Two thoughts for someone like us with small acreage and a small goat herd. First, I suppliment through the year with browse like Willows. We have a lot of weeping willow trees on our property and they are quick growers that require a little attention with pruning throughout the growing season. I try to spread out that pruning and then give the branches to the goats to not only eat the leaves, but they enjoy the bark, too. Not a big thing, but as I have learned, every little bit helps. The other one, which I kind of thought is the most obvious, is make your own hay. Now, with how most people think these days, the assumption is one can buy a lot of hay for the cost of a $40k baler, and they are right. But, what is a "bale"? I would argue that is packaging. We decided a year ago to put up loose hay from a couple of acres of our small farm. When I did the research for Wisc. to see what one could expect from an acre for yield, I will admit to being more than a little surprised. It seemed like a worthwhile thing, even if we could not completely get through a Wisc. winter, as long as we could do this inexpensively. I determined if I could determine a way to cut it and then rake it, I could get away w/o a tedder (I remember as a kid my grandfather and uncles putting up hay and the did not have one), picking it up with a pitchfork and storing it off the ground could work. I invested less than $500 in old worn out stuff that I spent the time to refurbish and for a hay barn, we use a covered tarp shelter and I make cubes from cattle panels, clipped together at the corners to surround a pallet. The loose hay gets tamped in with a landscape tamper and that worked well. Last summer, third cutting was our first and only cutting of 2021. It made two of those cubes and another hay stack that we could not fit in the shelter, outside under a tarp. We fed that out first, and the remainder lasted until Feb. (3 mos.) when we switch over to our small square bales we picked up in the fall, expecting to need at some point. The little experiment worked and the goats liked it. I was massively proud to have done that. This year, 2 cuttings are already done and I am looking at a third and final one in the next few weeks. I am actually working on a way to turn these cubes into a version of feeder so we can essentially wheel one out as needed, like a round bale with cows, but we are not quite there yet. A little bit of gas, a fair amount of light labor, and we are pretty close to self-sustainable on only 5 acres of total land and a small breeding herd of goats.

Browns Ranch in Bismarck, ND, specifically chooses cover crops for the last fall crop that hold their food value once the frost and snow come. His cattle graze those cover crops through the winter. I think he implied his cattle graze this through the winter without feeding hay, even in -40F.

Don't buy large bales unless you have a tractor or skidsteer to move them. Also, don't go on looks alone when buying hay. Get hay tests. Hay protein quality varies if it is not cut properly, if it gets rained on, if it is cut late (it loses protein as it matures). Your state lab should be able to test for you, or there are other labs available to mail to. For those in the south buying bermuda hay, horse quality just means no weeds. Bought a load of small squares in the field, right behind the baler, beautiful clean hay. But tested out 8.6% protein, when I need 12-14% protein. It was cut 2 weeks late. Now, I have to supplement with alfalfa to bring the protein level up in their feed ration, another cost. Also, if you buy bermuda hay in the south, be aware that most hay suppliers use Grazon on their fields. The manure and old hay has to compost 18-20 months for the herbicide to break down. Otherwise, you could kill off or damage your garden. I am in the drought area of Texas. No grass to stockpile. No grass period. Square bales of bermuda that last year sold for $9-10 in the hay barn, are now selling for $13.50. Most hay suppliers only got one cut, not the three they normally get. We are praying for rain and mild fall for a late cut. I am supplementing with a product called Chaffhaye. It is a bagged alfalfa silage. Probably not practical for cows, but it is great for supplementing smaller animals.

