Today I drove to the feed store where I always buy my orchard Timothy grass hay. I waited to get more until I was completely and totally out of my stash. The girls seem to have, for the most part, lost their interest in their hay over the last few weeks. I still give them fresh hay every day, but it doesn’t look like they are eating any of it, so I end up throwing it all on their bedding. When I pulled up to the feed store I discovered that the business had closed. No signs in the window telling where they might have moved to; that nice lady that helps me every time I’ve ever been there during the last six months failed to mention during my last visit that they were closing up shop.
I thought of a farmer who sells alfalfa hay – I bought one of those gigantic round bales from him last winter (the goats didn’t seem too keen on it though, so I never bought from him again); when I drove by his farm on the way to the auction a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that he had small square bales in his barn. After my disappointing trip to the feed store, I gave the farmer at Ed-Lyn Farms a call to see if he had any of those small bales available, and he said he did for $3.50 a bale. Said the quality was “okay… might have dried out a bit too much”, but I really had no choice; I know of no other place to buy hay except Global Ag, and I know theirs is just too stemmy. Off I go to Ed-Lyn Farms to get my alfalfa hay, not sure if the goats would even eat it. After arriving Mr. Ed said that he had some newly-available bales that were better that he had set aside for a regular customer who no longer needed it since she moved her horses to a new location. These were more expensive at $4 a bale. I asked to take a look at them and just one look-see was all I needed to know that I had to have them. They looked like a nice deep green with lots of leaves on them. Smelled really good too. I bought ten bales (and took home two barn kittens to boot) and gave a bale to the girls in the pasture as soon as I got home to see what their response would be. They devoured it! They absolutely loved it. I took away the alfalfa pellets that I was offering free choice since they now have the hay. They had been going to town on the pellets too, but I am happier seeing them get alfalfa hay since it’s in a more natural form. I’ve got plenty of storage room, so I am going to call Mr. Ed to see how many more of those bales I can get my hands on. I must have more. My earlier confusion about how “good hay” looks is now gone. I know what good hay looks like! And it’s beautiful.
I thought of a farmer who sells alfalfa hay – I bought one of those gigantic round bales from him last winter (the goats didn’t seem too keen on it though, so I never bought from him again); when I drove by his farm on the way to the auction a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that he had small square bales in his barn. After my disappointing trip to the feed store, I gave the farmer at Ed-Lyn Farms a call to see if he had any of those small bales available, and he said he did for $3.50 a bale. Said the quality was “okay… might have dried out a bit too much”, but I really had no choice; I know of no other place to buy hay except Global Ag, and I know theirs is just too stemmy. Off I go to Ed-Lyn Farms to get my alfalfa hay, not sure if the goats would even eat it. After arriving Mr. Ed said that he had some newly-available bales that were better that he had set aside for a regular customer who no longer needed it since she moved her horses to a new location. These were more expensive at $4 a bale. I asked to take a look at them and just one look-see was all I needed to know that I had to have them. They looked like a nice deep green with lots of leaves on them. Smelled really good too. I bought ten bales (and took home two barn kittens to boot) and gave a bale to the girls in the pasture as soon as I got home to see what their response would be. They devoured it! They absolutely loved it. I took away the alfalfa pellets that I was offering free choice since they now have the hay. They had been going to town on the pellets too, but I am happier seeing them get alfalfa hay since it’s in a more natural form. I’ve got plenty of storage room, so I am going to call Mr. Ed to see how many more of those bales I can get my hands on. I must have more. My earlier confusion about how “good hay” looks is now gone. I know what good hay looks like! And it’s beautiful.
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