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Post by horselover4life on Jan 20, 2015 15:13:01 GMT
Well, I am approaching a dilemma and need some advice and guidance from my friends....
I currently feed square bales, but they are getting harder to find and with the scarcity they are also getting rather pricey. Hay season was lousy here this past year...
Hay season and baling won't start till around April if lucky, probably May.... pasture should come back sooner than haying season but......till then  
I can feed round bales of superb quality hay from where I got my first 2 tons of square bales.... {he has no squares left}
Now...rounds are about 1000 pounds each.
Hay is so nice smelling, green and completely weed free.
Here is my issues.....yes, a few.
1. never fed rounds before and expect the horse will gorge themselves when first allowed at the bale. Does anyone feed extra salt, loose in their feed to make them drink more or do they consume enough extra water when they are gorging?
2. many have the bales loose in their fields... wag finger.
Mine will be under my barn overhang to keep it out of the weather.
So, does anyone use a "ring" on their bales?
And do you use the cow ring or did you go for the added expense of the horse ring?
Do you see a need to spend an extra $145+ for it to be "horse" and not "cow" labeled?
This is a link to a cow ring and then to 2 horse rings...
www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/galvanized-economic-bale-feeder
www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/horse-bale-feeder
www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/countylinereg%3B-galvanized-horse-bale-feeder
I just bought a ton of hay, square bales, but my pasture is not growing and I am feeding a lot of hay. I'll be lucky if this lasts me 5 weeks....some bales are so light, not great quality hay....I won't buy from this place again I am that displeased but got what I could when I needed it...
If I go to round bales I can go back to where I started buying my hay and have great quality, consistency and the horses love it.
Both horses though I can see making a bed in it, peeing and pooping on it and just being slobs....this is under my barn and that just doesn't work for me. No large farm tractor to clean up the mess, so a pitchfork to dispose of waste it is....for that reason I am trying to reduce the waste I know will happen with some hay, I would like to not lose hundreds of pounds of hay due to them being piggy on and in it....
Thought, Suggestions......
HELP!!!
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Post by lorddaxter on Jan 20, 2015 16:08:17 GMT
I, my input!
I tried rounds in the field, never again, gorged and too much waste.
Heard too many horror stories about rings and all those metal holders.
I feed squares and rounds, I use slow feeder hay nets, I put 2 in they last all day along with a couple piles on the ground to keep them off my bad while I hang the nets lol!
I put another 2 nets in at night and another 2 loose piles, lasts them till morning.
Now the slow feeder nets I use are 2 different sizes, 2 have bigger holes and 2 smaller holes, I use the smaller ones at night as it takes them longer to get it out, this has been working very very good for me, I am glad I bought these nets as pricey as they were:)
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Lipizzan
Junior Member
Europe, Croatia
Posts: 2,572 
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Post by Lipizzan on Jan 20, 2015 17:16:11 GMT
Benefits: When you look at space, a round bale will take less space then same amount of cube bales. The way how is hay retracted in the baler for round bale more petal is saved on a plant. They are cheaper then cube bales(at least here). If they are left outside , they will rot slower then small cubes. Logically.
Shortcomings: They are heavy, so some kind of machinery is necessary, also it is hard to keep track how much you spend, and waste of hay is more likely.
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Post by horselover4life on Jan 20, 2015 17:19:52 GMT
I have slow feeder nets with 2x2 openings....I had the smaller ones{11/2"}, they frustrated my sons horse so much he didn't try to eat hay...so, that was a no-go.
I stuff and mean stuff the net, so about 4-5 flakes easy in the net....
2 horses on it and it is gone, completely gone in 2 hours at most.
I go out at mid-morning and give 2 more flakes of hay in a net....1/2 hour at most gone.
Again a stuffed net at night same as the morning, gone in like 2 hours.
It isn't Chance, it is Hondo who is a vacuum with hay.
He won't walk away but does gorge and prefers hay over the job of grazing so....
It is also Hondo I have been warned by the previous owner that will make a bed, pee and poop on the hay then won't eat it of course...
I'm using a bale of hay in 3 feedings if I'm lucky...light bale means gone sooner.
If I toss loose flakes I kid you not when I say 20 minutes or less and it is completely gone....
See my dilemma.... 
However, I also only feed about 1 1/2 pounds of feed to them each daily. They eat hay and do graze what still grows but my poor field can't keep up with Mr. Vacuum.....he nearly never lifts his head, always munching.
When he isn't stuffing his face though I am out the door in a flash to check on him....
