How We Feed Cows Without Using a Tractor or Horses
Вставка
- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- There are a lot of options in methods when it comes feeding hay. Each has its pros and cons. Today I show you one of those options that doesn’t involve starting a tractor in the middle of winter or harnessing up a team of horses.
I used to be less than thrilled to do stuff like that as a kid on the family ranch now years after my family sold it off I would give anything to be out there doing it again. Enjoy what you have because someday it may be gone.
That was sure the best times. Sad thing’s happens like they did
Thank you for those wise words. I try and appreciate it every day and tell myself how blessed I am to have a chance to live like this because I know not everyone has the opportunity to farm and ranch. I truly believe it’s one of the best lifestyles. Some days I have to remind myself that a bit more than others haha.
If this staff is gone, we all will be gone too.
@@mceliniak no farms no food
@@LuthiRanchWY Only Solient Green. 🙄
Great idea using modern bales ! 👍 We used to do that back in the 1970's with chopped hay . It was blown into the center of the barn building a giant haystack and had mangers on each side where the cattle came inside to eat . Just like your system all you needed to feed with was a farm boy with a pitchfork . It worked really well as the hay stayed in great condition under roof and very little waste at the manger .
That would be a cool set up to see! How do you guys feed now?
@@LuthiRanchWY We still have the barn set up but sadly don't utilize it anymore as it was designed for .
Today it's round bales wrapped in plastic netting that set outside and you need a $ 200,000 in farm equipment to feed 100 head of cattle .
That's what I like about your feeding system ! 👍 Using a modern style bale that stacks well in the barn out of the weather and mixing it with the old style " show up with a pitchfork " to feed the cattle . 😀
Keep up the great work ! 👍
@@cranerigging3604 thank you! It’s a good set up especially if it gets 20 to 30 below and equipment doesn’t want to start.
Hey my friend, this showed up in my suggested videos. I didn't know that you had a YT channel. It's good to see you. - Bryan Miller
Hey Bryan! That’s funny this video popped up. It’s been getting really popular the last few days. How’s Alabama treating you guys?
Nice!
I fed cows inside a freestall dairy barn same way. All down one short side. I've seen this done with a corn silage pile also. Work smarter.
Stay Safe!
Thanks for the comment. It’s a good way to feed especially if it’s -40 and equipment doesn’t want to start.
Nice system! Glad you're not afraid of heights!!!
It works out pretty good. I don’t love heights but I can tolerate them haha
Great job....
The hay looks very good ....
Cattle look amazing
Thank you!
Hello, what a good cattle. I live in Costa Rica and here I work in livestock and agriculture. It would be a pleasure to be able to work in your country and share my knowledge as a rancher.
It would be interesting to see how Ranching is done in Costa Rica
Agreed
@@LuthiRanchWY Of course, I can show you how livestock farming is in Costa Rica. It's great and very friendly to the environment.
@@ronaldfloresquiros1437 you probably don’t have to feed any hay there.
@@LuthiRanchWY Hi, friend, yes, every morning we feed eno and compost that are highly balanced in fiber and a lot of protein.
Tongue in cheek here, OSHO gotta love that setup! I do too!
They would probably shut it down pretty quick haha
I have much respect for you guys up north, much easier in the warmer climates. Summer is probably nicer though, i'm in Tx.
Summers are really nice here, short but nice. I’m jealous of you guys down south when we are in the middle of winter but wouldn’t want to have to deal with your heat in the middle of summer haha. What part of Texas are you in?
Reminds me when I was younger we used Hesston hay stacks moved into a similar setup . Pitched a lot of hay to our cows that way . Only our setup wasn't covered .
How do you guys feed cows now?
@@LuthiRanchWY That was back in the 70s and 80s .Now I either roll out bales on frozen ground / corn stalk stubble ,or use round bale feeders. I plan on putting in some form of feedrack like you have to feed silage in .
@@davidgregg2778 we were a dairy when I was a kid and we had a bale processor that would feed round Alfalfa silage into mangers like the ones in the video.
OMG! You put the hay directly in the trough? What a revolutionary concept!
P.S. They bunch up because they don't know what you know, genius.
I guess I can’t tell if you are trying to insult me or just being sarcastic. Either way thanks for watching.
Lovely cows! Makes sense to take time off in the winter I imagine that this when there’s is less work
You’re right. We try and do a couple big trips a year and they usually fall between November and April because that is our slowest time. Just noticing you name, our you from the UK?
