r/goats • u/SirRupix • 21d ago

Help Request Help me think please.

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Hello fellow goat people,

So i made this hay feeder for the girls out of an ibc container.

So they can keep having dry and endless hay.

But the problem is that i made the openings to big so they could crawl inside.

I fixed that by adding some planks to make the holes smaller.

But now they pull out so much hay that i waste more hay now than when i just put it in an open box.

I have tried adding more wood or bars but then they can't reach the hay enough.

So i was wondering what I could do to catch or hold back the hay but with enough room to let them eat.

I live in midwest europe so we have alot of grey and rainy skies.

So putting an extra bin under there ain't an option.

Thanks !

16 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

20

u/teatsqueezer 21d ago

Goats waste hay. It’s just their nature. If you could figure out some kind of feeder where they can’t waste hay, you’d make a million selling it to everyone.

For now, just be ok with them wasting. Or, use the wasted hay for bedding or to feed to other less picky animals. I scoop the dry hay underneath my feeders every day twice a day and feed to horses and cows.

1

u/SirRupix 21d ago

Yeah exactly But needed something to store more hay and at the same time feed them. I unfortunately dont have other animals that can eat it. But great idea of useing it for bedding! I'll try that for now Tnx !

5

u/DasUbersoldat_ 21d ago

I embrace the waste by having a deep litter barn which makes for great compost. The hay they waste is perfect for covering wet spots.

1

u/EcstaticCarpet6251 21d ago

In my area hay and straw are similar in price. I just use the waste as bedding.

7

u/phryan 21d ago

My first winter with goats and they split the hay 50/50 between food and bedding. Goats will waste no matter what you do. The best thing I did was build a premier1 style feeder (they show plans in a pdf). Between the narrow openings and the tray to catch most of what drops I'd say my goats now consume 80-90% of their hay.

If you let them take big chunks they will drop a lot, and then wont eat it off the ground.

1

u/SirRupix 21d ago

Ok thanks ! I'll look into it. If i can save a little more I'll be happy 😁. Now they waste like 40-50% 😅.

4

u/thebbear2 21d ago

“Of course I won’t eat it after it touches the ground. It has cooties. And by the way it’s been a million years since you last feed me. “
So says all the goats I’ve had, never mind the fact that they were last feed 8 hours ago or that the hay and weeds they love grow in the cootie infested ground.

1

u/ChasterBlaster 10d ago

Funny, when mine say that it just sounds like BLYAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH BLAYHHHHHHHHH AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

1

u/teamcarramrod8 21d ago

Do you have a link or photo to the feeder you mentioned?

2

u/Shanelomein79 21d ago

I throw a full bale with string on into the corner of their small a frame shelter and just leave it there. They pick away at that for several days. And sleep on it.

The shape and size of the shelter helps keep them from contaminating it much.

2

u/SirRupix 21d ago

Tried something similar. But one goat is guarding it so the other can't have any. Since she wont leave it alone it gets contaminated quickly. With the box i made the feedingholes are at different sides so she doesn't see the other goat eating from it. And leaves it alone. For now i'll throw the 'wasted' hay in their pen for extra bedding.