Buying Hay In Serious Bulk

Danielle Smith

Danielle Smith

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I'm keen to hear from other owners who have a large number of pigs or who otherwise get through a lot of hay.

I'm currently ordering a 10kg bag of Ings hay from Hay and Straw once every 3-4 weeks. This is getting a wee bit on the pricey side, so I went searching for a bale of farm hay in my area. Unfortunately it seems all the farmers keep the good stuff for themselves (which is fair)… All I could get was a bale of year-old hay which is pretty yellow and nowhere near as soft as Ings or other meadow hay I've tried. At the minute I'm mixing this hay with the Ings to make it last longer, but once it's gone I'm definitely not making the same mistake.

I'm looking to buy good-quality soft meadow hay with plenty of green in serious bulk (20-30kg at a time). I'm happy to store small bale and even round bale if I can fit it in my garage somehow. I'm keen to hear others stories about bulk buying hay online and also about how you store it. If possible, I'm looking for £1.50/kg delivered, though I know this price is extremely low!
 
Most of the hay now is about a year old because it's usually harvested between end of June & September. This years crop probably won't be on sale until July, weather permitting.

Main thing to look out for is that it doesn't smell foisty & that's it's soft & not hard like mini twigs as this could cause hay poke if they're spooked & run into it. I buy 9 bales every 3 weeks for our rescue & have to travel 20 miles or more the get the right quality. Look on places like ebay & gumtree then go & see it before you buy. Bales in my area are about £3 to £5 each & you can store a bale in an old single bed duvet cover x
 
I couldn't find any on gumtree or ebay in your area. Seems strange as lots of farms over there. I used to go to Cleator Moor regularly & passed lots of farms.
 
Try NaturesOwnPets. I order mine from there; 5bags of 3.75 kg meadow hay is just under £20 and free delivery. I get through 5 bags in about 6 weeks.
 
I get mine from a farm about 20 miles away. I have always got it there. It is a rectangular bale and lasts my 5 pigs around 5-6 months and costs me £5 per bale. I use it for bedding and for eating. It is always lovely and fresh and never smells damp. I store it in several black bags in my garage. I put it in the bags at the farm so that it's not so messy when I get home. My friend who loves playing around with the hay comes with me every time. I think I need to go again soon ......
 
Danielle Smith said:
Brilliant, haven't seen these guys before.

Have you tried the sweet green hay from Nature's Own Pets, @Guineapigfeet ?
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Yes, but I didn't get on with it. It's lovely hay but has a higher moisture content and as my pigs have hay, well everywhere, couldn't tell if it had been pee'd on or not! I tried it in racks and the meadow hay is so nice they never bothered to eat it!
 
If you can try and find local riding clubs message boards online they often have messages about small bale hay to be collected. Horse feed merchants may also have a notice board or sell hay by the bale themselves. It's not easy finding a good supplier though - hay is becoming increasingly hard to get right with the wetter summers we've been having up north and most of the grass goes for haylage or silage.
 
Thanks for all the pointers! I've also spoken with Hay and Straw and they say if you can pick up small bale directly from them it's £6/bale (which is anywhere between 20-26kg)! More expensive than regular farm hay, but the quality is worth it for me. Even with petrol it works out to £6.50 per 10kg of hay if I buy three bales...

I'm now planning to make the 3.5 hour round trip after I come back from my holiday. The things we do for our piggies :))
 
So on my way home today I went half an hour out of my way to the farm that sells Ings hay. I met Ann (who was so lovely), and we proceeded to stuff my car full of hay. As in ~60kg of hay, three small bale. For £18. I might be dreaming. This should hopefully last us six months, just need to get it up the loft!

I was being a total hay fangirl, telling them that they were a big name in the small animal hay business. I think they were pretty bemused!

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Lol. This thread made me laugh. I made my husband go shopping to Asdas as they sell the best hay. (I'm down to just 2 piggies at moment, so a small bale does me.)

I'm just glad you made it home safely with a car full of hay. Lol.
 
They are just so happy when they get fresh hay bundled in the cage, and this is the stuff they like best (apart from the German hay, but I'm not spending all my money importing it for the cheeky ). They really do have me wrapped around their little paws!
 
Hope the gorgeous baby Boars are doing well. It's a shame my husband didn't want any more piggies or I would've jumped at chance to home them.
 