@@LuthiRanchWY lol yes London! :)
@@ThatBritishHomestead Nice! My wife and I were just in London in November. We did a trip over to Dublin, Ireland to see my sister and her husband and London was one of our stops. Did the normal touristy things there nice city!
@@LuthiRanchWY Thanks so much love a little bit of the sights! Lol 😆 we are wanting to leave the big city behind and move the the sticks lol
@@ThatBritishHomestead I wouldn’t blame you
Nice system man, looks like you have it down good. Thx for sharing sir👍🏻
It works well. Especially if it’s -40 and equipment doesn’t want to start
great job. so much less waste than putting out big bales
Thanks! I would agree. You can feed them pretty efficiently that way with little waste.
It funny you always hear about waste and how expensive bales are I live in Canada when I’m hunting you drive around and farmer sometimes leave bales out to rot but do a lot of complaining
@@01abihsot you can see it in alot of places. It’s expensive to put up hay, I’d hate seeing it rot away.
super smart & effective idea. great innovating!
Thank you. It seems to work well. I can’t take credit for it, my ancestors put that set up in.
Seeing you lay on the bales by the edge was still scary even after you explained you were doing is safely 😂
It is a little nerve racking cutting the strings on those top bales.
Настоящий мужик он везде одинаковый. И мозолей не боится, без перчаток работает - (мне они только мешали). Через год смотрю, это малыши повзрослели)). Удачи тебе и семье. И никогда не опускай руки - всё получиться!!!. Привет из Херсона!!
Thanks for the comment! I hope you are doing ok over there in Ukraine
@@LuthiRanchWY всё будет хорошо, иначе никак!!! Привет передавай всем от меня. Моё имя Николай.
@@kokskoks2199 I hope that Zelensky guy is gone soon. He's not good.
What a cool video. That feeding system saves you alot of money. No tractors,feed wagon or feed mixer.
Thanks! It works really well. It would be a work out if you were feeding 100’s of cows but we feed about 70 head and it works out pretty good.
Nice video, gorgeous scenery 👌
I’m very grateful to live in the area we do. Beautiful scenery and great neighbors.
Greetings From Holland, with Love
Thanks for watching all the way from Holland! Are you also in agriculture in Holland?
Hi! I'm curious, how many animals do you feed that day? and how long does it take to feed all the animals?
Btw thank you for explaining everything in such detail!
I fed about 70 cows. I can do it in about 30-40 minutes if I hustle
Like the setup cows look good nice working
Thank you
Wow amazing!! Where in the US is this. Looks like yellowstone, Montana. So beautiful
We live in western Wyoming
Hi guy good vidio, good cows good buls and good farm i like your vidio
Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment!
Growing up we fed that way in the manger, only we used small bales and for whole bales at a time! We feed this way now with the cattle we keep up by the manger
I think it’s a good way to feed. Glad to hear someone else is also doing it this way also.
Those cows are just going to turn that heater into manure in a way hopefully they get a lot of good out of it before they do though enjoy watching this video first time I ran across do you guys blessings goodbye
I said turn that hay in 2 manure
Thanks for watching. Glad you enjoyed it.
such a beautiful countryside
Thanks for watching all the way from Germany. We live in western Wyoming in an area called Star Valley. My ancestors immigrated from Switzerland and this area had the nickname of Little Switzerland at one time.
I did the same on a ranch in north dakota only thing differance is we had small square bales
I think it’s a good way to feed. It’s nice not having to start a piece of equipment.
I have a couple of questions about the hay shed? Did you build it or was it a kit? What are the specs?
A company out of Utah put it up for my Uncle. I’m not sure exactly what the specs are but it’s about 30’ wide and 100’ long about 20’ high on the low side and probably 25’ on the high side of the roof.
so you're feeding them twice a day and there was hay left from the night before to eat? When this happens, do you pitch the same amount in the morning or less? Thanks.
I would only feed them once a day and if there was alot of hay left over from the day before I would feed them less.
If you get stuck in between the stacks how would you get out
.
Probably just have to try and call for help. Especially if you were stuck head first.
They’re so pretty 😍
They are good looking cows
@@LuthiRanchWY I was watching your video going oh Lord he’s laying there cutting those strings I was praying for your safety over here 🙌🏼🔥 Holy Spirit activate lol
@@CabinGRL haha thanks for praying for me! I need all the help I can get
Great video
Thanks for the comment and thanks for watching!