My tips to add: Super important to be aware of "cheap hay." Que the phrase, "you get what you pay for." Not all cheap hay is going to be good quality hay. Cheap hay may be crap quality: mouldy, dusty, not looking as green as it should, full of weeds, quite coarse, the list goes on. Buying good quality hay may not save you in the department of buying hay, but in the department of your animals' nutrition. Good quality hay saves money in terms of extra supplementation (grains, byproducts, etc.) that may need to be purchased because that hay isn't as up to par as you hoped. Know when to save your hay too. If you have animals that are in a low plane of nutrition (dry pregnant cows, for example), feed low-quality hay or straw with necessary supplement for those rumen microbes when you can. Save your good hay for when your animals really need it, like after calving or during milking, for example. Monitor body condition. Fatter animals are easier to feed (they don't need as much quality and TLC) as thinner animals. Thinner animals during winter are a nightmare to feed because they're battling both the cold and the higher need for nutrition. Fatten animals up during the summer and fall so they can have the fat cover for the lean times during winter. This way they CAN afford to lose some weight over winter time before things switch around again come spring. If you have extra hay left over to when it's time to graze, awesome. KEEP IT. SAVE IT. Don't sell or give it away (especially if it's all that's left over)! You never know when you're going to need it! It could be a dry spring, or summer temperatures could get so hot and the rains don't come for weeks at a time and pasture starts to run out. You're going to start looking at that hay left over from past winter to supplement their grazing. Another tip: if you're buying straight off the field, hay that has just been made, be mindful of storage. Bales will go through a heating/sweat period for a couple of weeks. If hay isn't properly stored in a well-ventilated area where they can breathe and let out that heat and moisture, you will either have mouldy hay on your hands or even worse, a fire. Spontaneous combustion is a thing with putting up hay bales, particularly if they're baled at a high moisture. And when a fire hits, that's a HUGE loss of both money and feed. I would recommend NOT taking hay bales right off the field as soon as they're out of the baler. Sure, you can settle the payment with your buyer, but wait a couple weeks before taking out the wagon and the tractor and taking them off the field. That way they have a chance to sweat a bit. Round hay bales, if stored outdoors, should be stored in a line where the faces (flat sides) of each bale are about 5 to 6" apart (round sides out) and each row should be 4 to 6 feet apart. This is so that air can get around and between each bale. Store them on a hill (never in a valley where water is likely to accumulate) with good drainage. The line of bales should be going northwest-southeast to take advantage of the prevailing winds. NEVER stack them in a pyramid form nor mushroom-style; the former encourages the most spoilage and therefore the highest amount of waste (and therefore waste of $$$). Those are all the extra tips I have that came to mind. Good video. And congrats on your speaking engagement!

I love the sunflowers idea! I’m absolutely going to do that. I adore sunflowers. They’re happiness on a stalk! 😂🌻

You can cut Round Bales with a chain saw and control how much you are feeding your cows. This allows a small homestead/farm to buy round bales as well.

Match your grade to your animal. You don't need expensive "horse grade" hay for your cow, sheep, or goats usually. Buy local if you can and out of the field if you can. If you're the first person to pick that hay off the field directly into your own trailer it's much cheaper to buy.

The comments sections was turned off on Jack's channel but if he is in here (or his parents) yes I subscribed! And tell him thanks for doing the video of how Aus gets his hay. Great kid.

Very good advice for farmers who have to feed hay

Where we are, a one year buy makes sense, as all the farmers lower the price to unload the hay before winter. The big rounds last longer if you stack 'em on two - 6" logs (whatever is not in ground contact means less loss) A last idea is to cycle - the hay the sheep didn't eat, went to the chicken boxes, the hay in chicken boxes that eventually get a little poop in 'em, get cycled into the pig pen to add to the deep bedding. That becomes compost that we use in field or garden. That then becomes hay again :-) Love the channel, Keep up the good work!

Thanks for the tips! I've been struggling with getting hay, I typically buy large squares and paying $110 a week to feed 5 heifers adds up

Excellent topic I think this is on everyone's mind right now

Awesome tips Aust

Big follow for the young man Jack!

Great video!

This is really helpful

Good Stuff Aust 👊. I'm glad you were able to get Hay for the Farm 🐦. Enjoy the White Mountains! JO JO IN VT 😆💕

I’ve not had any notifications from KZfaq on your channel thought you were having a break but looks like I’ve got some catching up to do.

Sunflowers. Ha. I know ALL about that. 😄

Y'all learning me something.

