Lots of hay is stored out side in the elements. Rain will not necessarily ruin them for feed. Some farmers feed them direct from the field to the cattle, thus saving one handling of the bales.
That's what we used to do with the last cutting, which was usually pretty sparse. We had horses renting pasture and the owners paid for the hay in the field, as well as for the pasture forage value. They would break open bales as needed over the winter. Our winters are much drier than most places. The bales were the small two-wire variety, baled very tight.
