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  Discussion on COPD and Wet Hay
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Posted on Saturday, Apr 3, 1999 - 8:28 am:

I like soaking the hay in a large bucket for 10 20 minutes. As there is a possibility nutrients are leached out I like to offer that water to drink. However it requires monitoring to be sure the horse accepts it and daily cleaning as this water will turn foul quickly. Recent experiments suggest this technique may not be as useful as we previously thought.
The Advisor Vet, RN Oglesby DVM

Posted on Saturday, Apr 3, 1999 - 9:24 am:

Haylage is a good feed for horses but you must be sure it is of good to excellent quality as botulism forms when it is not properly made and horses are very sensitive to this toxin.

Haylage should have a pleasant, slightly acid odor and taste. The ph should be betwenn 3.5 to 5. There should be no visible mold and not mushy. The moisture should be uniform and color should be a green to light brown. Medium to dark brown with a burnt odor indicates excessive heat during making and black means rotten.

Other choices are: hay cubes and beet pulp.
The Advisor Vet, RN Oglesby DVM

Posted on Monday, Dec 4, 2000 - 10:39 am:

My husband's horse has COPD. We believe he developed it last spring from round bales. He is an 18 year old QH gelding. We give him Cough Free mixed with sliced apples every day, plus Ventipulmin and breathing treatments with the Aeromask when needed. All of this helps. We have recently started soaking his hay and have seen immediate tremendous improvement. We have to soak enough hay for the day for two horses since my 11 year old QH gelding goes out with him. It is extremely cold here right now (about 20 deg F in morning. I am soaking a bale and a half of hay a day in five large muck buckets before I leave for work. Is there an easier way of doing this, particularly when it is soooo cold? I takes me about an hour in the morning to do all of this. I am certainly willing to do it because it helps him, but I would appreciate any timesavers. Also, is it ok for them to eat this wet hay when it is so cold? Thanks a lot.

Posted on Tuesday, Dec 5, 2000 - 6:45 am:

No, I know of no easier way. You could consider trying it without soaking: making sure it is extra clean hay and placing outside on the ground after thoroughly shaking out any dust. Or... consider using some of the substitute forms of forage recommended in the article.
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Dec 5, 2000 - 9:28 am:

Hi Susan. You could try steaming your hay. It takes about 1 hour and doesn't leave you dragging heavy hay about and having the water running down your sleeves in the process! Put you hay into a large container that you can seal with some sort of lid ( a large sack will do if there is nothing else), pour a kettle or two of boiling water over the hay, lid it and go and do something else for an hour. Make sure the hay is cool right through to the middle before you feed it to your horse.

Posted on Thursday, Mar 15, 2001 - 3:10 am:

A note about personal use of the haylage, if it is frozen, the bacteria that keep the ph down die and you never know what bacteria or mold will take over. I encourage anyone in the colder states not utilize this hay. I have had numerous horses develop diarrhea and weight loss while on this feed. If you do use it, have it analyzed by Dairyland Labs in Wisconsin. They will test the moisture content, etc. as well as the type and amount of mold (and toxins) in any type of hay.

Posted on Thursday, Mar 15, 2001 - 10:05 am:

Deanna,
ph is critical also for predicting growth of undesirable organisms.
DrO
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