okay if I keep feeding my boys only fresh Bermuda grass.. How can I make the grass I pick into a hay?

[bpatters]

san_sam, over on the GuineaLynx forums, there's a user named pimpimpuji from India who has done quite a lot of looking for hay. You might register over there and PM her to see what she finally worked out.