Self-Feeding Hay Shed Saves Labor, Time

Self-Feeding Hay Shed Saves Labor, Time BUILDINGS Livestock 23-4-32 "My self feeding hay shed saves a lot of time and labor. It's especially great in cold weather because I don't have to start a tractor to feed cattle," says cow-calf operator Phil Dubois, Madawaska, Maine. Dubois fills the 35-ft. wide, 60-ft. long shed with 200 4 by 4-ft. round bales, stacked two high. Cattle feed through a 4-ft. high gate built from 1 by 2-in. rectangular steel tubing. The feed gate stands on four steel T-shaped legs. The top of the gate is tied with rope in four places to the building's wooden trusses to keep it from being pushed over. Dubois cuts the strings off the bales before placing them inside the shed. To feed the bales he moves the gate up against them. Then he just keeps moving the gate forward as needed. "The bale feeding shed also serves as a shelter for calves born in April and May - they can slip under the gate and into the bale storage area. The open side of the shed faces south so they stay warm. In the summer I remove the rack and clean out the manure and hay," says Dubois. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Phil Dubois, Rt. 2, Box 381, Madawaska, Maine 04756 (ph 207 728-4291).

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