Hay feeder mess?

[Ouachita]

What is your strategy, or tactical effort with the mess.
I'm looking for better ideas and curious what others do.

I have previously tried many different things. So far, the method that seems to provide best bang for the buck, is to move the feeders every time I feed.

I don't sleep well at night if I don't move them. Missed moving them one time this winter, when we had that brutal cold followed by the five days of constant rain.

FULL STOP (I think I may have just earned charter member status in the "question our intelligence" thread). I'm with the dog, looking at cow butts and listening to music on my Bluetooth speaker. The phone rang…….through my Bluetooth speaker. I'm scrambling to find my phone when I realize that I'm holding it in my hand, attempting to post something on the CT forum.

I'll be back. It was the wife.

 

[Ouachita]

She just wanted me to know that she didn't feel like cooking tonight, so she brought home KFC….."come gittit if yer hungry"
She's a peach. Really. She only needs a bit less bossyness, but thinking that would take all the fun out of it.

The hay feeder areas……
I've used a tedder and didn't care for the results. Used a landscape rake and felt the same.

The last two years, I've been using an 8 foot pull behind bush hog to munch it all.

This past fall, I considered since I'm putting out hay anyway, might as well make efficient use of my time; when we get older, we learn these really cool things that are mostly useless to us now. (I've heard older people talk about this sudden epiphany, after they've successfully tied their shoe and then wonder what else they can accomplish while they are in that position).

 

[gcreekrch]

We move bale rings every time we feed

 

[1982vett]

I move pretty much every time I put out a roll. About the only time I don't is if I'm topping off one that isn't eaten down enough to abandon it. This happens sometimes when we are going out of town and they need feeding before I get back.

Other than that, the leftovers get taken care of by Mother Nature.

I'd rather unroll, but this year it took 10-14 Days for them to finish a roll.

 

[SBMF 2015]

Start with good quality hay and good fences, don't spoil the cows. They'll clean up more than you think they will.
And YES MOVE the feeders every time.

 

[chevytaHOE5674]

Unroll all my hay. No mess to clean up. Manure is spread where it needs to be.

 

[Brute 23]

If I catch a green up right at the crack of spring I line to throw a match on the old hay circles. It cleans up the hay and any string or any thing that might have got missed.

 

[Ouachita]

Before I move the round bale feeders, I've been sprinkling some seed, then using my brute strength to roll the feeders.

I keep a bit of mixed seed with me. After I pluck rocks, I sprinkle seed.

 

[Hogfarmer10]

I've got some places that I feed bales with rings on pasture, they get moved each feeding. Other places, I feed on concrete. Try to scrape the pads off every 7-10 days, and pile the mess up to spread later. Other places, I unroll. I usually pull a drag across where the rings were after I finish feeding. Took a page from a neighbor and started going over where I unroll with a bushhog in early spring. It really does help the leftovers break down faster.

 

[Ouachita]

 

[Hoover]

We move them once a week whether the round feeder or square bale feeder. Trick is to make them clean it up, then piles equal wasted dollars

 

[sstterry]

View attachment 41652

Pffft... You should see the gound here after one feeding.

 

[kenny thomas]

Unroll hay. No feeders to buy, no feeders to move, no mess to clean up.

 

[sstterry]

Unroll hay. No feeders to buy, no feeders to move, no mess to clean up.

Unless you are short on hay, which has been a problem in our area. I am fine now, but, last month I was trying to stretch it.

 

[kenny thomas]

Unless you are short on hay, which has been a problem in our area. I am fine now, but, last month I was trying to stretch it.

I disagree, unrolling saves hay. Or just unroll what you want them to have and save even more.

 

[sstterry]

I disagree, unrolling saves hay. Or just unroll what you want them to have and save even more.

I try to always unroll, but I find less waste with a ring. I don't use them much but if I am forced to, I use a ring on the rare occasion.

 

[SmokinM]

Pffft... You should see the gound here after one feeding.

Amen, 24 hrs. here around a hay ring you have a crop circle that lasts for years. I hate them with a passion. Well really feeding hay in general. Unroll it all, hate the waste but can't take the mud pits.

 

[kenny thomas]

I try to always unroll, but I find less waste with a ring. I don't use them much but if I am forced to, I use a ring on the rare occasion.

I need to find some studies that were done showing its less waste. Plus all cows or calves get to eat instead of just the bosses.

 

[Warren Allison]

View attachment 41652

How many cows are you feeding? You just have this one feeder? I agree with @Brute 23 ( can you believe it?:!!!) Set those spots on fire.

 

[Ouachita]

I disagree, unrolling saves hay. Or just unroll what you want them to have and save even more.

My cows must be some rank slobs; no table manners….attall. Every time I've rolled a bale out, they have it soiled with poop and pee way before it's half eaten.

Guess I need to potty train and work on table manners.