|  | Public Health Safety | Public Health

What Causes Hay to Be Dusty?

For many farm animals, hay is part of the diet, often a very important part. It is important to choose the best quality hay that is devoid of dust. You can typically tell quality hay from bad hay simply by looking at it. Mold is a major cause of dust-like spores in hay.

  1. Horses or Livestock

    • In some cases, the dust arising from hay is actually caused by the horses or livestock eating the hay. You may have noticed that horses and other livestock dig their mouths and faces into haystacks (or bins, depending on how you store hay and feed your livestock). They then pull out bunches of hay that essentially disturbs the hay and causes small particles of uneaten hay to be released. Those small particles appear as dust to the human eye.

    Mold Makes Hay Dusty

    • At first glance, the dust that rises from haystacks may just appear as natural dust from constant movement. However, if there is a great amount of dust rising from hay, the real culprit may be mold. If you notice that the dust is grayish-white in color when you shake it out, then it is probably mold and the hay is bad. The dust is actually tiny mold spores that are released into the air when the hay is disturbed. Mold grows in hay for several different reasons and can start when the hay is initially cut. If there is too much moisture in the hay when it is stored (the hay may have been wet prior to storage or the humidity levels increased), the hay will eventually begin to grow mold, making the hay bad for consumption.

    Checking for Mold

    • To make sure that the hay you are feeding your horse or other animal is not moldy, there are a few methods you can utilize to tell the difference between good and bad hay. Although not a definite indicator, if hay is bright green in color, it is typically good quality hay that contains the right amount of nutrients. On the other hand, if the hay is brownish in color it usually means it has been damaged by heat or moisture and is bad. The hay must also be soft and flexible, as opposed to stiff and hard. If the hay is grayish-white in color or if flakes tend to stick together, there is mold in that batch.

    Health Risks

    • Dusty hay has definite health risks for both humans and animals. Farmer's Lung is the typical consequence of inhaling hay dust, which is essentially an allergic disease that affects the lungs. It is similar to normal allergies and includes shortness of breath, dry cough, rapid heart rate and fast breathing. The only way to treat Farmer's Lung is to avoid contact with dusty or moldy hay. For animals, the mold may not be as harmful, but moldy hay means that there is a lack of nutrients. Over time, this means that your animals will lose out on vital nutrients and can develop diseases or health problems as a result.

Public Health - Related Articles