| Author | Message | ||
     Alex Cripps New member Username: hazydaynubians Post Number: 72 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 142.167.14.155  Rating: N/A |
The first cuts here in New Brunswick is crapy hay only good for summer hay with all day grazing but the 3,4,5 few cuts are best for vitimans because it's mostly grass. i don't know where you are so i can't tell how good your hay is but if you ask a few farmers they should tell you (ask around 3 and conpair anwsers) (any-thing after the 4th or 5 th cut is usaly only good for the animals to eat!) it's way to short to cut. Alex Cripps Hazy Day Nubians raising Nubians, Boers, Indian Runner Ducks www.hazydaynubians.piczo.com Apohaqui New Brunswick Canada | ||
| Tristan Duke New member Username: tristan Post Number: 11 Registered: 01-2007 Posted From: 208.180.102.183 Rating: N/A |
I have heard that the later the cut the lower the nutritional value. Here in north east arkansas the fields are 90% tall fescue and 10% bermuda. The tall fescue gets more like straw later in the cutting season. They sell the last cutting as junk hay around here. The first cutting tends to be moldy here because of the humidity and rain. | ||
| Alex Cripps New member Username: hazydaynubians Post Number: 70 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 142.167.29.36 Rating: N/A |
Hello Sorry about the spelling I was in a hurry. But forgot to say 1st cut is great for summer hay if they can go out and graze (for dairy does) but if you have alot of goats and only a little land for them and you have alot of hay land just cut your field and then before it drys out bale 3 or 4 bales and store them inside and feed the whole bale to them they will love it and it will stay good for a few weeks. Great if you need to plant or seed there field but don't want them just to eat hay. If you want these just ask a dairy cow farmer or a person you buy from and ask for a green bale! (not dry) Alex Cripps Hazy Day Nubians raising Nubians, Boers, Indian Runner Ducks www.hazydaynubians.piczo.com Apohaqui New Brunswick Canada | ||
| Megan Schefke New member Username: schef1mm Post Number: 61 Registered: 08-2006 Posted From: 64.105.216.245  Rating: N/A |
Thanks, that's really helpful! Megan | ||
| Alex Cripps New member Username: hazydaynubians Post Number: 69 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 142.166.81.90 Rating: N/A |
1st cut is the grass that has been growing since the bigining of spring so it tends to be more weedy and long goats like it but it has very little minerals and vitimans because it had been growing so long! 2ed cut is beeter then your first it will be a good cut and mix of graases and a few weeds (dpends where you live here in New Brunswick we tend to get alot of graases and alot of dindlions in the hay) this cut will have alot of good minerals and vitiamans but is still not the best cut 3ed cut seems to have alot of long (1 foot) green grass not so many weeds by now. now we have heat so the graas loves it but the weeds hate it. So by the 3 ed cut it will not get much better. this cut is what i would say is the best. 4 or 5th cuts seem to be not as good as the 3ed cut but by then we start to get weeds since the summer is starting to become fall so weeds come back but by the 3ed cut you have most of the junk gone! Alex Cripps Hazy Day Nubians raising Nubians, Boers, Indian Runner Ducks www.hazydaynubians.piczo.com Apohaqui New Brunswick Canada | ||
| Don S. New member Username: don_s Post Number: 4 Registered: 01-2007 Posted From: 172.164.98.105  Rating: N/A |
I suppose it depends on location and what the crop is. Hay from summer grasses, many seem to say the second cut is better. First cut may include some winter or early spring noxious weeds that came up. Second cut tends to be cleaner because those early cooler season weeds have not grown back. Also the days are longer, providing more photosensitizes to covert the starches into sugars and plant protein. That is my assumption of it. | ||
| Megan Schefke New member Username: schef1mm Post Number: 60 Registered: 08-2006 Posted From: 64.105.216.245 Rating: N/A |
Hi Everyone... Just curious to know what cut of hay everyone feeds their goats. I've heard that they should have 1st, 2nd, and even 3rd cut. Just wondering the reasoning behind feeding different cuts. What is healthier for them? Mine seem to like 1st cut because it is much grassier than others. Not sure if that is the best for them or not though. Just curious. Megan |