This trial shows that feeder design does impact hay waste. This trial is illustrated in Table. 1 and the feeder design is shown in Figure 1. (green feeders).
Feeder Type | |||||
Item | Cone | Ring | Trailer | Cradle | SEM |
Initial cow weight, lb. | 1383 | 1389 | 1390 | 1385 | 9.5 |
Hay disappearance, lb DM/hd/d | 26.4x | 26.6x | 30.5y | 28.3xy | 0.9 |
Hay waste, lb DM/hd/d | 0.9x | 1.5y | 3.5y | 4.2z | 0.22 |
Hay waste, %a | 3.5x | 6.1x | 11.4y | 14.6y | 0.8 |
Hay intake, lb DM/hd/d | 25.3 | 25.1 | 27.0 | 24.2 | 0.9 |
Intake/cow BW, % | 1.8 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 0.1 |
a Hay waste as a percentage of hay disappearance
xyz Within a row, least square means without a common superscript letter differ (P< .05)
Trial 2: Researchers at Oklahoma State University (Lalman) also looked at hay feeder design and associated wastes. Four different feeder designs were evaluated and the hay waste listed following each type:
- cone: 5.3%
- sheet: 13.0%
- ring: 20.5%
- poly: 21.0%
Costs were analyzed as well. They assumed a hay price of $116/ton or $70/bale.
- Assuming a producer with 30 cows will feed 180 bales in a season, the costs associated with hay waste were $667 (cone), $1,638 (sheet), $2,583 (ring), and $2,646 (poly) per season.
Feeder Type | ||||
Item | Cone | Sheet | Ring | Poly |
Waste, % bale wt. | 5.3x | 13.0y | 20.5z | 21.0z |
Total waste, lb/bale | 63.6x | 156y | 246z | 252z |
Cost of waste/bale, $* | 3.71x | 9.10x | 14.35y | 14.70y |
Cost of wasted hay/month, $* | 111,39 | 273.00 | 430.50 | 441.00 |
Cost of wasted hay/season, $* | 66.7.80 | 1638.00 | 2583.0 | 2646.00 |
xyz Within a row, least square means without a common superscript letter differ (P< .05)
*Assuming $70 per 1,200 bale, feeding 180 bales per season
It is easy to see that improved feeder designs like the cone-shaped hay feeder can save producers money by reducing hay waste.
Recap
In summary, bale feeder design can impact hay waste. Reducing loss from hay waste can not only be a good way to stretch short hay supplies, but it can also contribute as a cost-saver to the cow/calf enterprise. Reducing waste is a component of lowering feed costs. Profitable cow/calf producers will always be focused on reducing feed costs.