What Have You Found In Your Hay?

Status
Not open for further replies.
CarnivalPiggy

CarnivalPiggy

Adult Guinea Pig
Joined
Aug 18, 2014
Messages
1,650
Reaction score
1,259
Points
755
Location
Norfolk, England
This morning I found granite(?) in my hay. I'm curious as to what else people have found as I remember someone had a dead grasshopper in their hay on here
IMG_0106.webp
 
Our current batch seems to have quite a lot of moss?
I know someone else had a feather recently.
 
I've found all sorts over the years .... mud clods, stones feathers .... and , once, I found the dried up remains of something furry
 
The only things I ever found were rocks and feathers.
 
Woah, mice? Not to be gross, but don't you find it mixes in with the hay if it's decapitated?

Thankfully, I've not gotten anything furry. I've also had feathers and one or two times blue rope.
 
I've had a feather and vines. I'm pretty sure that a larvae I found in my living room once (alive too, shudder) got in via a hay bag, but I can't prove that one.
 
Ive found what I assume was, at one point, a mouse, a birds wing, a rather long piece of stringe and some sheeps wool. Worst thing ive ever found though was a large thistle..or rather, it found me! I'm much more careful these days pulling handfuls of hay out, lesson well learned. It was very painful.

Now that I buy bags instead of bales the worst ive found was what at one point would of been a sizable oak branch, leaves included. I filled a shoebox with all the pieces I found throughout the bag!
 
I also get mine from a farm and have found clumps of soil, feathers, some bailer twine, occasional thick sticks. Not bothered about any of those as it is quite natural for hay to have some unwanted bits. However I was disgusted to find half a dead mouse once, worse bit was I had put it in the girls hay tray and only found it the next day, it must have been buried in the handful I put in the tray :vom:.
 
Must say I'm surprised by what has been found lol

What do hay suppliers from stores etc do to sift out all the excess compared to farms?
 
As with other forages cut and baled in the field, there is always a risk that non-grass items are also cut and incorporated into the bales. Fields are inspected prior to harvest to check and remove any fallen branches, litter and other visible debris, to prevent these being cut and incorporated into the bales. When it is time to mow the grass and begin the drying process in the fields, final checks are carried out to remove any visible litter. During cutting, we take great care to make sure the pattern of mowing is such that any animals hiding in the grass have a chance to escape in the wildlife havens around the fields. After baling and transport to the drier, we inspect the bales again for outwardly visible foreign bodies. Our storage is in a purpose-built enclosed barn which means that damage to stored bales from the elements and from birds is minimised. Individual bales are then assessed for any signs of discolouring or poor smell, and inspected for foreign bodies, which if seen are removed.


There is no viable system available for our hay packing process that will enable us to remove these natural items automatically. We specialise in drying and processing the hay in order to keep it as close to its natural form as possible, this can therefore allow any non-metallic material to go through the same process undetected unless seen visually by our operators during the process .


I do hope I have helped you to understand the lengths that we go to, to ensure our products are free from non-hay items. We really value feedback from our customers because it helps us to continually improve our processes and procedures. Please be assured that as a result of your contact we will review this particular procedure again and we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused you. I do hope this unfortunate incident will not deter you from continuing to buy and feed our high quality products.
Click to expand...

That's an email I received from Burgess Customer Care when I asked them about this a while back. @CarnivalPiggy
 
Used to find lots of 'bits' in farm bale hay but nothing too untoward in my current hay. One bag had a few thistles in, some have bits of moss, the occasional feather, but nothing I wouldn't expect from a natural product. Have found tufts of rabbit fur in my Aubiose bales but nothing I'm worried about! The foxes ear sounds a bit grim!
 
...once found a piece of orange string thingamajig. Also
*runs to toilet*
*retch*
Luckily you guys found that stuff, not the pigs.
Just...ohgod ew.
 
I had an earwig come from a bag - well I assume it came from the hay as it was a new bag and i havent had any before or since. I thought it was a piggy poop on the floor and tried to pick it up :doh:
 
Lol x it was a nightmare when I had one or two earwig nests in my garden, kept creeping in the house and guinea pig shed at the time, I'd probably be frantic finding an earwig
 
I get my hay from the farm that my Mum used to get her straw for her hens and ducks. I have always found it to be nice and clean and nothing nasty or creepy in it. I must be lucky looking at all the horrible things others have found.
 
I am still trying to forget the mass of blackbird feathers I found in some farm hay. Never did find the rest of the bird Thank goodness. I don't know how I'd feel putting my hand in a bag of hay and pulling out something furry. :yikes: :vom:.
 
CarnivalPiggy said:
Lol x it was a nightmare when I had one or two earwig nests in my garden, kept creeping in the house and guinea pig shed at the time, I'd probably be frantic finding an earwig
Click to expand...

Omg earwig nests sound bloomin' terrifying! I'm not a creepy crawly lover lol. I suppose an earwig was better than some of the stuff others have found though!
 
Lots of feathers, sticks and one bag had lots of sharp pointy things. I have a good look and feel as I put every handful in the cage now - I'm terrified of eye pokes.
 
I know the feeling, found a branch of thorns or something many times in Ginny's hay so get a bit precarious. Of course it's the small, general bits of hay that he gets in/on his eye repeatedly, though thankful for that
 
I've only ever used two types of hay in my life - Pets At Home own hay and Burgess Marigold and Dandelion Herbage. Guess which one had the dodgy things in?

Correct answer is Pets At Home. I've had a few feathers and plenty of weeds. Always freaks me out. I switched to Burgess because i though what if I couldn't filter everything in the hay, then I'm exposing my piggies to weeds and bacteria. In all my years of using Burgess, I have never had any problems, so I recommend them.
 
worried val of york said:
I am still trying to forget the mass of blackbird feathers I found in some farm hay. Never did find the rest of the bird Thank goodness. I don't know how I'd feel putting my hand in a bag of hay and pulling out something furry. :yikes: :vom:.
Click to expand...
My rabbits play with the feathers its quite finny
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top