As Fall is in full swing and winter rapidly approaches horse owner's thoughts turn to stocking up on hay supplies. It seems there are an abundance of scams ongoing, some new and all nefarious and many occur through social media entities such as Facebook, where folks seeking hay are 'trolled' and captured.
Here are a few tips as to what to look out for so your hard earned dollars don't disappear without quality hay 'on your table' and red flags to be aware about when resourcing a supplier.
- Know your supplier. Do your due diligence when it comes to buying hay. Obviously there are many reputable hay dealers around, but there are also many that are not and many middlemen that act in concert with certain hay dealers procuring hay supplies and customers for a commission that actually produce no hay at all themselves, or very little. It is smart to know the provenance of your hay if possible, and deal directly with the actual producer of the hay. Dealers necessarily source hay from all over the place and quality can vary considerably. At a minimum a hay seller should have a website, and a decent and transparent online presence. Be aware that middlemen often use other people's photos of hay stacks and claim them as their own, when really they have no such production or supply on hand.
- Don't pay in advance. The latest trend of taking/requesting 'bookings' and requiring a deposit or prepayment is a great way for dealers to garner cash from prospective customers to provide cash flow to their business. How do you know you will even see the hay? There have been recent arrests ( finally) of a person in VT that regularly took money from unsuspecting horse owners for loads of hay in advance of delivery for many years, and never turned up with any hay supply. If you prepay you also have no idea what quality will be provided or when it will arrive. Pay on delivery.
- Check the load. Dealers may tail load with good hay, so that on initial inspection the load looks good and you say go ahead and unload it. Halfway through the load may be a different quality from a different source. Check it throughout and ask the dealer if the hay has all come from the same producer.
- Watch out online. There are many folks that pose as prospective consumers or direct growers when really they are middlemen looking to either pick up a load and add their margin, or are resourcing prospective customers for larger hay dealers. Larger hay dealers may even drop a trailer at one of their 'sales agents' and ask them to fill it by finding a source of hay, and then call on it when they get a call for someone in the area needing a hay supply. Thus your hay may have sat in a metal tin for a while before you see it. Not good for the hay!
- Stay loyal. When you find a good resource to buy hay stick with it. Understand that prices may nominally increase year to year as all farmers' experience cost increases annually in producing the hay. Insurance, fuel, equipment leasing, buying and maintenance, costs to fertilize fields either organically or with chemicals, re-seeding of fields etc.
- If you are looking for horse quality hay, buy from someone who knows horses and what their needs are. Properly cured horse hay, grown for horses without weeds i.e. clean and green, will cost more than cow hay.
Sadly there are many unscrupulous people out there. Be smart, do your homework, call and ask questions, Google them, review websites and social media posts.
Don't part with your cash until you have seen the hay in person and are happy with it!
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