I would really like to go to the homesteaders conference but unfortunately with cancer treatments and stuff again I can't make it is there anyone that's going to be transmitting because I really would like to hear your talk this was very helpful on the hay thing

I bought tickets to the NE homesteading event last week :)

I know this is probably redundant, but when you don't feed hay and graze longer you generally save more money. That said you have to be open to possibly moving animals to other land in the neighborhood or leverage a small custom grazier to "save" your own land base for potential stockpiling of forage. Please do a budget analysis and see what your optimal animal balance for your goals. Remember that hay is also fertility which is a huge consideration. I'd rather buy fertilizer that also fed cows and microbes than straight commercial fertilizer. Just my 2 cents. GW

Looking forward to the homesteading event though I’m sure with all the folks there, I’ll likely not be able to see you or Morgan face-to-face.

I subscribe to lil fella…Jack….thanks for the hay tips

If you have the room then grow your own hay field and go halves with the haymaker.

Drink every time Austin says Hay 🍹🌾

I love your thumbnail hahaha!

Watching now

My goats are so particular about their hay, they waste a lot also. I take the waste, rake it up and put it in the compost pile. I tried to feed local grass hay to my goats and they would just cry for food enough though their feeders were full of this local hay.

Out here in the Berkshire mountain's. I trade cord wood for alfalfa bails...

I don't have livestock, yet, so I am wondering how much hay does a milk cow go through in a month? I would ask about how much during the winter when they can't be on pasture, but everyone's winter is different, so I'm guessing the best way to judge would be by the month. THANKS!

How ddo you wrap those round bales like that? And how do you know when it is safe to do so? Horse person asking. Love the videos.

Unrolling round bales in the pasture for cows in my area is a terrible idea. With the wet clay in our fields in northern Ohio during the hay season(oct 1 to may 1) the cows tear up and compact the pasture. While it is true the seeds and nutrients from the hay can be beneficial to pasture our cows waste 50-60% of the bales if we unroll them, 30-40% with a cheap ring feeder and 20% with some mods to basic ring feeder. Also we keep them in a small section to avoid them destroying the entire pasture during the haying season. The advice in this video may work for some areas and situations but wanted to help folks with conditions like mine to avoid my hard learned lessons

How do I find Jack's channel? There's no link.

Anyone use or have thoughts on using a carport for their hay storage? I'd like to avoid wrapped in plastic but willing until I get my old barn rehabbed on foundation.

Making goats pull hay out won't save hay. They pull out of any feeder and then lots drops as they chew to bring some in. The key I think is to keep their head in a good manger. My ducks love to clean up the leafy stuff that drops from the goats.

You remind me of Mario from the old Nintendo games. Ty for the video

Oh HAY!

Does anyone use round bales without a tractor to move them around? I would love to switch from the sm squares, but shoot, I don't know how I would manage.

My new hay bill will be starting in a month or two! Yes thank you Jesus!!!

Net the hay, zero waste

$40 in 2019, $50 in 2020, $60 in 2021, NOW $110 in fall of 2022 💔💔💔 that’s round bales of not cow hay. The first cut of peanut hay this season will be $60 the beginning of this year it was $35. So yeah!!!! Definitely not getting easier, we ended up selling everything but seed stock.

"by not having a cow yet" haha

i custom bale hay on halves...

Here 900# rounds run $50 but small squares cost 8 each for maybe 25#. Huge difference

Im thinking about sprouting barley anyone hear doing this?

Jack must be an upright man, otherwise he wouldn't have been canceled.

If scripture is accurate, how to cope when all the grasses burn up?

###AUSTIN,JUST WE NDERING HIW MANY CHILDREN YA'LL HAVE NOW N THEIR AGES N G/B ??! I WAS SICK AWHILE N COULDNT VIDEO PLUS I YHINK YA'LL FORGOT TO ANNOUNCE ONE OR TWO !!! JUST HELP ME OUT N GIVE MY CURIOSITY AN ANSWER ,PLEASE !!!

I don’t buy hay I refuse to buy my animals feed. I have one bull, four heifers, one steer and 8 goats. I’m on 8.26 acres and as of now flood irrigate less than four acres. I rotational graze and I only plant native grasses.

sale milk ,,,,sale calf and feed cows

we chop hay then give to our animals ,,,,98% hay save