Kentucky horse and livestock owners may have trouble feeding their animals this winter.

The anticipated availability and quality of hay across the state is causing some concern.

Our Christy Dutton spoke with Bob Coleman and Equine Extension associate professor at the University of Kentucky, to find out what farmers can do now to prepare for winter feeding.

It's part of our farm focused segment we call rooted.

Bob Coleman from UC's College of Agriculture joins us.

Doctor Bob, tell us, how is the hay crop going to differ this year compared to previous years?

I think this year we're seeing some things with, you know, the way the weather patterns affect the growing hay and certainly harvesting hay.

It's just not quite I think what we're always used to or we're so used to sort of the, the normal what happened last year is going to happen this year.

And so I think in various parts of the state we're seeing where there's not as much hay as we're used to harvesting.

When I've talked to some of the hay producer ers, you know, their their harvest yields have not been what they've normally had.

They've had to either wait a little while on hay so that it was much more mature when they harvested it.

And so that's going to affect the nutrient profile.

But I think probably one of the biggest things is, is just the way the weather patterns interacted with the the growing of the crop, as we might not have as much hay in certain parts of the state as we normally would have.

So there's going to need to be some thoughtful less about now getting the hay inventory that people that have livestock are going to need, particularly for those that don't grow their own or grow their own to a certain extent, but it may not have produced what they're going to need for the feeding season.

Okay.

So what parts of the state are going to be most impacted by this reduced supply of hay?

That's a really hard question to answer.

And my feeling is from the people I've talked to, that it has the potential to go clear across the state that there are going to be parts of, of the state and, and within certain counties that maybe did get some rain, and they're going to be okay as far as that hay production.

But it's not surprising that, you know, somebody across the road or at the other side of the county who didn't get the rain or didn't have the conditions that some people did, and it's going to be lacking.

Okay.

And this hay is going to be used for mainly the winter season.

Does this mainly impact horses or does this include other livestock that could be impacted by this hay supply?

That's a really good question, and I think there's a potential for it to impact all livestock.

Anybody that is feeding hay.

Certainly I had deal with the horse community.

And so, that's where I'm most connected to and starting to see some questions about what is available.

The fact that we may be had some hay that got cut earlier in, in the season.

So that first cutting of hay and, and I know some producers that, you know, got going really early probably got a little less tonnage off those hay fields.

But the nutrient profile of that hay is really quite good.

And, where we weren't getting quite as much or all of a sudden the weather patterns changed.

And when it was time to, to cut hay, we were waiting on it to not rain or to stop raining.

So we let hay get a little more mature, which is going to reduce the nutrient profile of that hay.

Okay.

You had talked about the nutrient profile of the hay a little bit before.

And so it's not just really the supply of hay, but also the quality of the hay too, because in some drought areas that can allow weeds and other things to grow too.

How is that going to impact the quality?

And there's, you know, that's also one of those things we got to worry about.

And, and I look at quality sort of in a couple of different ways, maybe a little different than some of the other livestock people.

But I'm looking at hay that, got put up in a reasonably good condition.

Doesn't have any mold or dust in it because that can have a significant impact on the horses from a respiratory problem.

But your comment about the weeds, and I think we're seeing a lot more weeds that came on in the second cutting of hay or in that later time period when it was hot and dry, because some of those plants do flourish when those are the kind of growing conditions.

So I think we're seeing some weed content in hay, and one that that I'm seeing more, closer to Lexington.

But the hay that I've had the chance to look at has a weed called foxtail.

And that's something that we really don't want in our horse hay.

It can cause some ulcers in their mouths, and it can really be a headache for the horse and for the horse owners.

So, you know, the when you're buying here, you got to look at it to see what is there.

And yes, there might be a reasonable level of nutrients in there that are going to meet your horse's requirements.

But I think some of the weeds and some of the other things that could be there that we don't want in that hay, we need to be on the lookout for that.

And so what do you, what do livestock farmers need to do, now to protect themselves?

Can they do something now to prepare for this uncertainty of supply and quality of hay for the winter?

I think what they need to do is develop their inventory or what they need for an inventory.

Figure out roughly how much, hey, are you going to need to feed whatever class of livestock you're going to feed and then, ensure that you have it?

So one of the things that I think that most people need to do is figure out when they're buying whatever package of hay they are, whether it's small square bales or it's large root roll bales.

Having a good idea how much those bales weigh.

So that you can actually figure out that.

How much hay do I have?

You know, if you've got a feed, a couple hundred pounds of hay per day, you need to know how much is in the bales that so you know how many bales you actually need to have.

And then I would strongly recommend that that they have the hay analyzed.

I mean, get the hay test done so that you know what the nutrients are.

And that will also help you to figure out how much do I need to feed every day.

Okay.

That is wonderful.

Thank you so much.

Bob Coleman or Doctor Bob, as his students call him, Equine extension associate professor at U-K College of Agriculture.

Thank you so much for your expertise.

Thank you.

And thank you, Christy.

Very valuable information there.

If you're interested in having your hay tested for nutritional value, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service office or the Kentucky Department of Egg.

Also has a hay hotline that you can call.

That number is 502782 9210.