Since goats are herd animals there is usually an existing hierarchy within a herd. While your goats may not all be eating hay at the same time, you’ll want to make sure feed is accessible for all animals. You may need multiple hay feeders, depending on how many goats can eat at a feeder at one time. Rack feeder: v-shaped where goats can eat from both sides.Basket or cradle style where the bale is lifted up off the ground.Over-the-wall or pen-style feeder, typically for individual stalls used during kidding.Here are a few examples of the types of feeders you might find: You’ll find better success for feeders designed specifically for goats or sheep over generic all-livestock hay feeders or ones designed for cattle. There are a lot of goat feeder options to choose from. How much time do you spend feeding hay with this style feeder?.
With larger bales, how easily will the bale be accessible after the bale has been partially eaten? Once the bale is partially eaten does it become a pile of hay rather than in bale form? Sometimes this can be more challenging for goats to eat.How tall is the feeder? Can younger goats or growing kids still access the hay?.Can goats with horns get their heads stuck? If it’s larger they’ll also be able to pull out large mouthfuls of hay, usually increasing waste. The opening width of the bars or grates.When deciding on a feeder style also consider: However, during the winter months, we are using a collapsible style panel feeder with round bales. For example, when we feed hay during kidding season, we use an individual hanging feeder in kidding pens. It’s possible you may need to have different feeders for your goats depending on the situation. The type of bales you’re feeding: small squares, round bales or large squares.Average rainfall in your area during the time period you’ll feed hay.The season you’re feeding hay: winter, spring, summer, fall.When choosing a goat hay feeder you’ll need to consider the context of your farm, as well as when and how you’ll feed the hay to your goats. For example, a $75 round bale of alfalfa hay, would equate to $11.25 per bale with a hay feeder to $37.50 of hay waste loss per value. I’d estimate with the feeder waste is 15% of the bale, while no feeder is closer to 50%. When we use our collapsable style panel bale feeder as compared to using no feeder, I’ve noticed a considerable difference in waste. This means you actually have more hay to feed your goats. Save moneyĮven though buying the right goat hay feeder can be costly, in the long-run you’ll save money because of the reduced hay waste. When feeding goats large hay bales, such as round bales or large squares, without a hay feeder you run the risk of having bales collapse on goats, adults or kids. This can possibly lead to health issues with kids, who typically have lower immune systems since they’re still growing. And, goats, especially kids, may end up eating that waste off the ground. However, goat hay feeders that have wider openings will still allow for excessive hay waste. Animal health and wellbeingįeeding goats hay up off the ground in a hay feeder will also reduce the risk of goats infecting themselves with parasites, coccidiosis, or other health issues. It is very possible with a hay feeder you may still find your goats are wasting a lot of hay.īelow you’ll find my recommendation on the best goat hay feeder style that produces less hay waste.
However, not all hay feeders are created equal when it comes to minimizing waste. Using a hay feeder will help reduce how much hay is wasted. Here are three reasons why you should use a hay feeder: Reduce hay wasteĪnyone who raises goats knows they are notorious hay wasters. While it can be tempting to not use a hay feeder, especially when you’re just getting started with raising goats, I’d encourage you to take the time to find the right hay feeder for your farm and ranch.
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