They have moved into the "pig room" at last and are being so loud, wheeking frantically at all hours and trying to chew through the C&C grids to get to the others (guys, it won't work -- you are on the table and they are on the floor). However, they are still super handsome... but with really stinky testosterone exhausts :vom:

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Sorry for the blurry pics, is rather dark here and they never stand still!
 
Find place that stables horses, and ask them were they get there's! Horse keepers are seriously fussy about the hay they feed to there animals !

NB horses are also fed syilage ! A hay molasis mix ! Don't be tempted to feed it to pigs it is far to rich
 
I did this on Monday, went to the local farm shop and bought 3 full bales of lovely green hay for £15. I too was ordering Ings and it's expensive when you have a large amount of piggies!
 
Cannot imagine horses being impressed with silage ...

Going to order some ings soon as the lovely hay that I have bought in bulk thanks to Catherine from the rabbits united forum is vert stalky and sharp. Ings is sooo soft.

Wish I could drive as there are millions of farms in this area.

Haha to the idea of being a hay fangirl!
 
hay for horses is the one suggested here from all the rescues and the best vets. The vets say "go to the countryside! look for some farmer!". The problem is that my house is not as large as his! were can I store a bale of hay? Moreover, what if my piggies don't like the bale of hay? should I use it for making some soup recipe then?
Jokes aside, tomorrow I have planned an expedition to the mountains near Rome... I am going there with bags and knife! at least I will prepare some "ready-grass"...:sly:
 
The main extra thing to look for when getting hay for piggies rather than for horses is that it is as soft as possible to avoid eye pokes. This years crop is available in most areas now. I got my first 9 bales 3 weeks ago & I'm going back for 9 more tomorrow. A tip for transporting bales is to use single bed duvet covers. Either old used ones or from the cheap shops you can get them for £4 or £5. Really good for storing it in :) xx
 
If it's dry up there it's probably the best place in the house as lofts are normally well ventilated. Storing in duvet cover the hay can breath much better than in plastic bag
 
Does anybody know how long hay can last for? Just looked at this naturesownpets and 5 bales for £21.95 is a huge bargain when I spent £6.98 on 2kg at zooplus! But I only have two piggies....although they have gone through x3 500g bags already and I've only had them for just under 3 weeks.
 
If stored properly (dry, dark place with good ventilation), hay retains its freshness for at least 2 years. Some of the vitamins are slightly reduced but it's still good!
 
i buy a bale every two weeks,get from a horse feed supplyer,i was in yorkshire last week and got two bales,approx 20kgs a bale for £3.00 it is lovely.:nod:
 
badger2503 said:
Does anybody know how long hay can last for? Just looked at this naturesownpets and 5 bales for £21.95 is a huge bargain when I spent £6.98 on 2kg at zooplus! But I only have two piggies....although they have gone through x3 500g bags already and I've only had them for just under 3 weeks.
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I buy these for my three and I get through a bag every 7-10 days (they eat, sleep, play, poop and pee in it) and they all last fine. I store the unopened bags in a big metal bin outside my garage so the 'oldest' bag will be in there about 5 weeks by the time it's opened
 
Hello

I am struggling to find well priced hay for my two guinea pigs. Prices in supermarkets are £6 for 1.5 kg currently. I can't afford this. Anyone advise where I can get a bale perhaps? North east area

And good price on nuggets too? They've also gone up at least double.
Thank you
 
bb bb said:
Hello

I am struggling to find well priced hay for my two guinea pigs. Prices in supermarkets are £6 for 1.5 kg currently. I can't afford this. Anyone advise where I can get a bale perhaps? North east area

And good price on nuggets too? They've also gone up at least double.
Thank you
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Maybe try a horse shop for a bale of hay? Unless you've any farmers nearby. my friend uses Valebale hay and says it's good value, I'm allergic to it though.
What nuggets do you use? I use science selective and they don't seem to have gone up that much. They only need an egg cup full pet Piggie a day so maybe you can reduce them? I wouldn't recommend switching to the likes of a supermarket nugget as they seem to contain a lot of fillers.
 
I get hay from my local Alpaca farm or the farm shop. I get pellets from Piggie Pellets which is owned by a forum member. They only need 1tablespoon per 1000g of piggy weight per day as they are so concentrated so my 3 piggies who weigh approx 900g, 900g and 750g get 2 and 3/4 tablespoons a day for all 3 of them. Usually it's 1 tablespoon of pellets per piggy per day of any pellets.
 
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