Mouse parts in hay

[MyzarandGemma]

Hey guys:
So I freaked out because I found patches of fur and skin in my chins' hay basket. I thought it was one of them so I searched them over (they really appreciated it) and found nothing. My boyfriend thinks it was a mouse/rat. Has anyone ever encountered this? If so, should we throw away the 10 pounds of hay it came in?

 

[Basket_of_Chinchillas]

Ewwww! I would take a really really close look through your hay. Do you have pictures that you can send to the hay supplier? While mice/rats can and do get caught up in hay bales, mutilated, and incorporated, the selection process that sort through the hay and packages it would (I hope) sort through that. I would worry that if there are animals parts in your hay there could be harmful bacteria/diseases/other unfortunate things in there too....

 

[ticklechin]

I would be ticked off but I would toss the lot.

 

[Dreamlite]

Where did you get the hay from? If it was a store you try returning the bag but if you buy it by the bale from a farmer its hard to prevent things like that. Did you just start the bag? If you just started it Iwould toss the top half and use the rest.

 

[Tagna]

My friend found a dead mouse in her Oxbow 9lb bag. They replaced it. It happens as hay is grown where there are all sorts of critters. I have heard of people finding big grasshoppers too. Blech!

 

[seachin]

It's difficult to avoid as it is, well, nature and all. I personally would ask for it to be replaced. I think I draw the line at chopped up bits of relatives of the animals I am feeding the hay to. :hmm: