# Hay: Dry or Wet?



## DeanS (Jun 5, 2010)

Tom's recent communiques with Trent bring up a GREAT topic here...and I wanna know, how many of you soak your hay prior to feeding out...I thought I was the only one until I saw my friend Linda (Diesel's new mom) soaking a barrel full a coupla months back. Her torts go nuts for it this way...mine will eat it either way, but definitely prefer wet.


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## Tom (Jun 5, 2010)

I never wet mine. I worry about mold and mildew as I leave out an entire flake at all times. In fact, when it rains (Ha!, almost never), I have to remember to move my flakes into the night houses. If I forget, then I chuck it the next day. Mine don't seem to care if its wet or dry. They eat it all up either way. I have wet it in the past, just to see what happens and they don't seem to have a preference. Interestingly they seem to want to eat a certain amount of it everyday, even when there are other seemingly tastier options. Sometimes they will bypass "wet" foods to go munch on a bunch of dry grass hay. I use the Bermuda. I've tried "Orchard" and Timothy in the past, but they seem to like the Bermuda the best. Its also less coarse and less dusty here. PLUS, and this is a little silly, I recently found out that Bermuda grass originated in Africa. So its one of their "natural" foods.


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## Laura (Jun 5, 2010)

I dont think Ive ever seen Bermuda grass hay.. 
mine just graze.. not crazy for hay.. I guess I could try the wetting thing when needed..it might make it seem tastier and smell better.


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## Tom (Jun 5, 2010)

Laura said:


> I dont think Ive ever seen Bermuda grass hay..
> mine just graze.. not crazy for hay.. I guess I could try the wetting thing when needed..it might make it seem tastier and smell better.



All the feed stores in Southern Cali carry it. Mine graze too, but from about now until January, when the rains come back, there is nothing but hot, dry dirt to graze on. The weeds are dead, dried up or already eaten at this point. And grass? You can forget it out here. Not gonna happen. You can grow it on a small scale, like a small yard, but not on acreage like at my ranch. Many have tried, all have failed.


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## DeanS (Jun 5, 2010)

It should be pointed out that there are 2 species of bermuda...one is coastal bermuda...native to Florida, I believe and the other is couchgrass...native to Africa. I'm 99.9% sure that the bermuda hay available in the states is actually coastal... anybody know differently?


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## Tom (Jun 5, 2010)

Okay, now you have gone completely outside of my realm of expertise. I hate it when that happens.


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## Traveller (Jun 6, 2010)

I feed dry hay to our leopards, I'd be afraid of mold if I wet it.
We have horses too so I just pick a nice flake when I need it for the torts.
I find they like the finer grasses not so much the timothy, I guess every one is different.


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## DeanS (Jun 6, 2010)

I don't understand the concern over mold...whatever they don't eat that day would be tossed...I've NEVER seen mold in hay...even on those rare occasions when it's left out overnight.


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## Tom (Jun 6, 2010)

DeanS said:


> I don't understand the concern over mold...whatever they don't eat that day would be tossed...I've NEVER seen mold in hay...even on those rare occasions when it's left out overnight.



I don't feed it daily. I just drop a whole flake and it lasts anywhere from a week to a month depending on how much other stuff they are getting. The area where I drop it is very dry (well the whole ranch is very dry) so its fine to just sit there until they eat it.


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## DeanS (Jun 6, 2010)

Tom said:


> DeanS said:
> 
> 
> > I don't understand the concern over mold...whatever they don't eat that day would be tossed...I've NEVER seen mold in hay...even on those rare occasions when it's left out overnight.
> ...



Sorry I didn't clarify... I was referring to wet hay.


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## Tom (Jun 6, 2010)

Ahh, now I gotcha. I wouldn't want to wet it as they might not eat it all that day. I wouldn't want to waste any. That stuff costs me like $15 a year! Ha Ha.


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## mjecson (Jun 10, 2010)

Well I think its depends on the pet that what it actually want. Basically there is no need of doing it wet but still if it feel comfortable then you can do this but I prefer not to do that because there is no observation in there like it can feel better in wet or dry.


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## DeanS (Jun 10, 2010)

mjecson said:


> Well I think its depends on the pet that what it actually want. Basically there is no need of doing it wet but still if it feel comfortable then you can do this but I prefer not to do that because there is no observation in there like it can feel better in wet or dry.



I'm not talking about bedding...the point was do you feed your torts wet or dry hay


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## TortieLuver (Jun 10, 2010)

We have grass for them to graze on at all times, but if some areas get low, I soak the bermuda grass and throw out. My sulcatas tend to eat it right up and the little amount they don't, the sun dries it right up here in Arizona. Mine won't eat it unless it's from the ground or soaked.


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