Earlier this summer I was considering selling my baler, etc and going back to buying hay, one reason I asked the value of my 569 baler.

I bought all my hay from a nearby retired dairy farmer for years. My only hay equipment was a Notch gooseneck hay trailer and a hay spear for my loader. But then there was the drought of 2012 and the late spring of 2013. I ran out of hay at calving time and ended up having to buy old ditch hay (only hay I could find in the area) for $225/5x5 round bale. Neighbors just sold their cattle. I decided then to buy a moco, rake and baler on a 5 yr low interest finance plan.

There is the saying that you can buy hay cheaper than you can make it. Well, sometimes you can and sometimes you can't.

There is also the fact that cattle consume forage at a fairly uniform rate but forages grow at very non-uniform rates. In our WI location we need to plan on feeding hay for 6 months of the year.  Making my own hay let's me control quality for my grass-fed/birth to plate operation and also to better manage pastures/hay fields.

In my case I've reduced herd size due to some health issues, now resolved, so building herd back up. After thinking back on 2013, hay quality and pasture management, I decided that as long as I have cows I will make my own hay. I may buy a bit to as my herd numbers get back up but it will be as a supplement, not my main feed source.