Is this winter really supposed to be a bad one ?

[Lulu]

I've not heard anything yet, but read a post on here, about hay shortages and another supposedly snowy winter ? I am not sure I can realistically afford to up the hay if we have a LOT of snow like we did this year, especially with the hay shortages, and having a 33yr old. I'm still urming and ahh-ing about whether to put the 33yr through another winter, as last winter was tough on her. She has limited teeth left (so maybe she's older than we think?) and has difficult eating hay well, (despite regular dentistry) and quids her hay. Eats hay replacer cubes soaked fine, but needs separating in winter to enable her to feed ablib on this. Has arthritis too in hind legs, but getting up and down fine to roll so far.

[chloe]

My YO (a cattle farmer) reckons we're set for another icy/snowy winter which is a concern since he's only managed to bring in 2/3rds of the amount of hay he did last year. I have found another farmer who has lots in but he's already charging £3.50 per bale where he was charging £2 last year.

[jill]

Scaremongering to bump up the price of hay. No-one can know what the winter will be like, statistically it is unlikely to be as bad as last year but no-one has a crystal ball. There is a shortage of decent hay, due to the unfavourable weather in spring and early summer, as it was too cold to start with, too dry for it to grow away then the haymaking weather came early before it had had a chance to develop into a heavy crop.
But what the coming winter will be like is anyones guess.

[Lulu]

Thats what I thought, how could anyone tell the forecast for winter ? I know there's supposed to be more berries and fruit/seed for hard winters (or is that another old wives tale lol)

[anastasia55555]

I hope its not as bad as winter just gone. we are lucky in that there are acres and acres of land so never a shortage of grass, the only time the fields were hayed was when it was minus numbers and feet of snow for almost 2 weeks. Rest of year no hay has been out. We have a 35 yr old (Toffee) who we are trying to plump up for the winter, and she will live in as she has done for last 3 or 4 years, as it starts to get chiller. We are lucky in that she has all her teeth, at last check earlier this year she did anyway, so food isnt an issue and she has a huge appetite and generally happy. She has arthritis in her hock(s) various supplements for that and looking at some magnetic hock boots. Keeping her in at night and some turn out in the day has worked well for her still keeping her flexible but warm and fed well.

Hopefully got 50ish bales of hay coming from a friend in next few weeks, but hay is much thinner on the ground this year round here too. I need to get on the case of getting some straw while i think about it too!

[KoLaTo]

Not sure about the winter but IMO yes we will have a harsh one again simply because of the way the seasons are changing. Hay in my part of the woods (Chilterns) has doubled and in some cases tripled in price already (last yrs average was £3.50) and is being rationed. I am lucky *fingers crossed* that i have gone in with a friend again this yr and she has trebled her yeild from last yr as she fertilised but we are still comtemplating ordering in a couple of hundred to see us thru to next August, we can get it for £4 at the moment from our Organic supplier.

[troop]

well my supplier hasnt managed to get any hay in the weather has been appalling and im panicking a bit

[Susan]

We bought in oat straw now for winter ( we feed in bad weather as all live out.) Already as hay either isnt here yet, what has come in is far less yield and already been told of farmers locally selling for between £5-8 a bale.
One supplier I dealt with in March laughed at me when I rang him get to back fo queue he said! and when I get mine in I have no idea of price but at least £5 a bale if not more. Friend who was with me last year, moved to farm near to her home who said he supplies his liveries ( all have own field and their own field shelters no stables) now is sayin he will want market price and his liveries wont get preference, talk of at least £7 a bale.
Also local police warned if hay theft going on!

[jen1]

we are down by 100 large round bales this year, but i tend to feed most of ours just on hay with token feeds , the quality is also down too due to the dry weather , so it will be an expensive one for me this year feeding 8 horses

[jane-s]

Got our hay in yesterday thank goodness so our little barn is stuffed full. Yield well down on previous years but at least its much drier so shouldn't get any wastage. Just hope we get rain as grass brown - don't want to have to start feeding it too soon. Another field still to cut so Anastacia will get her hay as promised!

[poppyandbea]

theres hay for sell around me and its £5.00 + for a small ball some £8.00 a bale in place glad i got 96 bales in but need some more to have enought for the winter as bea needs ad lib hay now and just cant afford those prices

[arabheaven]

unfortunately, it's not scaremongering - there really is a hay shortage this year. My supplier got 75 bales off a field he normally gets 250 off!!! He is keeping all his hay back for his regulars and he has sold everything he has already.

He was charging £3 a bale last year and is now charging £4 a bale but as I said, it's all gone. I have phoned local farmers and they have either all sold out or are selling at £5 a small bale, forecasting it to rise to £7 a bale by xmas. Nightmare.

[Catrin]

British weather is largely unpredictable, so it is difficult to say what sort of winter we will have yet.

I am baffled by the reports I read currently about the weather, as it must refer to somewhere I don't live — we have had a dry summer — yet it has rained here every day for six weeks! Our farmers have made more hay and haylage in June than they made all last year, when fields were ruined. The grass has been growing well for weeks since June as it has been warm and wet. Hope this will reflect in fodder supplies for winter.

[sixfootblonde]

We normally get 320 bales and this year only got 80 Our kind local farmer let us buy in some of his for £2.50 a bale. He normally sells it for £2.00 but did not make as much this year. He hates to rip people off and felt he was not justified in charging a huge amount.

[horsefeed]

I'm panicing a bit, I have 21 (9 are my own rest livery) horses at the moment out 24/7 hoping it will stay warm and wet until November so the grass contunues to grow even if it can't be cut it will be there for them to eat, as I have only managed to lay my hands on 200 bales of hay and proberly about 100 straw which if I'm lucky I will be able to make it last 2 months.