Has anyone used th, but this is only for my horses 
I love our Big Bale Buddy. I’ve had mine for 3 years! I only use mine approx. Dec. through March/April, and I’ve had 2 to 4 horses eating from it - even a 10 hh Shetland pony. But my horses are in at night in deep winter, so they are only eating from it during the day.
I have never tipped it with opening on the side BUT if I know heavy rain or snow is coming at night, I do place a tarp over the bale with weights on top to hold it down for the wind. This has helped the bale stay drier and last longer. We put our Bale Buddy on manually - flip the bale over (takes 2 people). And we have large heavy bales. Our hay guy rolls the bale off his old pick up truck. We stand the bale on it’s side to put the bale buddy on, remove the twine from bale, pull bale buddy on and then flip it.
At end of spring, I power wash it, dry it in the sun and fold it up and store in my barn until winter again.
My bale lasts 2-4 weeks depending on how many horses I have on it, and it’s a Godsend! Saves me so much $$ from square bales but I am meticulous about covering it at night to keep rain/snow out while the horses are in the barn.
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I live in Nova Scotia but we get crazy humidity here, mold was an issue when we got a lot of rain after putting a fresh bale out. I think if a pallet would hold it that might not be a bad idea at all! We don’t have a tractor so flip the bales over by muscle, not easy but doable. Are your bales too heavy for a couple people to tip upright?
If the two horses get along it might not be any issue on its side, biggest thing would be the lack of space between the horses eating. I have 4 on a round bale and they can make faces but still share because the bale is between them
I have 2 ( I put out 2 round bales at a time). It works really well and it’s easy enough to put on by myself. I’ve always put it so the opening is at the top though- I think my guys would make an unholy mess out of it if the opening were on the side.
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@tpup - I will also only use this from Nov - April for two horses. My horses have a run in and won’t be in a stall. I actually bought a hard plastic round 60" pool that I was going to use for a different round bale feeder option. Basically it would have been metal fencing around the bale with the pool securely attached as a roof. I got nervous about metal fencing, etc. and opted for the Bale Buddy. After reading your routine, I will likely use it to cover the bale during nasty weather. I would instead use small square bale bags inside the run in until the weather passed. This is my first year with horses - so much to learn!
@FraggleRock - I live in the very most southwestern part of New York state. Honestly - I have never attempted to flop a bale over, just had the impression that it wasn’t an easy thing to do. The two horses get along fairly well, but my gelding has begun to stand up to my sassy mare. He has begun to bite/nip her shoulder (she even squeals) if she gets too close to his favorite part of the hay bag. She pushes him off his oats though and he doesn’t seem to care (much to my frustration as she is a SUPER easy keeper).
He should be able to tip the bale upright using the bale spear. I do it all the time. It takes a bit of practice to learn, but it is easy once you get the hang of it. Hit the bale low with the spear, don’t pierce the bale, just make contact with it, and raise the spear as you slowly back up. The spear should “grab” the bale and tip it, but then slide off when the bale reaches the point it is fully tipped over.
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@moving to dc - thanks - I will explain this to him. Being a very good excavation contractor - it should be simple for him. I’m starting to think he’s just being a bit of a grump to have this “extra” chore on his plate. lol
