Show steers Feeding Hay - Hand Feed or Round bale free for all

[Chuck Wagon]

Just curious about everybody's experience with this. 

This is the first year that I've put a round bale for my daughter's steer and it seems that he spends an awful lot of time with his head in the bale.  He's about 1,050 and I'm feeding 21 lbs a day and he will leave 1 to 2 bls left every feeding.  I thought initially that he was getting full on hay for reason of not cleaning up the feed pan.  I'm thinking of blocking off his bale and hand feeding hay but he's averaged 3.5 lbs a day since he's been on feed, which will put him on course for 1,400.

 

[OH Breeder]

We have always fed free choice hay and not round bale feeder. Calves were only over weight only a couple times, I wasn't paying close attention to the kids projects we over shot the market. I found it helps them belly down. Ours clean up their ration and eat hay as well.

As Tall said below, if it ain't broke don't mess with it.

 

[Tallcool1]

We hand feed hay, but we feed them all they will eat.

We don't use a bale feeder because I don't like it rubbing the hair off the top of their necks.

If your steer is gaining 3.5, don't change a thing!  That's gettin with it.

 

[dimebag]

Agree with Tallcool1 , don't change a thing . We also keep ours on a round bale as long as they are eating their feed , which they always do .

 

[Chuck Wagon]

Thanks for your input.  I put up a cattle panel before I was able to see everybody's opinion.  Since the square bales I have are horse quality, he started eating that before his feed yesterday morning!!  Haha, oh well, I enjoy experiments too much and my wife complains that I spend more time in the barn piddling.  I'm always trying to build a better mouse trap so yes, I'm guilty of moving things around till I get it right.

I'm sure I'll end up putting him back on the round bale but it sure is fun trying to figure out what works best.