Prospecting for Hay in a Drought
by Patty on September 14, 2021
Not much beats the smell of a freshly popped bale of hay with horses nickering in the background. Finding that hay has become quite the chore after ten years of drought in the west. We have some tips to share with adopters.
So, where do we start a hay search? Time to dust off our networking skills and get to work.
Feed stores will always have a few bales - at a premium price. Large bales of grass and alfalfa fill semi after semi sailing off down the road to either coast. Small bales, suited to most people’s setups, are harder to find. Open your eyes and spot other horse people! Ask where they buy their hay. Contact local farmers about their hay crops. Check the bulletin board at the AG store, the farm equipment dealers, the local horse and pony clubs and even the western wear emporiums. Several states maintain hay for sale lists - check online! Craigslist has even proven to be a good source. And there’s even an app for that - Hay Map. Then keep a list of names and numbers for the future!
This year, Mustang Camp found it’s hay on the FaceBook Market Place. 24 giant bales from one farm, 66 from another -- almost 50 tons. It takes a lot of hay to get through to next year’s crop.
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