Give Your Hay a Chance - By Rick Vorce

Your hay is the most important input into owning and maintaining a animal. There are several ways of making this commodity more nutritious for your horse or livestock. Grinding is a good way too make course or poor feed more palatable. Hay can be ordered ground if you don't have a grinder. Most hay grinders will only deliver larger bobtail loads though! This is fine for someone with several horses or cows and calves, but it isn't feasible for one or two horses. Ground feed should be put in a barn or storage area. It's very important to keep this feed out of the weather. A grinder with a live bottom trailer can put ground feed into a lower structure, such as a old garage or building with low ceilings. Expect extra delivery charges for small quanities.

Grinding also is a good way to put poor or moldy feed into shape. The hammers loosen some of the mold and blow it away. This isn't a reason to buy poor or moldy hay, there isn't a substitute for the good hay. Mixing poor and good hay can make it go further for cattle. I wouldn't recommend this for horses, althought I've seen people feed horses poor feed and get by. Most horses are very picky about what they eat and demand good quality feed.

Their are some nutritional boosters you can spray on. This is a slow and painstaking way to treat hay, but it works. Some products shouldn't be used for horses but spraying 'urea' on hay works for cattle. Be sure you read the label and check with your vet. Don't always rely on a feed or general store salesman or clerk.

Lick blocks or tanks are a good way to provide extra nutrition, but it seems some animals will always eat more than others. Topping ground hay with rolled corn or oats maybe the best. I have done this from the back of a pickup, but a feed truck or wagon is easier and more accurate. At the current price for corn, it's hard to beat for feed!