Dear Luthi, I'm Oka, from Indonesia. I absolutely enjoyed in watching your video, but, I have wondered about one thing in making of the hay proces. Sure, I need you to answer these questions, Are those grasses Fermented at the first time in their processing or not?.
And how long days (months) those hay can be kept? Thank you for the answer.
Hello Oka I have never been to Indonesia but I spent a couple years in the Philippines which is kind of close to you. The hay from that video was not fermented, it was dried in windrows out in the field and baled up dry with a little dew at night. Hay can be kept for years if it is stored right. We’ve fed hay that was 6-7 years old before and still looked good. It will start to loose its nutritional value though slowly over time.
@@LuthiRanchWY Philippines, wow, its once of wonderful place in ASEAN, it ain't so far from my country.
Thank for your explaination, I really appriciate it. And I will keep watching your videos for more and more coz I wanna learn much more from you. Thank you sir
@@LuthiRanchWY you know sir, In Indonesia you won't ever see the farmers feed their cows with the dried hay. We always cut the green grasses as much as we do to feed our cows for evry afternoon, Yeeah, it so wasting much time. That why I wanna learn much more from you sir.
At the first time when I saw your video, its so amazing, "How could the cow be fed by dried hay?" A question on my mind. But evrything is possible. You have inspired me. Thank you.
That’s very interesting! Do you guys have a hard time drying your hay because of the humidity and all the rain you get?
@@LuthiRanchWY No, its not. Absolutely, our climate is good enough to dry the hay. Because we don't have a winter season like your country, but, Indonesian people think it's just a little bit weird to feed the cow with the dry hay, Perhaps they don't like to eat dry hay ...Lol :)
What about a long pole with a knife and hook to start
That would work when you first started but once you had fed some of the bale you would still need to get up there with a pitch fork
@@LuthiRanchWY it would be good for the first couple days though to get started save a couple trips to the top.
How did the calf shed get piled up like that? Person that put it in did not spread it?
My dad just dumped the straw in there using a tractor.
That looks like a lot of hay. Are you always in Awe of that beautiful scenery/ Or are you so used to it it to where you don't notice.
Haha I try and appreciate it as much as I can. Every time I come home from a trip out of town I imagine I’m seeing it for the first time. It’s definitely pretty here
Nice cows!
Have you heard of Luthi ploughs? I have one on my farm.
I have never heard of Luthi ploughs. They are a good bunch of cows.
@@LuthiRanchWY Luthi ploughs were built in Switzerland
@@newbrook700 That would make sense, my Luthi ancestors came from Switzerland from around the Bern area.
@@newbrook700 I would love to see a picture of one if you have it.
@@LuthiRanchWY I come from Switzerland too and farm/ranch in North Eastern BC. I know some Luthi's from around Bern and when I saw your ranch name, I knew your family must have come from Switzerland. In my youtube channel under about in the description you can find my email. Please write me and then I can send you a photo of the Luthi plough I have from Switzerland.
very clever. thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment!
are the cows standing on concrete slab or dirt?
nevermind you answered my quiestion
There’s a concrete slab there.
Video Request: I know you guys use chainsaws and axes on the ranch, I’d enjoy seeing it when you get any tree work👍🏻
I wish I would have been doing UA-cam last spring. We spent a few days just clearing brush and downed trees. And we took down a couple old hay sheds too that took a lot of chainsaw work. I’m sure I’ll find something for you this year though
@@LuthiRanchWY just missed it😆
I second that!
As a rancher I don’t know if I would do this. If you have equipment to make the bales and stack them, I would think you could use some of the same to feed the cows. The way that stack is makes a muck mess that needs cleaning and muck is much more corrosive on equipment and hard on health. Why not feed them in the field and let them fertilize your plants? This is just from a rancher in Idaho. I don’t know what circumstances you have.
All of the points you make are correct. This is a pasture where they turn the cows into after they have calved. They will probably be there for a couple months before they move on to other pastures.
Smart solution.
It’s a good option.
we used to use a bunker silo and it would last from September thru the next November and the feed rail would be moved forward as they ate their way thru it
I would love to see something like that. Seems like a good way to feed also.
I have seen photos of fellas who feed pasture in a similar way. Looked like it was planted in ryegrass or something. They had a single strand portable fence probably electric on it and they would move it back a few feet and the cows would eat it down. Move it another few when they finished.
