I have been placing my hay on the ground but my sheep kick it all over the place and they dont want to eat it after that. If anyone has any pics of what they put their hay in while their animals are eating it, I would love to see it. Or if you can tell me where I can buy something that will hold my hay so the sheep dont spill it all over the ground.
We use 100 gallon water tubs for the horses. Probably wouldn't work for sheep. We also tried some 55 gallon barrels cut in half, but the horses knocked it all out. Maybe it would work for sheep?
We built a feeder type thingie. We actually took a table and turned it over, then used the legs to support a few pieces of wood between them, making a box but with gaps inbetween. We have a horse and goat. The horse eats out the top, the goat likes to try get his head in between the slats of wood. Either way it works for them! If the hay is too tightly packed they'll still pull out bunches of it and it drops all over, so we pull it apart some.
My DH built this for me. it works great! top is a piece of tin with hinges and a big clip hook to keep it closed. the picture is before he put the hinges and hook on, hence the bricks on the top!
Sometimes you can build a fence, wide enough for the sheep to get their heads in, but not any more, then put the hay on the other side, pushed up against the fence. They will still waste some, but it goes better. Scoop up what they don't eat, and put it in your hen yard. Doesn't seem to bother the chickens.
All you need is a pallet and some cattle panels Throw a tarp or some plywood on top if it's going to rain:
This is what we feed our cattle hay in. My husband built ours, but you can buy them too. I'd think they would work for sheep too. You'd have to push the hay out to the sides since they wouldn't be able to reach to the center of the feeder like the cows can. The cows in the background are around a feeder just like the one in the front of the picture where the calves are.
Take a look at the sheep/goat feeder thingies sold by www.premier1supplies.com, the ones that are like *heavy* mesh panels that hinge together with holes for them to stick their heads through. I have not used them (no sheep or goats ) but have heard good things. You could quite possibly make something yourself of that type. Good luck, have fun, Pat
