Quick DIY Hay Feeder

We’re not quite sure how much longer the goats will be able to get their primary sustenance from browsing in the woods, but it can’t be more than 4 or 6 more weeks, at the most.

We got a delivery of hay that should last us some significant portion of the winter, but need a way to feed it to them.  (Goats don’t like to eat off of the ground, and are understandably picky about their food not being soiled or dirty, too.)

There are of ways to feed hay to goats, but I took loose inspiration from this set of instructions, making a few changes to simplify and lighten it.  I was able to build it all with 3 or 4 2x4s and 3 1x4s, screws and bolts we had around, and a few scrap pieces of lattice underneath.

I didn’t take detailed notes, but the general idea was something like this:

1. Build rectangles for the top and bottom of the feederIMG_4093

 

2. Attach legs to one of the rectangles (the bottom one).IMG_4094

 

3. Connect top to the bottom with vertical slats cut from 1x4s.
IMG_4095

At this point, the basic frame is complete:
IMG_4096

4. Add something for the bottom.  I used some old lattice I had around, supported by a couple pieces of 1×4.
IMG_4097

That’s it!
IMG_4098

The original poster points out that he didn’t size it to fit a full bale, the rationale being that you want to break up a bale to make sure it’s good and make it easier for the goats to get at anyway.  That sounded reasonable, so I did the same, though it would be trivial to make it just a bit bigger if you wanted to just plunk a small square bale in.

The goats seem to approve.
mmm-hay

 

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