That's how we did it 60 years ago in the milking barn. Hay in the loft.
How would you get the hay into the loft. We use to have a conveyor belt lift. My dad and grandpa used it, it was a little bit before my time.
What about the cows that can’t get to the feeder?
There is more room on the other end, they just hadn’t figured it out yet.
How many kilos does the carcass weigh? Do these animals give barley?
They weigh around 635 kilos. These ones don’t get any barley just grass and alfalfa.
@@LuthiRanchWY At what age do you slaughter very good animals, what do you feed them as feed?
@@semihyasinyusuf4982 we slaughter steers between 18-24 months old. Depending on what the customer wants they will either eat just alfalfa and grass for their whole life or we will supplement them with a grain mix for the last 3 months of their life that consists of corn, oats, barley and alfalfa pellets.
What do they do for water?
There’s a river that runs by close to the manger. And they also have a water trough for when the river freezes
Who trims the hoofs ?
We’ve never really had too many problems with hooves. Our cows are climbing up and down mountains all summer so I think the rocks and grit from that keep them fairly worn down on its own.
AKA fence line feeder?
Yes they are also called fence line feeders
Looks like you need a bigger feeder for all those cows LOL
Ya we might have put a few too many in that pasture. They just had to wait their turn haha
Do you run some cows?
I know a "Luthi". Met him in Auckland, New Zealand in 1974. He should be about 70 years old. He was from Star Valley. Tell him to text me.
Was he a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints? Was his name Jeff?
@@LuthiRanchWY yes, that's him. Just wondering if He is still around. I'm his Samoan speaking companion Elder Pehl.
@@waynepehl8138 small world! I will let him know. Does he have your phone number?
@@waynepehl8138 he is my Uncle. He doesn’t live around here anymore though.
On the hoof !
On the hoof?
Here in Canada they do bale grazing in the field with electric wire.
Cheap and no manure spreading by machine.
Good way to fix your worse fields.
I’ve heard of people doing that also. How often do they have to move the electric fence?
@LuthiRanchWY bales are parked in rows
They feed row after row.
Fence get moved when bales are cleaned up.
Don't know exactly how many days
Depends on a few things
@@mbca007 do you guys get much snow in your area? That would be the biggest problem I could see with that system. Trying to move an electric fence if there’s 2-3 feet of snow on the ground would be a bit of work.
Nice 😃😃
🤟
Good idea!!!
Thanks!
it's not the fall that hurts its the sudden take-up at the bottom
I don’t want to experience either one haha
All the cows were at your end of the feed bunk because everyone wants to be in the mooovies😂
Haha that’s funny!
That is a good way indeed..
I would agree with you.
I miss having cows.
I think I would too if I ever got rid of mine. Some days I’m tempted though haha.
I'm Trying to save the farm that's been in the family since 1880, all the family members moved away just want everything sold and take the cash.
It’s sad when that happens. It’s happening a lot around here right now too. The value of the land it worth some much not many of the next generation are wanting to put in the work to keep it running and just want an easy quick payday. Good luck with trials, I wish you the best!
About a dozen bales for 60 head.Your daddy taught you good.
Trying to be somewhat efficient haha
so thats the first time you did that, it sure gets different when its the lowest row
It gets less scary the lower you go haha
a rancher in Colorado is missing 80 head. Be careful out there
Thanks for the heads up. Do they think someone stole them?
@@LuthiRanchWY i think so, there has been reports of others where 1 or 2 were taken.
@@88corinutza that a lot of cows to just disappear.
@@LuthiRanchWY Well stay Safe out there brother, My parents raised and trained American Saddlebred horses when i was a kid, i would think to steal 80 cows quickly would take 7 guys and 4 big stock trailers i would think ?
@@88corinutza that would seem about right
That first hay shed is built like a bomb shelter.
It’s a nice shed! Randell put it up about 4 years ago. It’s all metal. Should last for a life time
Nice ,السلام عليكم
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.
Kurde , super patent ;)
Thanks, works pretty good
thumbs up!
Thanks!
Luckily grass keeps growing
That’s true.
In Texas we call the flakes Blocks people n other states call the leaves funny how are words are different but we know the meaning
Haha that is funny. I’ve never heard them called blocks before.
Think about it u cut the strings and your flakes pop r the blocks pop out just like when u little one throws their blocks in the air it's only 72 today feeding our cows in North Central texas
How cold can you guys get in the winter?
