The Field Calculators → Stock
Stock
Winter hay needs
How many bales to put up, including the waste nobody budgets for.
Result
Number of animals4
Average body weight1200 lb
Daily intake2.5 % of body weight
Days of winter feeding150
Feeding waste20 %
Bale weight50 lb
Hay needed
10.8 tons
21,600 lb total.
Bales
432 bales
Per day for the herd
144 lb/day
Waste you're budgeting
3,600 lb
A ring feeder usually pays for itself in one winter.
Storage space
160 cu yd
Rough — small squares run about 10 cu ft each stacked.
What this will not do
- Never stack hay above about 20% moisture (lower for large bales). Wet-stacked hay self-heats and burns barns down, every year, in every state. A $50–150 probe before you stack, and temperature spears in the stack after.
- 150°F internal means check twice a day. 175°F and climbing means get it apart or get help. Above about 190°F hay ignites on its own, with no spark.
- Hay quality varies enormously. A test costs $20–30 and tells you whether you need to supplement — guessing costs more.
The full build and the reasoning are in Chapter 30, Appendix E of the guide.