“Can We Cut Down on Wasted Hay?”
by Chris Reinhardt, feedlot specialist
Once upon a time, feed was cheap, but those days are gone. In the “good old” days wasted hay was not given a second thought; today, everything has value. Feeder design and processing of hay can have a major impact on utilization of hay.
K-State research suggests that processing hay into bunks can save between 11 and 15% of the value of the hay fed compared with simply unrolling onto the ground; we’ve probably all seen cows bedding down in hay. This will be worse if the ground is muddy and cows are desperate for a warm, dry, place to bed.
Simply using a bale feeder can reduce wastage by about 10% vs. unrolling onto the ground (again by preventing bedding onto unconsumed hay); however, design of the bale feeder can further reduce wastage.
Feeders with individual feeding stanchions can reduce waste by about 8% vs. those with no stanchions; cows are less likely to fling hay out or head-butt other cows during feeding if their lateral movement is restricted.
Hay feeders with a sheet metal floor reduce waste by 8%; moisture wicking upwards into the bale from the ground will make hay undesirable. An additional 8% of hay value can be retained by using they type of feeder which includes a “cone” in which the bale rests; the bale doesn’t contact the floor directly and cows have easier access to clean hay.
Studies suggest that hay wastage in floor-bottomed hay feeders with a bale cone can have wastage between 2.5-5% of the hay; conversely, wastage of hay fed in the open will range from 20-40%! If hay costs $130 per ton, we feed 24 lb per day for the next 120 days, the hay cost per cow will be $187 per cow. If we reduce wastage from 25% down to 5%, we can save over $30 per cow for the entire winter feeding season! That’s the equivalent of feeding one cow for FREE for every 5 cows in the herd.
