# Hay costs?



## sandi_84 (27 February 2013)

So our new provider does a lovely big 4x4 round bale of hay for £30. He delivers 2 at a time with a delivery charge of £20 so we are paying £40 per bale.
The usual cost for small bale hay up here seems to be £3.50 per bale.

Now I know you wouldn't feed ALL year round but it's easier for my teeny non-mathmatical brain to work it out if I do a year cost assuming we fed every month of the year - I really am total pants at maths! 

We have 1 horse and 1 pony:
So we go through a round bale in about 2-3 weeks for two horses so it works out at £640 for 12 months.
If we got small bales we'd probably go through about a bale a day? (or is it two? not sure as it's been yonks since I've used small bales and can't really remember ) so that would work out at £1,277.50 for twelve months and that's not including a delivery charge! 

My question I suppose is do you use small or round bale? How much do you pay for small bales/round bales? AND If you use small bale is it really cost effective because on paper it doesn't seem to be 

Cheers peeps!


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## laz (27 February 2013)

I use small bales but they are quite large ones.  Have no storage for round bales.  There £4.50 a bale and i use 60/80 a year for one horse and 2 ponies. Only get hay from november to mid march time there fatties.  I like square cause i can judge better what am feeding compared to pulling it off a round bale they are fed loose hay in field.


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## Merlin11 (27 February 2013)

I get big round bales of hay delivered -cost is £35 and no delivery charge. The farm is 20 miles away so think this is a good deal.


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## Skipadeedooda (28 February 2013)

I got my own hay cut this year and nearly cried when I got the bill in. We wanted all small square bales but due to poor weather contractor did half in square bales and half haylage. We don't have anywhere to store big rounds of hay or any way to move/handle them. Sadly we lost all of the haylage as wrapping split. But it has made me wonder whether its actually worth getting our own hay cut as opposed to just buying. If I hadn't lost the haylage it would be a completely different story and we'd be laughing but unfortunately that's the risk you take. Round here square bales are going for £3.50 and big rounds about £25 per bale. round bales most definitely work out cheaper but transport cost is a killer. For a direct comparison you on average get 10 small square bales out of 1round bale if that helps.


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## holeymoley (28 February 2013)

I was always told that 1 large round bale at 4 x 4 is roughly 20 small bales. Or is it 10?!

Anyway, I bought in two large bales this winter for £80 both, so £40 each, I'm feeding a 14hh pony and started middle of November and this me just about finished the second bale now.  YO has small bales to buy at 3.75 which I'll be doing throughout summer if needed, but her supply is going down so ill probably be ordering big bales again for winter. I like them better!


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## lachlanandmarcus (28 February 2013)

Normally it's 10-12 small square bales to a round bale

Round bale will be cheaper, bit do bear in mind there can be some wastage if they aren't put indoors quick as they sometimes aren't whereas square bales have to and are put indoors straight away generally.

I pay £3 for hay small bales although I try to make our own, we have the land but struggle with getting a weather window when OH is free. But I also feed oat straw which is only £2 a bale.


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## Tormenta (28 February 2013)

I paid £18 per round bale in September last year for over the Winter. I find more wastage and harder to store with round bales (I don't have a huge amount of space). Started to run out in February so found an excellent supplier of good quality hay square bales, £2.50 per bale delivered.


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## brucea (2 March 2013)

£30 delivered. Big round bales are much more economical. Been feeding hayage all winter but will swap to hay in a month or so.


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