I realize that all field grass hay is probably not the same. I have been feeding 2nd cut field grass from the same supplier for several years now. Gelding eats most of his hay. He always has had a strong personality, always been a bit mouthy, sometimes nippy. Recently, I bought a few bales (2nd cut field grass)from a different supplier just to mix it up a bit. (Is been a long cold winter with limited turnout) I feel my horse is in a “better mood” when he gets the new stuff. My question is- has anyone seen a positive attitude change from changing hay? Different grains/ feeds- yes- but hay?
Thanks for any input
My hay comes from different fields, same hayguy.
Unless your hayguy cuts only from his fields, on the same acreage, your hay will vary from field to field.
The 1st cut orchard grass I feed can be different from load to load, unless I buy my year’s supply at the same time.
Even then, I may get 100 bales from one field, 100 from another, etc.
The only difference I notice is if that 1st cut is late. Then there’s more chance of thorny stuff from the edge of the field getting baled.
Horses just eat around that, no difference in their behavior ever noted.
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I’ve seen horses react to alfalfa in hay—both positively (it’s supposed to help with ulcers) and negatively (some get a bit like a kid on a sugar high). I wonder if there’s something besides just grass in those new bales? Around here, even when buying ‘field grass,’ it’s not uncommon to get some legumes mixed in. Farmers seem to believe this increases productivity and reduces the need for fertilizers—but I’m not an agronomist, so I can’t say how accurate that is. That’s just what I’ve overheard from the old guys having doughnuts at the co-op. 
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Yep, it can happen. Might be the sugar levels, might be the protein, who knows, but it can happen. Most people will just say ‘oh that hay made my horse hot’ but I think in many cases the horse just felt better!
Like if you changed your diet in some way that improved it… gave your body something it needed a little more of… you’d feel better. Same thing.
“Grass hay, first cut” can vary widely in the tenderness and nutrition it contains! Fields that are fertilized (using soil test for needed nutrient additions) versus fields that may or may not get even lime added, have huge differences in nutrients to their hay.
You absolutely cannot tell if hay has good nutrition by looking, tasting or smelling a bale! Hay can look great but lack nutrients. We got some of that one year. Horses ate twice as much hay as usual, looked terrible by spring, despite adding more grain and upping the beet pulp. We learned a lot from that lesson about good-looking hay!
Sending in hay samples for testing is the only way to learn the nutrition in a block of bales from a producer. Our own grass hay is good in nutrient levels but high in NSC, which is impossible to control. Grasses get more sugars in them as the sun rises, and you have to wait until the dew is off to cut the hay! Our horses are kept trim, no fatties here even if old or not working. Being trim, not hard to find a rib, no fat pads, which allows us to let them graze freely on GOOD pasture overnite in summer. They are stalled during the summer days, with very limited grain and wet beet pulp. They are all easy keepers, so we are careful to keep them trim to avoid any metabolic issues. We don’t feed any alfalfa, it throws off the calcium levels and our horses don’t need it.
I strongly suggest testing your hays to learn what you are actually feeding in nutrients.
Last year our horses did not like the pretty, soft second cutting grass hay. They liked first cutting! We made good money selling the second cutting at auction! This year they were a bit picky eating first cutting grass, which got cut a bit late with the constant rains. They LOVE second cutting fed inside. So we will be selling the excess first cutting at auction. There is a lot of good hay from 2024, so prices will not be as good as last year. But the barns must be emptied for new hay in May.
I KNOW how good my hay is by getting it tested. We do raise our own hay now, fertilize the fields (and pastures) yearly according to their soil test results. There is only grass planted, though it is a variety of grasses, not just one grass. Some years certain grasses do better with the weather, rain or dry, so we can prevent getting NO HAY having the variety. First cutting is usually the most productive, but should be cut before it goes to seed, making stems tougher.
Cutting at the proper time can be tough if weather does not cooperate, with frequent rains not allowing drying time before baling.
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