When we brought home these last bales I had enough smidgens, you know the little pieces left behind we had a huge pile..... we had put down tarps on the ground in anticipation and sure enough we had a pile that ended up being probably 21/2 feet high and 3-4 feet long{we had my neighbors 2 ton off-loaded in our barn area to her trailer at the same time}..... I fed my sons horse from the hay net in his stall regular baled hay, "the vacuum" ate the loose pieces as he loves to do...it is the only time I have ever seen him stop eating he ate so much...he went and hung out for a little while then went right back to stuffing his face...
I'm not even sure a roll is a good idea because of "the vacuum" and his gorging he does.... I may have to limit the time & access they have and that would also defeat the purpose of free-accessibility as they want or need....
OK...I fed 3 flakes, good sized heavy flakes in a net at 11:30AM, GONE! NOt even 45 minutes...
Chance, my sons horse is lying down resting as he does every day about this time for a hour. Now, "the vacuum" is grazing again ....he sure isn't skinny, he just loves to eat!
Are your hay nets large enough in size to hold a full 50 pound bale each or how much hay is in them? 3/4, !/2, 1/3. 1/4 bale..... 2 flakes in a net??
Like I said.... 
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Post by horselover4life on Jan 20, 2015 17:26:43 GMT
I am accustomed to Chance and his eating from before we brought home Hondo. 3 heavy flakes of hay would last him till mid afternoon from him being fed at 5:30 AM which is when my guys are fed every day before I go to work...even weekends I am up and out to feed at a fairly consistent time... So, 6 flakes of hay was lasting a entire day in the slow feed net. When I went out in the morning, there was still hay in the net from the evening feed at 5:00PM.... Now, I can't keep enough in front of them with the "vacuum"..... He isn't that big a horse....only 15.3 and stocky build. Ideas? I'm feeding nearly double this and still can't keep it in front of them.....listen, hear the vacuum??? munch, munch, munch, munch, munch, munch.......................Remember, it doesn't sound like all that much hay, but they still graze all day long too if they wish and my "vacuum" wishes and never quits.... |
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Post by diamondgirl on Jan 20, 2015 18:30:37 GMT
I use 1800 pound round bales.
2. I have a horse ring. I have seen horses rub their manes out on the cattle feeders. I have not seen, but was told about a horse who got spooked, threw up his head, and got hung up in a cow feeder. He wasn't hurt, but did turn the ring over.
2. Yes you need a ring, or something to keep the horses out of the hay. If it is not protected, they will waste even more.
Ming has a round bale feeder that looks more like a sleeve, that fits over the round bale. I even think she posted a link under product reviews. I have thought I would like to try one, but I have no way to stand a bale on end, so I don't know how I would get a sleeve on one.
1. My horses don't gorge themselves. On really cold days they spend a lot of time eating at the bale. On warmer days they eat awhile, then stand and nap awhile. On rainy days they go out to the bale awhile, then go stand in the barn awhile.
Yes there is a lot of waste. They toss out what they don't want to eat right now, then poop and pee on it, so it isn't good for later, although I have seen them pick through it. Ewwww. When I can, I try to scoop the soiled hay, into a big pile in the middle of the lot. The bacteria gets to working in the pile, and my horses like to lay on the pile, to sleep, in the winter. I notice that the  melts off the soiled hay pile, before it melts off the bare ground, so it must be producing some nice heat.
I like the fact that my horses never run out of hay. They eat what they need, to stay warm, and never have to wait for a meal. I put their hay at the other end of the lot, so they have to walk back and forth, between the hay and their water and shelter. It isn't very far, but I do want them to have to move around some.
As far as extra salt. I go give them extra salt in the winter. I mix it into their hot mash they get twice a day. They don't drink as much water in the winter. I have a tank heater, but the water still feels pretty cold to me. Never icy, but fairly cold. Well that is unless the temp is in the single, or negatives. Then it actually feels warm, when compared to the air temp. |
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mingiz
Junior Member
Los Lunas, NM
Posts: 3,320
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Post by mingiz on Jan 20, 2015 18:39:25 GMT
I feed round bales. I use a bale buddy which has worked well. But now the horses have figured out how to pull the top down on it. I don't like the rings. I have seen so many horses get there legs into them, plus they rust out over time. The do have rings made out of the hard resin plastic now.
My next purchase for round bales is going to be a hay hut, Which has 8 windows that the horses put their heads in to eat. It's moveable and will keep the hay dry. You place the bale it self on a pallet. They are pricey but for my use it will be a good asset.
