Is Wet Haylage Good For Horses?

If the haylage is wet – this is possibly a sign of secondary fermentation and so another reason it needs to be avoided. If there are white mould patches this is a sure sign of fermented and poisonous feed. Some horses and ponies are prone to laminitis because of the higher protein and energy content of haylage vs hay.

Does it matter if haylage gets wet?

Showers on haylage is fine just pick a dry day/afternoon to bale it.

Does soaking haylage reduce calories?

For horses whose calorie intake needs controlling, it is recommended that hay is soaked for 8 to 9 hours, which will leach out nutrients and calories, leaving just the fibre element.

What is the best haylage for horses?

Meadow haylage is a good option if you are looking for a lower-calorie, non-heating haylage. It provides your horse with much more water content than that of regular meadow hay. This is a very palatable haylage that is a great option for fussy eaters, older horses and laminatics (thanks to its low sugar content).

How long should haylage be left before feeding to horses?

Haylage needs to ferment, so it should not be fed straight after being baled and wrapped. The amount of time it takes to ‘cure’ is variable depending on the moisture and WSC content of the grass when it was wrapped, but a good guide is 6 weeks.

What happens if haylage is baled too wet?

Putrid smells indicate the presence of butyric acid from Clostridium bacteria and horses should not eat this haylage. This type of problem occurs mainly when haylage has been made too wet. In this situation there will be insufficient lactic acid produced to preserve, pickle and ferment the haylage.

What happens if you soak haylage?

Haylage should never be soaked as this may cause it to ferment.

Can haylage cause laminitis?

One study found a higher insulin response to haylage compared to dry and soaked hay. High circulating levels of insulin in the blood are of concern as it is thought to link to laminitis.

Will haylage make my horse fizzy?

Will haylage send my horse fizzy?! While haylage is typically lower in sugar in comparison to hay, making sugar itself unlikely to be the cause of fizzy behaviour, an early cut haylage will be more digestible and therefore provide more nutrients and digestible energy (calories) in comparison to most hays.

How dry should haylage?

Haylage is typically between 50 and 70% dry matter. There seems to be an increasing trend to produce drier haylage which is more accurately termed ‘wrapped hay’ as the dry matter is closer to that of hay.

Should you feed more haylage than hay?

Haylage has a lower DM content than hay, so your horse will need to be fed slightly more weight of haylage than hay to get the desired amount of fibre in their diet – which is important for digestion and general wellbeing. Haylage is more digestible than hay, giving it a higher digestible energy (or DE) content.

Is haylage more fattening than hay?

Haylage is, however, higher in protein, and more digestible than hay giving it a higher DE content. As a result, horses generally tend to do better on haylage, so it’s often not ideal for overweight horses and those prone to weight gain, metabolic and laminitic horses, unless it is a high-fibre, lower DE variety.

Can haylage cause ulcers?

This means that, even a horse fed its entire daily requirement of forage, can suffer from stronger stomach acid if their forage is only fed over a short period of time, which can lead to ulcers. The three main forms of forage for horses are grass, hay/haylage and chaff.

What moisture should haylage be?

60 to 65%
When forage is cut, it has 75 to 80 percent moisture that must be dried down to 60 to 65% moisture content for haylage and down to 14 to 18% moisture content for hay (lower figures for larger bales).

Can you feed haylage and hay together?

It isn’t advisable for horses who are prone to weight gain or those who suffer from laminitis. Some horses can find haylage too rich for their digestive tract and it can upset them. Some people have found though that mixing hay and haylage to balance in this situation may be the answer!

How long does a bale of haylage last once opened?

Although the traditional advice is 7-10 days open for a bale of haylage before spoilage starts, many people manage to use a bale for 14-20 days during the depths of winter.

Can haylage cause colic?

WINTER CAUSES
Hay and haylage is only approximately 10-40% moisture compared to the 75% moisture contained in spring and summer grass. With this decrease in moisture intake the processed feed is too dry to move along the digestive tract and problems with impaction can occur.

How wet is too wet to bale?

Twenty percent moisture is about the highest level that bales should reach. Above this, microbes begin to break down plant matter and mold growth occurs. This breaking down of the hay produces heat and leads to the danger of combustion.

What causes botulism in haylage?

“Typically, botulism from forage occurs from contamination with soil, animal carcasses or poultry slurry, or from rotting due to poor quality wrapped forages not being preserved thoroughly, or hay not being stored correctly,” she said.

How do you know if haylage has gone off?

Bad haylage tends to be very dark. Growths – like mould – on haylage indicate that the wrap it’s stored in has been damaged. If you see any colourful bits of mould, then the haylage is spoiled and, if fed to your horse, can be extremely toxic.

Is haylage better than dry hay?

Properly done, most livestock tend to find haylage more palatable than dry hay. However, when acetic acid levels increase, again due to the contents bring overly wet, feed intake tends to significantly decrease. Nutritional content is also something that can be compromised by improper moisture.