Hay Does Not Provide Adequate Nutrition
While hay is a common animal feed and contains a variety of nutrients beneficial to animals, that doesn’t necessarily include dogs.
Hay is not the kind of food that can give your dog the essential nutrients they need.
Although some types of hay do have several nutrients good for dogs, it’s simply not enough. It’s smarter to feed dogs the kind of quality food that can promote their overall health.
Dog Teeth Are Not Designed for Chewing Hay
Like most carnivores and omnivores, dogs have sharp incisors, long and pointed canines, and only a few molars at the back. Their sharp and pointed teeth function well for cutting meat.
Unlike many herbivores, like cows and horses, with wider, flatter molars designed for eating and grinding plants, dogs don’t have enough chewing molars or molars that are broad enough for eating hay.
Jen Davis has been writing since 2004. She has served as a newspaper reporter and her freelance articles have appeared in magazines such as “Horses Incorporated,” “The Paisley Pony” and “Alabama Living.” Davis earned her Bachelor of Arts in communication with a concentration in journalism from Berry College in Rome, Ga.
Healthy hay is okay for use as dog bedding, but moldy hay can quickly cause health problems for your dog. If your dog snuggles into a pile of mold for a nap, he is likely to experience respiratory problems. If your dog can smell the mold and finds it offensive, he may avoid bedding down in the hay altogether. Pay attention to whether your dog tries to eat the hay bedding. Hay bedding is not a good addition to your dogs diet, moldy or not. If your dog is trying to eat the hay, you should not use it for bedding.
Hay molds as the result of being cut from fields too early or being bailed while wet. Hay can develop mold if it is stored in a damp location. Moldy hay has a foul, musty odor. You may notice mold discoloration when you look at a hay bale or break it open. Moldy hay may also appear to be very dusty, as mold spores are sometimes mistaken for dust.
Good quality hay can be a healthy, relatively inexpensive and environmentally friendly material for providing your dog plenty of clean bedding in his outdoor kennel. Unfortunately, good quality hay can be hard to find. If you dont know what to look for in hay or are not aware of the potential problems that go hand-in-hand with using hay as dog bedding, you can inadvertently exposing your dogs to hazard.
A wide variety of healthy bedding materials are available for your dog. If you are not 100 percent certain your dogs hay is clean and safe, you should opt for a different type of bedding. Shredded newspaper, old blankets or towels and commercial pet bedding pellets can provide safe bedding without the risks associated with hay. A few types of wood shavings are OK, but know for sure before using any.