Moldy Hay...

[Mandzanita]

How much is too much, or is it that if you see ANY mold the hay should be thrown out? I'm about 1/4 into a bale of Alf that I got last week and it's pretty dry and brittle. Upon looking through it I'm finding mold on some of the yellow stalks. Some stalk are completely black/grey and some just have spots. I'm not seeing anything on the green stuff. Is this unsafe to feed? I've never delt with mold on hay before, it wasn't SUPER moldy and I only saw it because I was sifting through it because it seemed so dry.

It was delivered last friday and that day it was raining. I had called the feed store to ask if they'd still be delivering and she said that most likely they wouldn't because of the rain. They didn't want to risk causing the hay to mold. When I got to the barn after work they hay was there. I was thinking maybe they delivered it during a window of no rain. But now I'm finding mold. Is this way too unsafe to keep feeding?

[Cat]

Maybe someone can give you a better answer, but typically I don't risk it and if any bale is moldy its used in the compost pile.

[Peggy Sue]

if I seen any mold I pitch it out ... now I will check EACH flake!! but if I see so much as one spot of mold I get rid of that flake

[vicklynn]

Mold is a NO NO in my book. If a flake has mold on it, its a gonner, if a bale is heavily contaminated, its a gonner. I have been known to tear into a bale if I even think there is mold in it.

[Gypsy Rose]

Ditto to what Vicklynn said!

[WashingtonBay]

Zero tolerance. If it's a black spot, like from a drip in the roof or something that doesn't infect the whole bale I might throw that out and feed the rest, but if you're seeing black spots throughout it on the stems, or a poof of spores when you break into it, it's a goner.

[Miracle Whip]

Yeah, my horses colic all the time!! GEE thanks!!

Here is a blurb about FARMERS LUNG...better be careful about sniffing the hay too much

What Is Farmer ’s Lung?

Farmer ’s lung is a noninfectious allergic disease that is caused by inhaling mold spores in the dust from moldy hay, straw, or grain.This debilitating disease disrupts the normal function of the lungs, where oxygen enters and carbon dioxide exits the bloodstream.Many farmers are forced to leave the occupation due to the physical limitations caused by farmer’s lung.

[WashingtonBay]

Because it's not worth colicking a horse. Being a cheapskate over a few dollars worth of hay will not seem so worthwhile when the vet is out in the middle of the night.

What you're saying is what we're saying, MW... Any mold you can see does not get fed to the horse. Mold on hay appears black. Or worse, white.

[vicklynn]

I have seen black and white mold on hay. I have never see it green.
I would NEVER put my horses at risk for colic. That is why.

[Peggy Sue]

I feed rounds and when they get to the bottom of the bale if it looks dirty or musty I burn it!! when done properly they aren't bad but with the year we had I see me burning alot of hay this year!! but I would rather burn some then pay the vet bill

[Mandzanita]

Thanks for all the replies, I'm not going to continue feeding it. I went through almost all of the bale on top and the black was all throughout it, not super easy to see but you can definitely find it if you know what you're looking for. It was on mostly the stemmy stuff. I put in a call to the feed store and hopefully they will replace the two bales that have mold...it was because of them delivering in the rain that it got that way. Does alfalfa mold quicker then other hay? The two bales of grass I got are totally fine...

Does anyone have pics of moldy hay?

[vicklynn]

Hmmm, never thought of taking pics of moldy hay, but thats a good idea. Ill do that next time I see some.
Ive never known any type of hay to mold faster than another.

[Peggy Sue]

are you sure it is mold and not super dark stems?? I have seen some super dark alfalfa sstems....

[oursarge]

If I break into a bale and smell mold the bale goes out. I can usually tell as soon as I open it, I don't have to see it since I am very allergic to every mold there is so if the bale is moldy my sinuses swell up like a balloon and I get real dizzy and can't catch my breath....it isn't pretty. Any mold and the bale gets thrown out for the horses health and mine.

I feed them regular grass but when that gets moldy it gets like a silvery grey color and it's all stuck together with alot of dust and there is no mistaking the smell. We baled our own one year and even though it was done right it was a wet year with alot of moldy bales and that is when I got so sick and since then I get sick if I get near a moldy bale.

[Miracle Whip]

Hey go back and see my post about Farmers LUNG!!!

[vicklynn]

Oursarge, I have been allergic to mold too. Bob says I have the nose of a dog. I can walk into a room full of hay and say I wont buy it, cause I can smell it before I even see it. Was really bad in one load I had, I had to take the whole thing back, just made me sick feeling, couldnt breath

[Mandzanita]

Vick...yeah I know right? It would be pretty helpful to compare to some other moldy alfalfa.

Peggy, Yeah I'm sure it's some kind of mildewing...I'm going to take pictures of it tomorrow if I can and see what you guys think.

And what does moldy hay smell like?? I know what mold smells like but does it smell different on hay. This bale just smells sweet like alfalfa.

[Miracle Whip]

You can tell mold. Is a distinctive, yucky smell.

[oursarge]

It's hard to explain what it smells like, just disgusting I guess. Worse than a musty smell.

Vicklynn I'm the same, I can walk into a place and can tell if there is mold in it because of the way my body reacts. Whether it's a barn, a house, anywhere. I have always wanted an old house but now realize I can never live in one because just about every old house I go in I get sick because it seems like most old houses have had mold in them at one time or another. We had to rip all of our rugs up because of the allergies. I used to get sick in our living room and when the rug came up we found mold by the front door. I was not sorry to get rid of the rugs. We have area rugs now and get rid of them after a yr or so.