They do make a hay net to fit the round bales with the small squares you talk about. You have to contain it or there is a lot of waste. I have some waste with the bale buddy only because they pull it out and then don't eat it. I wish I could find squares here. So I have them for stalling and camping.
The only thing about round bales is the equipment to move them. I use a 3 point spear on the back of my tractor. Your tractor needs to be capable of picking up a 1k bale. I have know people to get round bales and peel off what they want to use instead of putting the whole bale out.
Hay Hut Attachment Deleted
Round bale hay nets Attachment Deleted
Attachment Deleted
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Post by horselover4life on Jan 20, 2015 18:53:18 GMT
Well, that just took care of that....
I will be on the hunt for squares again.....pay through the nose I will be.
My tractor is small and not able to move that amount of weight without killing it honestly.
My boys will just have to do as they can when I feed...think I may put that slower feed net out and see if slowing down "the vacuum" some more is possible.
I can always feed Chance in his stall loose hay to make up for the difference he won't go after from the net often....
Chance because he was neglected/starved can be food pushy and nasty to Hondo if he dares to come in his stall when food is around. Chance also now eats and not plays with his food, hay and feed....he licks his bucket clean or Hondo does!!
The waste part is just ridiculous and it will be under my barn to protect it once they start pulling it apart.
I wasn't sure about the expense of buying those rings...and it would have to be a horse ring with my clowns...
Thanks guys.....now to find a good supplier of hay with quality. Garbage I can get lots of and pay...good stuff I still pay for but harder to come by do to the lousy haying season we had....ggrrrghhhhhh....
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Post by lorddaxter on Jan 20, 2015 19:14:26 GMT
I can fit a square bale in my nets, they're not huge bales though, maybe 40-50lbs, yes mine hate the small holes too but if hungry will eat them, sounds like you have a difficult customer:(
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Post by carshon on Jan 20, 2015 20:03:24 GMT
I have two round bales out for 4 horses. My horses do not have access to the bales at all times. They are let out in the field where the bales are for about 4-5 hours per day. In the past week they have gotten down to the core of one of the round bales and have peeled off the stuff they do not want and are now standing in it. I hate the waste but it got very cold here so I wanted something to keep them warm. My gelding Naughty Steve is also a vacum. He is 16H and very stocky - and will eat twice as fast as the other horses. I tend to put his hay in multiple places in his run just so he has to look for it. I tried the slow feeder nets and he chewed through them - literally worked on on spot long enough to chew through the net and make the hole bigger so he could eat faster.
Good Luck with the hay search - that is the worst thing about horse ownership
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Post by horselover4life on Jan 20, 2015 22:43:49 GMT
I have two round bales out for 4 horses. My horses do not have access to the bales at all times. They are let out in the field where the bales are for about 4-5 hours per day. In the past week they have gotten down to the core of one of the round bales and have peeled off the stuff they do not want and are now standing in it. I hate the waste but it got very cold here so I wanted something to keep them warm. My gelding Naughty Steve is also a vacum. He is 16H and very stocky - and will eat twice as fast as the other horses. I tend to put his hay in multiple places in his run just so he has to look for it. I tried the slow feeder nets and he chewed through them - literally worked on on spot long enough to chew through the net and make the hole bigger so he could eat faster. Good Luck with the hay search - that is the worst thing about horse ownership
At least now I know it isn't just me who has one that eats twice as fast and twice as much as their stablemate...makes having them together difficult at feeding time. wag finger
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Post by horselady on Jan 21, 2015 1:52:37 GMT
Feeding two horses you should stick to square bales unless the rounds you get can be peeled and dolled out either in hay nets or those homemade garbage can hay feeders that were on the forum a while ago. that way the hay stays dry and the horse eats what they want and there is no mess or waste, i am sure rounds do come smaller in your area. you just need to ask for 4 x 5 or 4 x 4 diameter. .
to me the need for rounds are great for the times a person is going to be away and you do not want to be paying someone to feed the horses am and pm. they will have access to the hay all day and someone check on them at night. or in the am.
if someone is in the colder climates or are feeding a herd. than the round bales will definitely be more beneficial.
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Lipizzan
Junior Member
Europe, Croatia
Posts: 2,572
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Post by Lipizzan on Jan 21, 2015 8:37:16 GMT
We always used small bales. For the hay and straw. Because we have that kind of baler. My boyfriend use round ones though. He has a lot of horses and cows so he needs round bales more then I do. And I don't like to handle round ones.
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melts off the soiled hay pile, before it melts off the bare ground, so it must be producing some nice heat.
