feeding

tradesman555 · Oct 14, 2009

I want to know if it would be safe for my chins if i switched thier hay from Timothys hay to the hay grown on my uncles farm? the farm hay has grass clover and a little bit of moss in it. It has no chemicals used. Its organic. Please help. Ty

VolunteerChin22 · Oct 18, 2009

I guess it depends on what type of hay he grows. I have fed my chins baled hay and found it annoying to pick out all the random weeds that get into the bales. I also have pregnant and nursing chins so it's important for them the hay doesn't have fescue in it which a lot of horse and cattle hay has in it. I would be concerned that it has moss in it since moss needs a lot of moisture to grow and perhaps mold could be in the hay if there is moss...but that is just my opinion I don't know the safety risk of moss. I have had a hard time finding baled timothy hay here in Tennessee since they had a drought here 2-3 summers ago that apparently wiped out all the timothy hay to Arkansas. So I have resorted to ordering hay cubes from Ryerson's because I am not willing to chance fescue in cattle hay and it's too expensive to feed 28 chins from petstore hay.

Perhaps you could take some good pictures of the hay and someone who is good at identifying hay could help you decide....

Jenn · Oct 18, 2009

I didn't think the clover was ok for chins...but a more knowledgeable member would have to confirm that.

nicky · Oct 20, 2009

We feed our chins timothy hay grown in our fields and they're all fine and dandy. No problems at all.

Idgie · Oct 20, 2009

I buy a bale of grass hay from a local farmer. Up here, they tend to sometimes mix a little alfalfa in with it, but that is okay for chins as long as there isn't too much. (And I pick out the pieces that I see before giving it to Idgie. There might be a stray dandelion or clover every once in a blue moon, but I pick those out as well.) Not sure about the moss situation. Can you pick it out?