About the 21 temps
where about 15-12 wind 20-30 mph out of north
So wind chills in the -5-15 range
Lose a calf due to it breaking thru the ice on a tank calf was about 3 weeks old first one to do that in 30 + yrs but the tanks didnot freeze real solid n got in the middle
There goes the profit.
My wife said you need to get a tractor with a cab so u can enjoy feeding more.
Today was 75
Low for the next ten days in the middle 50 n maybe some rain.
Sorry about the loss of your calf, that’s never fun to deal with. That’s crazy the temperature swings you guys can have down there.
good
Thanks
一个人养这么多牛，辛苦
It is a lot of work.
Why anyone in Wyoming start calving in January good grief dead of winter ?
It’s a long explanation. We have forest permits in the summer and go out on the forest the first part of June so we don’t want to be calving up on the forest and like to have our cows bred back before they go up. We also like to have our calves at a decent size and strength when mud season hits the end of March and beginning of April. I start calving mine around the middle of February.
@@LuthiRanchWY all that makes sense 👍🇺🇸
must be good return on these cattle if there only eating hay 🤣🤣
They get fed differently at different times of the winter.
I hope your ladder is tied to something...Scariest feeling ever to fall backwards while on a ladder! :(
Luckily I haven’t had that happen to me yet.
I think we should free grazing land which are captured by land mafia or some farmers .This is a sin and we should keep natural grazing land as it is.
Thanks for your opinion
Kool
🤟
Like not using the tractor, and like it mostly, but ... that's not really a safe method and a lot of wives couldn't help out using that method.
I would agree it’s not the safest method to feed hay. But if you like the idea of it you could always just stack the bales a couple bales high and that would eliminate the lofty heights.
Dangerous but affective.
There is a little risk doing it this way.
God bless the farmer, no farmer no food, as long as u don’t sell your farm to the likes of Bill gates and company we’re good.
We are trying not to sell to anyone
Look that you are a lacy guy.
Thank you I feel pretty lucky.
Too much work for a few cows, and without machinery doing the bales hay and then stacking. Think in hay roles
We put up round bales also. I just posted a video on how we feed round bales also if you are interested in watching it. It’s called DIY Self Driving Tractor.
That looks so sketchy....man, don't fall off. I feed cows everyday, but I think I'd pass on that method.
When you first start and are on the very top it’s a little sketchy but once you work down a couple rows it’s not too bad just being 4-8 feet off the ground.
I wonder why more people don't use j-feeders
Would you consider this a J-feeder? I’ve never heard that term before.
Be careful
Always
Roll the bale's out on the field like Greg Judy and create some fertility why don't you?
We do it that way also, that’s how I’m feeding right now. Just depends on where we are in winter. Greg Judy doesn’t have to deal with 2-3 feet of snow every winter so he can unroll round bales with his fourwheeler all year if he wanted.
@@LuthiRanchWY thanks,I knew that would be your answer about the snow, no better way on earth to make a living, keep up the good work, and God bless.
That’s the truth! No better life.
@@waynesilva9157 I do like the idea though of having the cows do the work for you and having them spread their own manure through your fields. I’m trying to learn more about the regenerative side of things and implement what we can up here.
@@LuthiRanchWY smart farming the more we go with nature the healthier the land and everything that dwells on it.
Manger? Watch out, some git will throw a kid in there, banging on it's a lord and savior
Haha we call them mangers around here.
Hm....That seems like an accident waiting to happen😒
You definitely need to be careful and pay attention while you are doing it.
Clickbait. Cows don't eat horses and certainly not tractors. You're just being silly.
Haha you’re a funny guy
Sorry buddy but that isn't the way to feed cattle. Only 50 % of the cattle are getting fed.
There’s a little more room there than what it looks like. We have a couple square feeders in that pasture that we fill up also to try and prevent that over crowding.
Not a good idea to feed horses to the cows
Haha they probably wouldn’t like it much either.
long drug out ,
I kind of agree with you. This was one of my first videos I did when I started doing UA-cam almost 2 years ago. I was brand new to editing. I’ve tried to get better at keeping things shorter and to the point and trimming the fat off of clips. Thanks for your input.
This looks dangerous as hell.
You definitely need to pay attention and be careful when you are up there.
3 piles of raccoon or cat 💩 right on top of the bale lol not smart
Well there not a whole lot you can do about all the raccoons in the area and they like living in the haystacks.
LGBT workers?
What are you asking? If we employ them?