I was so sick 11 yrs ago and didn't know why. I finally went to an allergist and told him about the hay I was exposed to, they did the allergy testing and they could not even measure the welt that came on my body, it was massive and I was really sick from the testing. He told me I was lucky I didn't die with all the exposure I had to it. His recommendation was I never go in a barn without a mask on but I can't work with the mask so I'm real careful. If I cut a bale open and get weird feeling or smell that smell before cutting it out it goes.

We get our hay from our friends and they are very careful when baling as far as letting it dry etc. but every once in awhile there will be a bad bale and then I suffer for awile.

[cowgirlup@idaho]

Your feed store should gladly replace it. Give them the moldy bales, at least that's how we handle it here. I don't think your hay would have molded that fast just from short exposure to rain, or in such a short time, especially through the bale. I could be wrong but I think they came moldy.

[gaited07]

Your feed store should gladly replace it. Give them the moldy bales, at least that's how we handle it here. I don't think your hay would have molded that fast just from short exposure to rain, or in such a short time, especially through the bale. I could be wrong but I think they came moldy.

I agree.
This sounds like the bale was already moldy.
I would NOT feed this PERIOD and take it back to the dealer (call first) and exchange for good bales.

[42many]

Could be the bales of alfalfa were on the top of the grass bales when they drove them to you. I'd definitely tell them about it and try to get them replaced!! Remind them that you even called to ask about rain!!

If I find a moldy bale, I will throw away any portions of it that had mold. Sometimes it is 1-2 flakes, sometimes half a bale, sometimes the entire thing - I always check it thoroughly and throw anything at all suspicious into the compost heap, though.

[shewasmyshadow]

Why don't you take some pictures of those bales you think are moldy. At least then we'd have some reference pictures when the next person asks. :D

[AppyLady]

When my hay gets moldy, I dump it out in the pasture for the horses to pick through. They can eat what they want and let the rest blow away. The silly horses eat it like candy. :rolleyes:

But I don't have to buy my hay. If I was paying for top quality hay, I'd expect it to be mold-free.

[Dakota Sunrise]

If the whole bale has mold spots in it I will pitch it. If just one corner has a questionable spot on it, then sometimes I'll just tear that section off and feed the rest. But if it's all through the bale, no way!

[Mandzanita]

Thanks for all the advice, I've called the feed store and the girl said she doesn't see why they couldn't just replace them on the next delivery (this coming Friday) but they would call me if it ends up being a probem...better not, I pay almost $20 a bale for alfalfa. I also pulled some of the questionable stems out and showed them to my barn manager...she said they looked like weeds that got caught up in the bales but to not feed it if I didnt feel comfortable. I mean it's not horribly obvious moldy hay but it's not the greatest quality either. I think they look like mildewed alfalfa stems but I dunno, what do you think?

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d118/mandi_c/IMG_0867.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d118/mandi_c/IMG_0866.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d118/mandi_c/IMG_0869.jpg

[WashingtonBay]

An occasional moldy stem.

It makes for really hard decisions on what to do with it.

If it's in that proportion on the first picture, one moldy stem in 10 good ones, and the good ones look OK, I'd probably feed it if I didn't have anything else, but spread out on the ground like appylady suggests, so they can pick through and leave what isn't good.

But if you have the option of exchanging it, I certainly would.

[shewasmyshadow]

Yeah, it looks like some other type of plant growing with the alfalfa. Maybe those bales are from the edge of the field.

Whenever I've seen hay with mold in it it's been BIG patches, like maybe a 10 inch circle of white mold running through the whole bale. I've never seen moldy stems in with hay like that.

[WashingtonBay]

I have seen it. Usually on clover within grass hay bales, because clover molds easily. It means it was baled before it was completely dried. It is not from being wet after baling, that would make a black patch like SWMS talks about.

[Mandzanita]

You know it is pretty much the 10good-1bad ratio...and I'd like to not make a big deal about having them replace it if it's not something I need to worry about. That's the only sign of mold (mildew stems) but they are throughout every flake. I'm just wondering if that kind of moldy stem would cause a problem.

[WashingtonBay]

If it's a small proportion of the meal and they are free to leave it, in that they have enough provided to them that they can be picky, it probably isn't enough to cause a problem. I can say that unemotionally, but I sympathize, because it's one of those iffy situations where I'd be full of doubt and indecision about it.

[Mandzanita]

He's already eaten at least 3 flakes of it before I noticed the bad stuff and he's totally fine. But he's not one to turn his nose up at anything so I'm sure he would eat it all, even bad stuff. I don't know what to do, if something were to happen to him because of it I would never forgive myself, but if he's already eaten 3 flakes of it and nothing has happened it might be fine.

[Miracle Whip]

Sorry I just saw the pictures. What cutting was this? If anything, it just looks like OLD alfalfa, like they should have cut it a long time ago and didn't so the stems got woody.

[Mandzanita]

Sorry I just saw the pictures. What cutting was this? If anything, it just looks like OLD alfalfa, like they should have cut it a long time ago and didn't so the stems got woody.

It looks and feel old to me too...it's really dry and brittle. I'm not too stoked on it and that was the reason I was even sifting through it. I think I'm going to err on the safe side and have them replace it since they come out every Friday anyways. Thanks for everyone's opinions...keep comments and opinions comming if you have them!

[John Boy]

Simple test , Lift the bale up drop it on a concrete floor , if you see any dusty looking like smoke , it's basically bad.
Don't throw this hay into a dog house either , cause it will mess up a dogs respitory system as well.
You got local deer around through it into the yard , where if some wild anaimal wants to scavenge it , let 'em.