I've had a dozen different kinds of hay feeders. I love none of them. LOL

With the girls (and boys) separated fairly extensively by age, status, etc., but still being "small scale", I need light weight, easily moved, safe, homemade, unwasteful feeders.

From personal experiance, what works for you?

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow1@aol.com), May 11, 2002

Answers

I am sorry, I can't help you, you have never met my husband, builder of all things, builder of all things that could hold up to elephants! I love my hay feeders made from 4 inch by 4 inch welded panels, they can not get their heads into them and can only lip out what they need, yet they eat lots of hay. Another really good one is my huge (coffin) boxes outside the cattle panel fences, bit huge lid lift up, 2 bales fit inside, then smash down, so don't keep your hands anywhere near them! The goats eat with their heads through the cattle panel, then into the slatted coffin boxes. But nothing keeps them from wasting hay, thank goodness for donkeys! Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), May 11, 2002.

I've used the 4x4 inch panels...someone gave me a couple, I really liked them. (I'm always worried feeders using a regular stock panel will get someones neck snapped in a crash n' bash...) I think you can find them in sheep breeders supply catalogs. Expensive!!!

I'm pretty handy, are the feeders all welded wire? Or, wood framed, or....? You ARE lucky hubby makes yours!!!

I also have a coffin type feeder, it is fine for the bigger pen. But I seem to "change around the furniture" pretty often, I do the same thing in my house! "Hmmmm, I should move this over here, it would make it so much easier..." ;)

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow1@aol.com), May 12, 2002.

If you did your hay feeders in a smaller design, my is 10 foot long and 4 feet high, then you could move them. They are framed on the sides and once in the middle with a triangle 2x4 framed, then plywood covered. I will go snap some pics and see if I can send them to you, I also have smaller moving ones for the other pens that I move inside winters and outside summers! Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), May 12, 2002.

Hey, Thanks!

I'm totally revamping the feeders and new ideas are great! My current feeders sound similar, but with slats the openings seemed too wide...waste, waste, waste! Work in progress as usual, lol

Thanks so much!

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow1@aol.com), May 12, 2002.

Question. I'll be building feeders soon also. Do the keyhole feeders really help prevent waste? They're wood intensive, but if they work, I'll try 'em.

There's a place near Madill, OK called Oklahoma Wire and Pipe (I think) that you can get 4x4 panels pretty cheap if you get 50. If people went together to need that many, it would sure save money. We can't find any 4x4 panels here.

Dennis

-- Dennis (westwoodcaprine@yahoo.com), May 13, 2002.

Dennis, you are scarring me!!! :) Folks getting together and purchasing something in bulk to share??? Isn't that something like a Cooperative or something? A Goat cooperative? Did you just fall off the turnup truck? Goat Cooperative is an oxymoron.....:) Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), May 14, 2002.

Patty, Premier sheep supply sells the 4x4 panels. They also have plans for an eight foot long feeder that they will send you for free. These work pretty well, and are easy to move. (I put runners on mine) I put mine right outside the pen, and the girls put their heads through the gates to eat. This spring, I intend to remove the gates, and mount hog panels above the feeders to keep the girls from jumping in the feeders, instead. These feeders are easy to build, (I built mine)and have a trough along the bottom for grain. Good luck!

-- Judy in IN (whileaway3@cs.com), May 15, 2002.

Yeah, I think those panels are probably my best bet for all the things I'm looking for, weight and durability being a biggie.

Now these panels with the 4x4 openings, are they full sized? I've only seen them mini, not 4'x 16' total.

Thanks for the tip as to where to look...I wish I could find them locally!

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow1@aol.com), May 15, 2002.

Hi Patty, we use the short ones, called hog panels here, for our infants to stay in, we just ben the 16 foot panel into a 4x4 pen, they are great, I am tall enough in the leg to bend over and scoop out a kid.

The 4x4 inch square panels here are 4 x 20 feet, so they made me to 10 foot feeders., more expensive than the regular 2 by 16 cattle panels we use for everything else, but these do not make good hay feeders, way to much waste. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), May 15, 2002.

Oh, yes! I know all about stock and hog panels! Gotta luv-luv-luv em! You use hutches in the kid pens?

No, I meant the ones more suited (4x4)....you get them locally? I wonder why they don't have them around here? Maybe I'll ask around and see if someone can order them for me..I guess I thought they were more of a "specialty item". And 20' long and 4 tall? I'd be loving that! ;)

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow1@aol.com), May 15, 2002.

Vicki, I get your drift;-) Cooperatives mostly don't!

Dennis

-- Dennis (westwoodcaprine@yahoo.com), May 20, 2002.

I just did a "Google.com" search on hay feeders to see if my husband's web site would show up - never got that far before I found your discussion on hay feeders on their list. Aaaanywaaay - My husband (Horsepasture Mfg) builds Grate Bale Box Feeders that promote total hay consumption. We've had nothing but Very Positive feedback on them. While they were originally marketed to the sheep breeders (because no wasted hay, there was also no hay in handspinning fleeces), alpaca breeders, then angora goat breeders - and now, several dairy goat breeders have "discovered" them. Truly portable, truly hay saving devices. One dairy goat operation told me just in April that they went from 600bales over the winter to 200bales because there was absolutely no waste. I don't know about the policy about advertising in this group - so I will say no more - except that if you want the website that explains these feeders (available in all stainless steel complete feeders, in build it yourself kits, etc, accessories include wheel kits, roof/goat guard kits, etc), please email me and I'll give it to you. Thanks! Merike (homespun@kimbanet.com)

-- Merike Saarniit (homespun@kimbanet.com), July 08, 2002.

Oh, that sounds great! Looking forward to it! You can pot here the rules state, "Sales of goats and goat related items are allowed.", so post away! The url may be helpful to others as well.

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow@aol.com), July 08, 2002.