ASPECTS OF HAY PRODUCTION THAT INFLUENCE ITS FINAL QUALITY

This review addresses the main aspects of the literature on the production of hay, with emphasis on tropical species of forage grasses and legumes used to make hay and in the feeding of cattle, sheep and goats. When choosing the species for hay production, it is important to consider the procedures involved in haymaking, such as harvest, forage dehydration in the field and storage, aiming to reduce nutritional losses resulting from the production and storage of hay, as all the steps from production to storage of the hay are influenced by environmental conditions. Contamination by microorganisms in the hay that has a high moisture content may cause problems to the health of the animals, since the appearance of molds, undesirable odors, loss of nutritional quality or even total loss of the hay, cause metabolic disturbances in animals and in some cases leading to death. The use of forage species with potential for hay production and its use in animal production improves the productive indexes of the herd, however factors related to the production and storage of the hay must be observed, as they influence the nutritional and sanitary quality of the feed used in the diet of the animals.