bale unrollers

Anyone have any experience with round bale unrollers? Do the cows really waste less hay when its unrolled like that? With hay being scarce this year, I'm looking for ways to save as much as I can.

I'm looking at making something like this Wifo using dual spears and a hydraulic motor to spin it. Ill make it dual mount so it can go on my loader or on the 3 point hitch.
Wifo unroller

I have unrolled a few , and after they step and lay and other things on it they wont eat it. I have been useing one of the hay conserving bale feeders and put bales in it on end ,that works the best for me. Very little waste.

In our stantion barn, the only way to feed is with a selfpropelled unroller. It works great nd has worked flawlessly for the past 15 years on baleage. The brand is WIC.

I have tried unrolling bales. I think they waste much more hay. Unless the ground is frozen real hard and you are limit feeding them. Any hay they do not eat right away they will lay and crap on. So I had more waste.

I like the hay saver type of bale feeders. They hold the bale up out of water and mud. Then the pan catches what they drag out of the bale. They do have drains in the ends of the pan bottom so they do not hold water. You do not loose hardly any hay with them. There are several brands. I built mine out of some old feeding fence and 2 inch lumber. Here is a picture of what I copied.

Same here. I'd recomend a round feeder with a hay saver panel around the bottom. Don't put another bale in until the first one is gone. If one is sitting up on another one,they'll pull more out and stomp it in the ground.

I used one last winter, works very well IF I feed morning and evening and only give them enough to eat. I waste a lot less hay this way and every cow and calf gets a fair shot at the hay. But they work the fences harder and on the days I work in town I am still stuck feeding in a ring. I really like the unroller on cold snowy nights in calving season when I can bed them down in a tree row. I like JD seller's pic and idea real well, I have 1 hay conserver feeder and they work real well but are very pricy, never thought of building one out of feeder panels.

Here is a picture of Klene Pipe bale feeders. I have a few that I have made that are kind of like these. I used to be able to get oil well pipe cheap. So we built them out of that.

We always used a feed bunk (does anyone else call it that?) to feed bales and they wasted a lot less. We didn't put any new in unless they had cleaned it all up.

The gal renting the pasture here at the home place has been sitting them out and man do they waste A LOT of it. I went and gathered up some trampled stuff today to bed the chicken house. I hate seeing feed wasted like that.

JD your feeder looks like a winner. Jim

Super Steve, when you are unrolling a bale it is mainly for getting more cattle eating at one time than the 20 or so head that can get around a bale ring at one time! Not reducing wasted hay!
If Feed is at a premium meaning you have just enough hay for your cattle to feed one bale a day from start till you usually quit time in the spring. But keeping the round bale in a ring means that the more timid cattle may not get any hay to speak of them unrolling is a good option.
I have done this in the past, Usually fed on higher, more dryer ground, Was feeding Whole cotton seed too so the unrolled hay made a nice trough to put the cotton seed on and very little Feed was wasted too! But for me it was a matter economics of only feeding 1 bale/day and getting All cattle to eat at the same time, and the more aggressive cattle not whipping the more timid cattle off the feed!
I simply used a 7ft piece of 1 in cold rolled steel bar (pushed through the center of the bale) it had a 4 in piece of 1 in. ID pipe with a small chain hook on both ends to hook a small lt duty chain to. Just pull it side ways, like rolling a Coke can on the floor. Hope this helps, Call and I will tell you how I built mine if you like. 512-577-3837 I don't think I had over $40 in materials in mine even in today's prices.
Later,
John A.

It all depends on where you are, how many critters you have, and what the quality of hay is. I use rings in the corral, but that is the only place. Used to always think I wanted a processor, but after all is said and done, I think unrolling a bale is better feed and they waste less then any other way. Of course I am on sand, and feeding 10 bales a day.

well ive looked around for a used "hay saver" type feeder without much luck so maybe this weeks "sparetime" project will be building one up.

Thanx for the experienced info

I guess if you dont want to waste feed then I would look into hiring some one to tub grind your hay then they wont waste any. Just had some ground 2 weeks ago, 35 bales cost only $255 to grind them. Cant buy much hay for $255 these days so its money saved.