I bought mine at our local Co-op for much less than list price, so you might want to call around.
it can be moved using the hay spears attachment on the FEL of our tractor. We have to strap it to the tractor in order to keep it from tipping off.
My horse is a dominant bully and is out with 2 others. All 3 can fit on the optimizer happily. I would say ratio of 1:4 horses for the Optimizier, but I would also say the same thing about round bales because I donât think more than 4 at a time can really be on a round bale either.
They can be knocked over, but I have only seen this once when the feeder was empty. I can fit about 2 tightly packed small squares at at time in the Optimizer, so that is also a consideration - how often do you want to put hay out?
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We also have one tarter hay basket at my barn - it is actually now in my horseâs paddock and the Optimizers are in other paddocks. I MUCH prefer the Optimizer - the hay basket holds about the same amount of hay, but it doesnât seem to fit as many horses and is more of a PITA to fill because we use a net with it.
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Thanks! I agree 4 is about the limit for a round bale in most circumstances.
It would be great if I only had to fill it once a day to save me some time, but itâs not big deal to continue putting out hay 2x a day.
My main reason for wanting one is to reduce the hay waste. My girls seem to think hay that touches the ground or gets rained on is poisonous. Usually I use slow feed nets to solve that problem, but we moved in October and the new farm has nowhere to hang nets in the field because of the electric fence. I could fix that problem by installing posts⊠but Iâm kind of over the nets. They are time consuming and I am wanting to simplify feeding routines as much as possible. Throwing a bale in a feeder is a lot faster than filling and hanging 3-6 nets daily.
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Fwiw, we had that same problem in MN, and delt with it by putting up four round pen panels in a square. Gives you plenty of space to hang nets and for horses to find a safe spot to eat away from bullies, but still portable. Four big shires nets stuffed full would carry four horses two days, with nights in the barn & out during the day. If weâd stayed there longer, I think I wouldâve rigged up something like the net frames, so we couldâve just left the nets up and popped them open right there to add hay.
Know youâre looking for a different type of solution, but the round pen panels worked really well for us, and are easy to install regardless of season (unlike posts!)
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Have you considered these poly rings with the additional pipe kit to attach a net over top? Then you literally just drop it over a round bale. I have the ring but not the pipe setup because I already had full nets. I love the rings! https://www.strathconaventures.com/copy-of-sirocco
I hadnât seen those. They seem much safer than traditional rings.
Unfortunately as I said originally, I canât handle round bales at this time. No tractor, no storage, too much mud in the pasture, etc. etc. I was going to buy a hay hut at the beginning of winter but realized it just wouldnât work out right now. Later down the road when we finally get a tractor and fix the mud at the gates, Iâll remember those rings!
Thatâs a good idea with the corral panels! That may be plan B. I was just feeling very aggravated with nets even before I moved.
Preach! Is it too melodramatic to say that hay nets are ruining my life right now? Annoyingly, I have a better solution but my new 3-year-old wonât stick his freakin head in the Hay Hut unless Iâm sitting inside it.
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Texarkana, I have a traditional round bale feeder and the same issues as you: super muddy with small amounts of rain, no tractor, no storage. When weather is good I go to my hay guy and get a round in the bed of my truck and roll it out. But I also buy a couple hundred squares each year. Iâve filled my round bale feeder with squares when I canât get a round out. Those polyrings with the net over are on my wishlist to use with squares.
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@Texarkana, if Hay Huts have worked for you in the past, why not go that route with square bales for now? Then when you get set up for roundbales at least youâll already have the feeder. Plus your hay will be covered and somewhat less likely to get wet/âtoxicâ. I usually shove square bales into my Hay Hut and 2-string bales do fit through the windows. If you feed larger bales you can stack them underneath and flip it over top like you would with a roundbale. I put a pallet or my hay box underneath it to keep the hay off the ground. (If youâre interested, I would consider selling my Hay Hut because I kind of hate it and want to get one of those wooden roofed things next winter. It would cost you less than the Optimizer too!)
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Isnât that horses for you?!? 
Try to give them a good quality of life and they repay you by refusing to eat unless you sit on the hay hut.
I have actually never used hay huts. For a long time, I questioned their safety. But I would like to feed round bales again yet know my horses will find any excuse to waste hay.
I appreciate your offer and am definitely tempted! I didnât think about throwing square bales under one until I am in a position to start buying rounds.
At the start of the season, I was going to do this. Then I remembered Murphyâs Law! I started having visions of my truck stuck in the mud, tearing up the pasture. Or having to roll round bales off a truck at 10pm on a Tuesday night. And the most likely scenario- my picky divas demand that an inedible round bale be removed immediately from their presence. I figured itâs better not to set myself up for additional complication!
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