Hay loss in field

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Poppys Nannan

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As i have just moved my horses, the farmer puts a round bale of hay in the field, but there is a lot of wastage - hay on the floor being trodden upon and horses laid on it -

how do you mangae your hay in field to minimise wastage x


Many thanks :)
 
Happy new year x

No feeder in, just placed on the ground. I was wondering if there was any wonderful invention that people had which had helped to contain it a little !!!

cheers :)
 
I've got large wooden crates donated by a friend who was having work done on her house. All the new roofing tiles came in the crates :) Before I got them I tied four pallets together to make a "box". Cheap, easy to make and move and can be dismantled for storage. I wasted LOADS of hay just putting it on the ground by the time they laid in it and poo'd and pee'd on it . . . . .
 
if it's the big round bales then really the solution is the big round cattle feeders. However beware for mane rubbing on them!
 
I unroll mine, no fighting, and the horses clear up a lot better than mashing it in to the ground.

I refuse to use hay feeders unless they are just the trough type ones with solid sides. They might be 99% safe, but you can bet that the 1% that broke itself on one would be a horse I was responsible for. :(
 
Thanks for the replies.

Does anyone cover their bales up with tarpaulin or polythene and leave a gap at the bottom - just an idea i am mulling over

any ideas that anyone has tried and decided the idea didn't work.

thanks again for reading x x :o
 
i only have one horse so this may not be as easy for you...
I have an 8ft post in the ground (so its about 6ft sticking out the ground) with a tie ring at the top and i hang a haynet on there, i was feeding from the floor before and with snow/rain, it got trodden in and muddy. you could put a tarp over a big bale and then fill haynet(s) from it but it depends how many horses you've got ;)
 
Hay hutches cost a fortune tbh when you can make/find much better!

Big bales, if I dont have a round feeder i just cut a hole around the top of the plastic, like taking the top of a boiled egg and leave them to it. They tend to eat downwards, and it slows them down a bit because its tightly wrapped. Then I just trim off the plastic/netting as they make their way down the bale.

Its worth looking on ebay and preloved for cattle ring feeders on the cheap they are really useful.

For small hay bales I got these wooden boxes from my local farmers merchants for free :D and am now putting a net over the top so they cant pick through it and make a mess on the floor!

IMG_0443.jpg


Also loads of ideas for hay feeders on the paddock paradise link below :D

http://paddockparadise.wetpaint.com/page/Slow+Feeders
 
I've just posted my solution on "feeding hay in field!" Get a compost bin from your local garden centre, much cheaper than horsey stuff! The horse can only take as much as will fit in their mouth, so, no waste Hope this helps, its so infuriating to see all that haylage trampled to a pulp in the mud!
 
On our yard we have round feeders with some hard standing around them. Although they are expensive I think they are worth it or you could make one from crates. Another option is to put loads of tiny piles out (but quite time consuming)

I know some yards hang haynets on posts/the fence to stop wastage. I am sure there will be a way to suit you.
 
When I was feeding 5 horses from a round bale in the field, I used sheep hurdles to make a "fence" around the bale. All the horses could eat from it at the same time with minimal squabbling. It was easy for one person to move around the field to prevent the ground becoming too poached and I had very little waste. I found this much more convenient than round feeders as i cpuld just pack it up easily and store the hurdles up against the barn when they werent needed.
 
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