Thoroughbreds Are Only Fed the Best Hay...Uh, That was a Subjective Kind of Statement.

Best Hay?

"This hay snobbery was created by a bunch of defrocked scientists on the hay payroll who circulated a lot of rumors to the press.  Stuff about dead frogs, baled up slugs, recycled newsprint, etc..  The truth was that they were actually right, but like the White House, they needed to justify being wrong by dreaming up absurd research to prove they were right.  After your migraine subsides, this will somehow make sense, though in a very convoluted manner.  Just think back to that Iran-Contra thing and how Reagan wormed his way out of that mess.  Same principle involved

Now, racehorses naturally require the best possible feed available, being the the high-strung, fickle animals they're known to be.  Owners embraced this notion completely because they were also high-strung and fickle themselves.  So the PR folks invented all sorts of wild claims about nutritional value, digestibility, protein levels, Secretrariat's favorite brand -- nothing was out of bounds.  Even people started eating alfalfa for their own health, not realizing that a bale of hay is about 20% bugs, both living and dead.  And since hay sort of grows on the ground, where everything else on the planet eventually ends up, it also contains leftover pesticides, herbicides, dead rats, tractor exhaust, satellite parts, marijuana plants, snakes, gophers, diesel fuel, beer cans, cigarette butts and probably Jimmy Hoffa's wallet and car keys.  And those fields are a long way from the nearest outhouse."