Hay Rack 2.0

Due to the recent population explosion in the goat family

the size of the original hay feeder became too small for them all to eat at the same time.

They were also dropping quite a bit of on the ground,

which we think was partially due to the size of the wire used to hold the hay in the rack.

To help feed them all we started scattering hay on top of briers and in dry spots under trees.

This worked for a while, but had to be solved.

This is the solution.

FabHub has put his developing welding skills to work and built Hay Feeder 2.0.

Higher capacity, more durable, smaller access points, and dual sided.

The photo above shows the wire from the original Hay Feeder being used 

to close the end of the rack and the smaller spaced wire of the new feeder showing behind it.

As a user, the goat may not appreciate the smaller wire size, 

but as the owner I am hoping for less wasted hay.

This is me distracting the goats away from where FabHub is getting started with the installation.

They turned around soon after this shot.

Goats aren't dumb, they figured out I didn't have any snacks to share.

They headed straight back over to the construction site.

and spent the rest of the day watching their new feeder getting installed.

This is not as precarious as it looks.

This is me helping.

I am good at holding the tape.

This is the not quite finished product.

It will have a roof, hopefully by the end of next weekend.

We will also be bringing in some rocks to go underneath it.

That should help keep the area from getting too muddy

and raise the ground height for some of the smaller goats.

Tthe girls really like it so far.

They like the higher capacity and the dual side access.

I like the durability. We will see if the smaller grid makes for less loss.

The new girls still won't let the yearlings eat with them though.

So I ended up putting some hay in the old rack too.

They all got something dry to eat and that was the important part.

We all enjoyed a nice sunny day.

The new girls napped and chewed while laying on a pile of old dry hay.

They won't eat it, but they like to lay on it.

It is kind of interesting to see how they socialize.

The farm they were on was a messy mud pit, 

so I guess they would lay together on the hay to stay dry.

The yearlings are less concerned about staying dry.

They, Flower, and one of the new girls went out in the pasture and found soft spots.

Tyson, he is his own kind of guy.

He found a barrel to lay in.

When he put his head down you could hardly see he was in there.

Probably I nice warm spot that cut down on what little breeze there was.

OR he was just hiding from all those girls.

Later on he and FabHub unloaded the trailer of old wet hay 

by tossing it over a hillside that could use the fertilizer.

I had loaded the trailer by cleaning up the space between the hay feeders.

I also took all the dry hay that the girls had been laying on earlier. 

They will have to find a soft spot in the grass next time.

Next adventure will be the roof on the hay rack.

I know you can't wait.