Storing Hay

[Jenah]

Hey I did a couple of forum searches and founds lots of pics and information on KM's hay and what not - but I couldn't find anything to do with STORAGE. LOL my first order of 9lbs 2nd Cut Timothy and 5lbs Bluegrass came today. It looks and smells wonderful!

Now what do I do in order to properly store? Should it be removed from the plastic bags and stuck in cardboard box...? WHAT?

Help a girl out will ya?:crazy:

 

[Ly&Pigs]

Remove the plastic bag from the box then put the box back over the bag and gently ease the hay back into the cardboard box. You can use the plastic bag for other trash or throw it away.

 

[Emily F.]

I just bought in bulk from another company, primarily I should store it in the cardboard box it came in?

 

[fourbwabbys]

I transferred mine into a larger cardboard box with holes in it. But do it somewhere that's easy to clean up. No matter how you transfer it, the hay always ends up on the floor.

 

[Tulip]

I made a big hay bin out of the cubes I used for their c&c cage ~ it does make kind of a mess, though, when refilling it ~ I do it outside now.

 

[fashion victim]

I made a coroplast base with some left over coroplast. It's great for ventilation, and I rotate the hay every time I refresh the animals' hay areas. The coroplast box has 10 inch high walls. I ordered a 9 pound box too and I was going to order 35 more pounds soon after but this has lasted a LOT. When I took it out of the bag it expanded and filled up the coroplast base all the way to the top! And there's still lots left! I plan on making a new cage for the girls and I'm going to use their coroplast base as a hay storage place for when I order the 35 pound box from Kleenmama's.

 

[Jenah]

When I took it out of the bags to put back in the box(es) I was shocked at how much it fluffed up. And I'm glad that you guys told me to do that because the hay at the bottom of the 9lb bag was a bit damp. Not moldy since I JUST got it - but just a little bit damp. [WE have to remember it started to rain this week out here too during the ship time] And I've shook it a bit to get some air and ventilation in there and will continue to do so every day.

I don't know if I'll order the 9lb again that is a LOT of hay. But I'll have to see how fast my 2 girls go through it. AND the 5lb bluegrass~

 

[fourbwabbys]

For 5 pigs, it took about a month to get through 9 lbs. I ordered 25 lbs to last longer and it should come on the 15th. It looks like a lot until you realise how quickly they go through it!

 

[this_lil_piggy]

I just ordered 45 Lbs of bluegrass, is supposed to be here on Valentines day.
I love ordering in the bulk...the hay doesn't go bad if you take just a little bit of effort to keep it dry, and it saves on shipping.
I took my bag and dumped it over in the box it came in, then I sat the whole box down inside the trash bag. I stabbed holes in it to keep air going to it, and I left the top of the bag open too. My hay stayed perfectly dry and fresh. (I put the box inside the bag because this helped me from getting hay all over the place when moving the box around, or getting hay out) I have seen some people buy a large rubbermaid tote to store their hay in....they just drill holes all on the sides and lid for circulation.

 

[kbbeale]

I have always stored my hay for the rabbits, pigs and chinchillas in a big rubbermaid tote I bought from Wal mart. Never had any issues whatsoever!

 

[Jenah]

Wow - guys thanks for all the great tips! I poked some holes in the cardboard box. And continue to kind of sift through it a couple times per day just to make sure that it isn't getting damp. Thanks again!

 

[ljm0104]

I keep my hay in a rubbermaid with holes in it. The holes are so small it keeps other critters out.

 

[Ly&Pigs]

When I buy bales locally, I store mine in rubbermaid/sterilite containers (30 gal). I don't have holes in the containers but I leave the lids off and have never had any problems.

But for those with no room for the containers, the cardboard box it comes in from KM is a good storage option as long as you remove the plastic bag.

 

[fourbwabbys]

I found it really hard to stuff the hay back into the original box. It's so compressed, once you get it out of the bag, it fluffs up. I put mine in a bigger cardboard box I found in my basement.

 

[TX_2_Pigs]

I just got my order of 25 lbs of 3rd cut timothy from KM last week. I didn't figure I would be able to get the hay back in the box it was shipped in because it was already bulging at the seems! I had a carpet cleaner I hadn't unboxed yet so I opened it to use the box, which was 2x as big as the original, and it almost didn't fit in there either!

I just love the long strands of KM's hay because they aren't as messy but the boys seemed like they enjoyed the shorter Oxbow hay better. Silly piggers.

 

[this_lil_piggy]

It will grow on them. My pigs didn't quite know what to think of the bluegrass at first either. It is a different, sweeter smell than Timothy, so I am pretty sure the taste is quite different as well. After a week or two on the bluegrass though, my pigs developed a preference for it, and now they just waste the timothy--they pull it from the hay rack and drop it. :-O Their snobby butts absolutely refuse to eat the brownish colored leaves of timothy at all!