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  Discussion on Hay and what's that acid they use?
Author Message
Member:
Mwebster

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 3, 2006 - 10:31 pm:

My hay dealer came with a couple hundred bales today, and as we were unloading and stacking, we had a great discussion about the legal moisture content in hay... which is 17% here, apparently (supposed to be 14% if it's good). I have a compost thermometer I stick into bales to sample (last year, some were hot). But I don't have a moisture probe.

And my dealer told me that hay providers use an acid treatment to cope when the hay is too wet. And, it can cause a rash on your forearms, and it smells a little vinegary.

What is this acid, what does it mean for horses, and how to know whether they hay you're buying might have been treated this way?
Melissa
Member:
Jgordo03

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 4, 2006 - 9:28 am:

Melissa,
The only drying agent I have ever heard of is propionic acid. Don't know anything about it; I just heard that in some areas where the natural drying process is impeded by humidity they spray the grass with this to speed drying.
Member:
Scooter

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 4, 2006 - 1:44 pm:

Hi, Melissa one of the farmers use that acid on the hay he sells the barn I work at. The horses don't seem to notice the difference, but do seem to drink (and urinate) more on hay treated with this. It supposedly makes it taste a little salty. It is suppose to be safe and I have never seen any adverse effects. I think the only way to know if they use it, is for them to tell you. I never noticed a different smell, or anything unusual about the hay. It is applied while baling and the farmer usually charges more for that hay as it takes a special attachment, plus the acid.

They only use it on alfalfa in this part of the country, as alfalfa is much harder to get dry than grass hay. I believe Judith is right about the name.
Member:
Alden

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 4, 2006 - 5:27 pm:

If you're really concerned a hay moisture meter is about $200, then there's no guessing.

https://www.professionalequipment.com/xq/ASP/ProductID.1404/id.17/subID.594/qx/de fault.htm

Good day,
Alden
Member:
Mwebster

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 4, 2006 - 10:03 pm:

Thanks, all. I believe that's what they mentioned, propionic acid. I'll look that up to learn more.

I'm thinking it would be a good idea to get my hay tested anyhow, to know whether it's deficient in selenium (as we're in that part of the country that typically is), and I may as well also ask whether this hay has been treated. There must be a way to detect it.

I'm surprised to learn that treated hay costs more (vs hay that has dried naturally)! I really don't like the idea of treated hay. Maybe I'm just learning about it though.

We try to buy only plain grass hay or timothy hay. A little clover hay as a treat maybe. But we don't feed alfalfa, it's too rich for our horses. As it is, it's a struggle to keep them trim, even in full work and showing (and they don't get any grain at all). This lot was all plain grass -- no clover or even any timothy in it, for that matter -- so it shouldn't have needed a drying agent, unless they wanted to rush the process.

If I can get this tested, I'll let you all know what I learn about the process.

Alden, thanks for the link. I think I'll defer the investment for now, as the hay is definitely dry enough, it's really more an issue of whetehr it had any chemical help. Last time I got hay that was a little damp (it was clover hay, so more of a challenge to get properly dry), I did have some that molded. The compost thermometer did a great job identifying "bales at risk" -- they were 10 degrees (or more!) hotter than ambient temps. My dealer took all of those back, he's very professional. And apparently, from a moisture perspective, there's some control already as all our hay in MA comes from out of state (unless you luck into some local stash as we did last year, it was wonderful stuff, but no such luck this year).
Best,
Melissa
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Oct 5, 2006 - 9:19 am:

A couple of important points about propionic acid treated hay. The effect is temporary as the propionic acid works by inhibiting microbial growth but it is volatile. So, if the hay has not dried by the time the PA has evaporated mold will form. The time till it is gone is variable but may be as short as 3 months under some conditions. Hays that are treated should be stored with circulation space between the bales and best is to feed them up within 3 months but at the lease watched closely for signs of becoming dusty.
DrO
Member:
Qh4me

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 10, 2006 - 4:28 pm:

We have a hard time up in our area for finding hay that hasn't been treated. We buy the large square bales, (4x8') alfalfa, so it is hard to get hay that is at the proper moisture without it being treated.

This year, we bought 30 large bales from the local dairy farmer as he always has excellent hay. They have used the propionic acid for a couple of years now. I have fed it the past 2 years, and my horses have had no complaints with it. However, as DR. O suggested, it has to be stored properly. We stack 2 bales high, and 1 foot between the bales for 3-6 weeks.

However, this year, some of the bales got dusty and almost looked like it started to forment, but just in some spots. The baler has a sensor on it, that if the hay meets a certain moisture level, it will apply the acid, but it states that it must be uniformly applied, so if there is some wetter chunks, you may have issues that it doesn't cure properly. And that is what seemed to happen with this hay. The farmer was good about it and took it all back and replaced it with a grass/alfalfa mix hay.

If you want to see more info on the propionic acid, below is a site that I referenced from the Ontario government.

https://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/livestock/horses/facts/info_haylage.htm
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