Feeding round bales

[MMagis]

The local co-op had one of those hay huts sitting around for YEARS. Not even horse people would buy it. It’s extremely flimsy, there’s no way it would last a week with cattle. Don’t worry about the rain, they’ll eat it.

 

[tungularafishcamp]

I built my own "hay hut".....or what I call "the last **** round bail feeder" after going thru several crappy hay rings. Cows seem to love to lean in and destroy hay rings, and then me moving them like XFaxman pictures above didn't do them any good either. Used 6x6 locust for the skids, 6x6 oak corner posts, 2x oak for the side walls and bed. Gate on front swings open to load, back metal grate is bolted fixed. Metal is 1.5" square tubing. Made to fit a 4x5 round bale inserted with spear. They waste very little with this, and it stays dry. (crappy pic, sorry)

I like the looks of that Andy! We even have a bunch of scrap tin around the place. Why did you run the steel diagonally instead of square?

 

[tungularafishcamp]

The local co-op had one of those hay huts sitting around for YEARS. Not even horse people would buy it. It’s extremely flimsy, there’s no way it would last a week with cattle. Don’t worry about the rain, they’ll eat it.

I was wondering how sturdy they were or weren't!

Our place is a family place steeped in tradition Popular ritual is to feed small bales a couple times a day to have fresh dry offerings for the critters as they "won't eat wet hay" and as it is getting to be my turn at least for a few months every winter, I am looking for more time/effort/money efficient ways of keeping the cows/family happy.

 

[MMagis]

The slats should be diagonal to discourage smaller animals from climbing in. It won’t stop them, but makes it harder. You can buy feeding panels just like that, but welding them up is more fun. A couple precautions if you decide you want to make something like that. One, it needs to be very durable for cattle. They can tear up an anvil. Two, one single feeding station for twenty some cattle isn’t enough. Three, if you feed in the same spot and have a lot of rain, you’re going to have a horrible mud hole. To the point animals could get stuck. The hut should be movable.
I saw something that appeared to be a domed tarp -like cover that fit over a round bale ring in someone’s pasture once. That’s really the only thing I can see being worth the time and money. Cattle will eat wet hay, so there’s no real reason to worry about it getting wet. You just need to keep them from crapping in it.

 

[TnAndy]

"They can tear up an anvil."

AMEN ! So far, this feeder has outlasted several ring type, hence my name on it.

"Two, one single feeding station for twenty some cattle isn’t enough. "

I'd agree....I only have 3-6 cattle at any one time, and usually about 3-4. I also have a hay barn for square bales on a sloped hillside, with couple open stalls under neath and a feeder between I can chuck hay down in from above where the hay is stored. When the weather is going to turn really crappy....rain or snow or really cold, I keep it filled and they hang out there more.

For 20 cows, I'd build at least 2 of these, maybe 3, or make them to hold couple bales each. I built what I needed for my situation.

"Three, if you feed in the same spot and have a lot of rain, you’re going to have a horrible mud hole. To the point animals could get stuck. The hut should be movable."

My pasture is all on a slope, so we get fairly good drainage, but even so, they do make a mess of the same place....that's why I put it on 6x6 skids with the ends cut at a 45....I throw a chain around one end when the area gets too messy, and move it to another location.

As for the slanted bars, I just saw most other feeders did that, so I did too....no real reason I guess. It's just sq tubing with a few hours of cut/welding. One side I welded the female gate hinges to, and screwed the male pin ends into the 6x6 post.

 

[TnAndy]

The local co-op had one of those hay huts sitting around for YEARS. Not even horse people would buy it. It’s extremely flimsy, there’s no way it would last a week with cattle. Don’t worry about the rain, they’ll eat it.

Yeah....my thought as well....look pretty flimsy. As MMagis....cows can tear up an anvil. Overbuild anything that has anything to do with them.

 

[stuckmotor]

Jerry/MT,
I sometimes unroll a bale and there seems to be lots wasted. Is there less waste with a spinner and if so, why?
Stuck

 

[sweettractors]

DewEze | Harper Industries

The livestock folks around here use a similar device for loading, hauling and unrolling large round bales up to 6' diameter. It's mounted to a purpose made pickup flatbed with electric over hydraulics for clamping the bale and picking it up. Makes the rear end of the pickup squat a little when picking up a large bale of alfalfa.
I helped a local farmer haul water and feed cattle for a couple weeks this winter. We had one small group of heifers that got a 1/4 of a round bale per day. Did a little math to see what parts of a 6' round bale constituted a quarter bale. Turns out, using a 6' diameter bale, that 5'was about 3/4, 4' about 1/2 and 3' was the last quarter. We were unrolling the bales on the ground and it was a guesstimate at best but the critters didn't second guess us.

These unrollers are handy on our farm for a couple other reasons other than just feeding cattle. By changing rotating feeding areas with the unroller, we do not have the massive mud bog associated with stationery rings/feeders. In addition, we have seen tremendous new growth of legumes and some grass in the spring where have unrolled and fed hay. It seems that seed falls out of the hay and the cattle incorporate them into the soil. How about that for a easy and cheap reseeding method? Ken Sweet

 

[MMagis]

Jerry/MT,
I sometimes unroll a bale and there seems to be lots wasted. Is there less waste with a spinner and if so, why?
Stuck

He's talking about the same concept, unrolling a bale. The key is to only unroll enough for them to eat in a day. If they're laying in it the next morning, unroll less.

