# Highland Cattle, Horns and Feeder problems



## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

Arkle has taken to flipping the hay feeder. I think it is because his horns get in the way when trying to eat. What else can I use as a hay feeder. Looked at the TSC website and do not see any that does not have space for the cattle to eat though.

Any suggestions

TIA


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## MO_cows (Aug 14, 2010)

"his" horns? Might just be bully behavior, it is common for them to push stuff around. Even steers.


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## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

So are you saying that "his horns" could not be a problem when eating? They are quite large. 

Arkle is fairly new on the farm just a couple of months now. So I guess it could be a bullying thing. But was hoping for suggestions so that I could maybe not get him to flip it...lol!

Thanks


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

As long as you have enough space that it doesn't get muddy just feed them on the ground.


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## j_maki (Feb 23, 2010)

We just feed our highlands on the ground, we were told by everyone that we needed a feeder or they would just waste the hay. We haven't noticed them wasting very much hay at all, but then again things are frozen pretty solid up here and mud isnn't an issue when they walk over it. Before things froze up we just grazed them in some standing hay so we didn't have to worry about feeding and wasting hay.

I have seen pictures of some simple feeders for highlands made out of logs 4-6 courses high depending on the height you want it to be. They were basiclly just squares made of unnotched logs bolted together with threaded rods holding them together in the corners.

Jeremy


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

I assume that you have feeders with upright struts. could you remove one or more struts to hive him more room?


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## myersfarm (Dec 24, 2004)

use a horse hay feeder then he can pull his horns OVER THE TOP to get them out


http://www.fleetfarm.com/catalog/pr...ing+search&utm_campaign=google+product search


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## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

Thank you all for your help. I think for now we may just put the hay on the ground...but hubby said he likes the horse feeder ideal also. 

Penny


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## Wanda (Dec 19, 2002)

Is your hay in small squares or large rounds? Large rounds need a feeder to cut back on the loss. The horse type should work if it is the large rounds.


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

Rocktown Gal.........no no....... 

Get some of those black poly pipe hay feeders.......we have 2 of them with our Highlands, and they are GREAT!!!!! Give me a bit, I will upload a pic or two. They are even pretty easy to lift up when you are putting out the hay, do you use square bales or large rounds?

DH got tired of having to reweld the metal ones we had been using.,.......our last bull actually ringed himself! He had lifted it up and was walking under it to get at the hay inside....before we got out there he had walked in far enough for it to slip off his backside, ringing himself in the process. These were the tombstone style metal rings, more of an octagon really.....great for horses and cows without horns. Not so great for Highlands.....


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

This picture has our head cow, and shows both one of the tombstone style ones we had the neighbor make up for us, and the little bit of one of the pvc pipe style ones that we got recently.










A little bit of a bigger picture of one of the pvc rings.....











This is one of the reasons we knew the tombstone ones weren't the best for ours..... not withstanding the fact that they keep breaking the welds and bending the snot out of the metal......another problem we had was the yearlings that their horns weren't quite as large would get their heads twisted into the lower openings to get at the hay, and then they would end up panicking when they would try to pull their heads out and had forgotten how they got in there in the first place.











Do a google search for "pvc pipe hay ring" and see what you come up with....ask your feed store about them, they may even have them already or can get them for you. The biggest maintenance is with them is maybe replacing a bolt or two every so often.


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

These pvc rings are made out of really heavy duty pvc piping.....and there is 5 large openings for them to get their horns in there easily....so far, no one has tried flipping the ring....and there are no real edges for them to try and scratch themselves on. Which should lessen the beating up the rings factor for us. Here is another pic I found on the internet, gives a better idea of what they look like.....










(this particular website is down in TN......)

I don't recall if we tried asking our local TSC if they could source these pvc rings or not.....we got the two we have so far from a local feed & seed store. They aren't cheap......between $215-250 or so, sometimes cheaper if you assemble them yourself. But, think DH tried checking the pricing to see if getting the pipe and doing it ourselves would be less.....that would only have worked if we had bought alot of the pipe, much more than what would be needed for 2 or 3 hay feeders.


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## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

spacecadet thank you so much. I will do a check for those for sure. Great pics of your fold also. We do use the large rounds but felt that if we had to we would go to the small squares. Anything to make it easier for the cattle to eat.

Here is a pic of my head cow Clementine and Arkle.


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## SpaceCadet12364 (Apr 27, 2003)

Our first bull, Thunder, before we got hay rings....he would literally throw the round bales and play with them. One time, he got the bale rolling, and it laid out this long strip of hay across the pasture. He just goes and lays down in a nice comfy spot atop of the hay strip, and starts snacking!


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## MO_cows (Aug 14, 2010)

A picture is worth 1,000 words! With those funky horns he must have been having trouble and not playing. 

I have heard nothing but good things about the plastic hay rings, too, and plan to buy one as our old one is rusting out. They are $300 assembled at our local farm serice, $275 unassembled.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

I would be afraid ours would break the plastic ones, or else the wind would blow them away. We had a 'so called' heavy duty bull round bale feeder from fleet farm. thats the one they broke the fastest.

I would be more afraid of how they would hold up in the winter. plastic gets brittle when the temps stay well below freezing for weeks and weeks, then DH misses and the edge of the bale clips the top of one of the cold pipes..SNAP!


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