Is Hay Worth It?

 


After some pricing and math, the different type of feeder proved not worth the substantial extra cost. So, we ended up with more ring feeders. Oh, well. It's impossible to make incremental improvements without analyzing various ideas.

With the feeder issue resolved for now, the question returns to hay, which is arguably the biggest expense outside of facility. The glaring question right now is whether it's even necessary to feed the horses turned out in Chugwater. They eat during storms pretty well but about a third of the herd didn't seem to care about the hay at all. Plus, The Geriatrics didn't eat any hay at all. They had the option, but they didn't want it. While we didn't waste hay with the main herd, we sure did with The Geriatrics.

The perplexing thing is how much better the horses that grazed look than the ones that stood at the bale full time. Admittedly, about two-thirds of the herd do well regardless of what is fed, the weather, etc. The easy doers include a large number of Thoroughbreds, so it doesn't come down to only breed. The horses do tend to be leaner during the harsh winter months but, overall, the herd looks better this year than in previous years. In 2022, we started haying regularly about a month later than in 2021, which was about a month later than in 2020. Keeping cows off of the grass seemed to help, as we do have more grass coverage over the whole ranch. The Geriatrics, especially, have done a good job choosing the parts of the ranch that had very little grazing over the summer and fall. Also of note, the horses that have wintered here before seem to be maintaining weight better than the first timers. Even running a hand along their topline and ribs shows good coverage, so it's not only winter fluff.

All of that being said, it's challenging to take the leap into going without hay supplementation. It seems like that might be a thing to try, but we're still thinking on this one. Again, we shall see how this unfolds.

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