 

[sweettractors]

Another major advantage to feeding roll hay with a unroller is this method allows younger/smaller or older animals have access to the feed without having to compete with the dominant cows in the feeding group. Ken Sweet

 

[Egon]

Using the bucket to clean up the feeding area every few days also helps.

 

[MMagis]

I like to feed in my poorer pastures all winter, but I move the feeder with each new bale. I leave the wasted hay/manure there all winter until spring and then push what’s left into compost piles. Once those areas are dry I pull the disk over them and re-seed. It’s done wonders for some really poor dirt.

 

[tungularafishcamp]

Fed the first round bale this am, just cut the twine n unrolled it 60 some feet, stood it on end n picked it back up some loose stuff was ready to fall so pulled that off n put the rest in the barn, was pretty ez until the cattle figured out it was hay I was messin with and wanted to help

I like the idea of the home made huts best, would definitely put them on skids n move a bit every time I loaded them. Also thought about only having one solid side n feed off the other 3 sides. That way maybe we could get by with just two feeders.

 

[stuckmotor]

I like the hut idea too. I think my cows would appreciate a gutter or drip diverter on the side where rain comes off of the roof of the hut.

 

[japody]

These unrollers are handy on our farm for a couple other reasons other than just feeding cattle. By changing rotating feeding areas with the unroller, we do not have the massive mud bog associated with stationery rings/feeders. In addition, we have seen tremendous new growth of legumes and some grass in the spring where have unrolled and fed hay. It seems that seed falls out of the hay and the cattle incorporate them into the soil. How about that for a easy and cheap reseeding method? Ken Sweet

++What he and others have said. My unroller is mounted on the 3 pt.

 

[Jerry/MT]

Jerry/MT,
I sometimes unroll a bale and there seems to be lots wasted. Is there less waste with a spinner and if so, why?
Stuck

I don't have any scientific data regarding the amount of waste, just visual observation.
In theory the spinner will unroll a round bale into a windrow. With my cows, feeding alfalfa grass, I don't see much trampling or crapping and the hay disappears. With grass we see some leftover of the weathered outside part of the bales. The real trick with the spinner is not to over feed. That's what I don't like about feeders. Unless you move them every few days you make a big mess around the feeder and I have had cattle drag hay out of them and then lay on it in bad weather. By using a spinner (and I guess an un-roller) you can feed all over the field so you distribute manure pretty well.

I really think the best way to feed cattle large round bales and probably even square bales ( large and small) is with a haybuster, but for small operators, it's hard to justify the expense( ~$12-$25K new $7-10K used). One of my neighbors who has a couple of hundred head has one with load cells on it so he can off load a given amount of hay in a nice windrow to feed. He claims it has paid for itself with the savings in feed.

 

[npalen]

One problem I noticed with unrolling bales is knowing which direction to unroll. Unrolling opposite direction that is was baled, which may be unknown, is ideal. Sometimes have to drop the bale and drive around to pick it up from the opposite side.
A bale that has been wrapped with, well, bale wrap can be a challenge. The cows are in there trying to get a quick bite so you have to chase them away in order to cut and unroll the wrap. The bulls will try to ascertain there manhood to the ladies by bucking the bale which adds to the cluster.

 

[stuckmotor]

Jerry,
Thank you. I read an article where a guy said he'd been able to add several head after building a spinner and wondered why it was more efficient.

 

[Tx Jim]

One problem I noticed with unrolling bales is knowing which direction to unroll. Unrolling opposite direction that is was baled, which may be unknown, is ideal. Sometimes have to drop the bale and drive around to pick it up from the opposite side.
A bale that has been wrapped with, well, bale wrap can be a challenge. The cows are in there trying to get a quick bite so you have to chase them away in order to cut and unroll the wrap. The bulls will try to ascertain there manhood to the ladies by bucking the bale which adds to the cluster.

Not a challenge to determine which direction bale was rolled if one pays attention to end of twine/net on the outside of bale. IMHO unrolls same as unrolling toilet paper or paper towels. Check direction of twine or net before entering area where livestock are located.

 

[sweettractors]

One problem I noticed with unrolling bales is knowing which direction to unroll. Unrolling opposite direction that is was baled, which may be unknown, is ideal. Sometimes have to drop the bale and drive around to pick it up from the opposite side.
A bale that has been wrapped with, well, bale wrap can be a challenge. The cows are in there trying to get a quick bite so you have to chase them away in order to cut and unroll the wrap. The bulls will try to ascertain there manhood to the ladies by bucking the bale which adds to the cluster.

You are right on target with cows being in the way while taking off net wrap. The net wrap is murder on brush hog lower shaft output seals during the summer mowing/clipping. That is why I usually try to take the wrap off before I open the gate to go into the field. I would be very careful when cutting off wrap with rowdy cattle around. Ken Sweet