Hay feeders or rings?

Help Support CattleToday:

We've been through this discussion many times.

I use cradles built out of old trampoline frames. Here's a pic if you care to look. http://ranchers.net/photopost/showphoto ... puser/2144

I now have 14 of these. The gussets are what give them strength. It sure seems to save a lot of hay. Someone in my nephew's neighborhood had another old trampoline frame and my nephew got it and brought it to me. So I should have 16 within a month :)

With the rings, the hay is automatically on the ground. When the hay gets down to a certain level, the cows push the rings off. If it is raining and your hay is on the ground, it is just that much more waste. Tried the cone in the ring and wound up with an egged cone some how. Fixed it and it got egged again the next year.

I am thinking these cradles have my waste down to less than 10%. When you feed a few hundred bales, that makes a difference. The main herd is 20 miles away. I can put out a few days worth of hay. Even when I am down there every day, I don't have to mess with hay unless they run low.

There are some cattle panel pieces welded into the bottom of these cradles I built. Fines still get through but calves eat the fines it seems.

Caustic put me on to this idea a few years back, here in this forum with one of his neighbor's store bought versions.
 
jedstivers":rtonb7bc said:
Wish you had a few more pictures of those things so I could see the design a little better.

If you are referring to me jed, I can get some pics. Here is an explanation of them.

You take two of the U post bases, run a piece of angle iron across them. Old bed frame iron or store bought - whatever you have. A few of mine have tube steel across them.

Run the bowed pieces from a round trampoline frame across the centers and weld them to the angle iron pieces.

Flip it over and weld a piece of iron across the middle of the bows, then run a pieces of tube steel gussets from that center member back to the U post bases.

Flip it back over and run 8 short gusset pieces at each corner. 20 inch long pieces of angle or pipe etc. Just something to give strength to the legs.

Cut a scrap piece of wire cattle panel and lace it across the bow inside.

I put a 8 to 10 inch vertical piece of tube steel or angle up from each corner and weld a rail around on top.

You can load them in the pick-up truck by yourself. They are fairly light. The gussets are what give them strength. I load tested the first one with 1 and 1/2 bales of 4 by 6 coastal hay. Pushed it around a bit and it held.

Old trampoline frames are around. Gather them up if you can.

Most of the items in mine is pure scrap or short iron. I probably have less than $10 or 15 in each of them. You can't buy used hay rings for that.
 
I have both feeders and rings. Feeders are my main way of feeding hay all winter. This is the brand I use:

http://www.balefeeder.com/

Darn near indestructible. I use a double and a single version. They keep the hay off of the ground. Early spring calves like to go under them for shelter also.

Rings are lighter and less expensive so tend to be my add-on choice when I need to move a ring down the road so I have a couple of various types of those also.

Jim
 
jedstivers":dv1vreuv said:
Thanks Backhoe, I'm going to build a few sometime to use when it's raining. When it's dry we unroll it
If I were to use them only when it is raining............looks like I won't ever need one.......... :(
 
jedstivers":tbi7rlxu said:
Wish you had a few more pictures of those things so I could see the design a little better.

Here's another view after I flipped one upside down. (if the pic works). This should give you views of the gussets. I am pretty sure this one has gussets made of old thin wall galvanized pipe that came off of a cyclone fence someone ripped out.

http://ranchers.net/photopost/showphoto ... puser/2144

and yet another view with cradles upside down and righted. Two gussets at each corner and two gussets from the center legs back to the cradle bow. That is the strength.

http://ranchers.net/photopost/showphoto ... puser/2144
 
Welding galvanized steel, old or new, can be hazardous since the zinc coating gives off some nasty gases. Respirator is best but even a fan blowing fumes away is better than nothing. Be careful. Jim
 

Latest posts

Top