Oxbow Oat Hay?

[Kim37040]

Is anyone familiar with Oxbow's Oat Hay?
Is it a healthy choice for pigs?
Can it be used in conjunction with timothy hay?
Can it be used in lieu of timothy hay?

Thank you

[kathlaaron]

I think I have gotten that hay before, but am not sure what I thought about it, sorry ! However, right now I just gave my girls some Oat, Wheat and Barley hay from the company " Alfalfa Kings" ( ordered from Drs Foster & Smith) and they went NUTS while I was opening it, just after I read your post !!! I also gave them some orchard "grass" and sweetmeadow hay, from Sweetmeadow Farms.( My Sweetmeadow Farms shipment arrived today)

I believe it's great if you can offer them different types of hay, as they all have their own flavor, smell and taste to spoil our babies with !! I also plan on getting them some bluegrass/alfalfa mix hay from Kleenmama's soon, since Paula told me it's o.k. to feed piggies over 6 months, since there isn't that much alfalfa in it, plus I will be asking her if she could possibly put even less in my shipment, as Paula also suggested I ask her about.

[Kim37040]

Another hay question- figured I had better post it here since I already posted something about hay.
I am ordering my first Kleenmama hay and was reading through and found this disclaimer statement about foreign objects and checking the hay before feeding it to your animal.
Conditions of Use : KMS Hayloft, Grass Hays & Fortified Feeds From the Valleys of the Pacific Northwest
Has anyone ever had issue finding foreign items in your kleenmama hay? How thoroughly do you search through it? I am wondering if I will need to search it more than I search the hay I currently give my boys.

Thanks

[Duffinvt]

I think there is always a chance you could find a foreign object in hay. When you think of the huge amount of acres that must be covered.. and what could be hidden in the hay, it is no wonder we don't find more stuff in the hay ! In my meadow I've found all kinds of odd things like party balloons that drifted down, bird's nests full of oddities like dog hair and yarn, and animal bones. If we hayed the meadow they could end up in the hay ! Just give a quick look to any and all hay you feed them, taking out anything that does not look ok.

[sdpiggylvr]

I believe oat hay is a treat hay and shouldn't be fed in place of the regular grass hay.

[kathlaaron]

I believe oat hay is a treat hay and shouldn't be fed in place of the regular grass hay.

Why is Oat hay considered a treat hay ? ( Just wondering...) What other hays and grasses are also considered, as "treats only" ? I do know that alfalfa is higher in calcium, and that timothy hay should be the "staple" hay, but really don't know why. Do you know why-- and what makes each type of hay/grass different, and, why ? I would really like to know !

P.S. By the way, I have been using Kleenmama's for months now, and so far, have never found any foreign object or anything odd or icky in her hay.

[pinky]

Oat hay is a cereal grain hay. Timothy hay, bermuda grass, fescue and orchard hay are grass hays and are higher in fiber. Grain hay should only be fed as treats and not in place of grass hay. Alfalfa is a legume hay and a member of the pea family.

[pinky]

I've never found odd objects in the timothy hay I've bought although I have picked out different weeds and what appeared to be tree bark. I haven't found anything in the orchard grass I've bought. I prefer orchard grass over timothy hay. I don't feed any alfalfa to my adults but occasionally buy oat hay as a treat.

[kathlaaron]

Pinky...have you ever gotten Kleenmama's bluegrass/alfalfa mix hay ?

[kathlaaron]

Oh and one last question...why are the "grain" hays ( assuming same for wheat, barley too...) only to be fed as treats though ? Is it because there is sugar in the grain ? What makes it a treat ?

I knew from reading threads on here about grass hays...but not "grain" type hays. Hope you don't mind educating me.....

[bpatters]

I never check Kleenmama's hay for foreign objects. I pick it up in small handfuls to put in their hay racks, and figure that anything in it will be found that way. Out of four boxes of her hay, I've found one thistle.

Any hay, any time, can have things in it. Just think about all those thousands of square miles of hay being harvested by huge machines -- the wonder is that there isn't more stuff in it than there is.

[pinky]

Pinky...have you ever gotten Kleenmama's bluegrass/alfalfa mix hay ?

No, I really watch the calcium content that I feed mine since I had a stone pig one time. I don't feed any alfalfa. Timothy is higher in calcium than orchard grass so I use that. I order Oxbow orchard grass from Pet Supplies Plus since shipping that way is cheaper for me. It costs me about $61 for 50 lbs. I planned on trying KM's grass but since it's mixed with alfalfa, I'm waiting to see if she will go back to pure orchard grass at some point.

[pinky]

I'm not sure about other grain hays but oat hay is higher in nitrates. My guess is that might be part of it. I'd like Ly's opinion on it since she's the nutritional expert. Oats themselves are very fattening and guinea pigs would probably ignore their other food if they were fed them. I've read that they would die if fed an exclusive oat diet. I'm not sure if the oats and oat hay have the same properties.

[kathlaaron]

Yeah..the last few minutes I have been doing some research...googled oat hay and found this interesting link, below.

Watch out for nitrate toxicity in small grain hay

And from the same article, on the next page is a caution to small buisness hay farmers and to test their hay, her below:

Time to test your hay

Here is a small excerpt from that article, below:
Other useful analyses for Montana forages include calcium, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium, and in some known instances the trace minerals copper and zinc. Nitrate concentration is an example of an anti-quality forage factor. Many of our small grain hays (barley, hay barley, oat and wheat) can accumulate toxic levels of nitrate, particularly when grown under stress conditions. We strongly recommend that all small grain hays grown in Montana since 1999 be tested for nitrate concentration prior to feeding.

I wonder if timothy and grass hays are just as susceptible to high levels of nitrates too....Ly if you happen to know these differences and variables on the different types of hay, would love to hear from you or if anyone else knows the breakdown on the differences and why its' best to feed grain hays occasionally, or as "treats". ( Other than, the possible higher nitrates more likely found in grain hays, as mentioned above)

What can you tell us Ly ? Thanks, in advance !