Here's a couple pics of how I do it

at times I just can't keep up going up hill. Gyda knows the drill and takes the bale to the top then stops and waits for me to catch up.

JWM,

Perfect example of a great partnership; and how (with some jobs at least) horses can be more useful than a tractor.

Dave

Nice pictures Janet. Thanks for sharing.

Very impressed. I can see how the singletree is attached, but how did you attach to the bale and what did you use?

The single tree has a grab hook on it, and the bale has a pair of hay tongs, from an old hay lift set up you find in old barns. they are sickle shaped iron with pointed ends, connected by about 18 inches of chain. I stab one into each side of the bale, then drop the grab hook onto the chain.

I'll try to get a photo of it and put it here.

Janet

I'm jealous. Fjords have been my dream horse since I was around 14(still have the horse illustrated magazine) No Fjords yet. Still can't drive. 33 now, check this site every day, love the pics. Will get to driving soon I hope, hopefully my boys can learn this much earlier in life than me.

Janet, that is a once in a lifetime pony. Treasure and enjoy every day with her!!! Man she is getting it!! I assume there is nothing under the bale (it is sliding on top of the snow). What kind of baler baled this bale and what is the weight of this bale?? Good for you and thanks for the pictures!!

Are you using a set of tonges of some kind on your round bales ?

Good job Janet and that sure is a nice horse. Those bales look like the ones out of my John Deere 535, but they seem a narrower. Look like good bales.

Mike, it's never too late to learn and you can sure still become a good teamster. See if you can find someone close that'll help you out.

Boy I love this site! I am so inspired. Thanks for posting the pictures, really nice!

janet all my friends talk about my haflingers but they seen them pull my log arch last weekend they was all surprised.little horses big heart

Johnathan, I've been told she is one in a million. she is a 'thinker'. She figures things out, like if you rub the gate post with the bale, she knows she has to swing wider next time. She actually enjoys her work. I think she wants to get the bale to its destination just as much as I do!
I'll never sell her, ever.

There is nothing under the bale. no tongue is needed, it stops emediately when the horse stops. The bales are about 650 to 900 lbs. I think Gyda is about 1200-1300 lbs.

Janet

Keep dreaming Mike, I did not own a fjord at 33 yrs either and only just now was able to buy a decent horse trailer. Persevere and it will come.

Janet

Again, WOW!!!!!!!!

And fjords wouldn't hit their head in my barn.

Can't believe I have welded and built wagons all my life and never thought of using a set of them to move round hay . Hats off to you young lady . JWaller how come you never have run across a young lady like the ones on the porch ? HeHe can't figure why I never did .

I got the idea from a local Belgian breeder. In fact he inspired me to 'retool' in one short visit. He looked at my saddle horses and asked "why are'nt they moving your hay for you" (I was renting a tractor at the time). He was right, here they sat all winter just so I could go trail riding a few times each summer. That makes no sense.

But those horses were TWH and not suited to moving heavy objects. I had always wanted some kind of drafty pony. So I sold the TWH's and bought a couple of Fjord mares. Best decision I ever made. I spend a LOT more time with my horses now that they have a job.

Moral is, never underestimate what uttering one simple sentence can have on someone ;-)

Janet

Do you leave your round bales out in the weather? Have you had an issue with mold and such? Don't think I could skid round bales here (n. GA) because we don't have snow. Think they would take a beating too much, instead of sliding across the snow pack. Also, have wondered about feeding round bales to horses, our barn only holds 400 square bales and the way it's built we can't get tround bales up to it (loft) but I thought if I could leave the round bales out and it still be feed quality then I would try it, but I"m afraid being in the south with more rain thena snow and also warmer temps I would be asking for trouble. The hay would spoil here if not under cover I beleive.

Will, I don't think it would work there like it does here. We get 28 inches of precip per year and much of that comes as snow that does not melt for most of the winter, so basically very dry here. I would think you have to cover the bales if outside.

For skidding you might have to go with wheels or sled like has been suggested elsewhere. But we can count on snow most of the winter here.

Janet

Will, I live in eastern Oklahoma and our round hay sits out all the time. You will loose some on the bottom where it touches the ground and usualy not much at that, I have been toying with the idea that KM showed earlier on here moving a round with a team of ponies, by rolling it, not sure about the down hill runs yet.

net wraped will roll a ways if you roll opesite way the wrap was put on, the other way they dont roll to far 50 100 feet. most of the time I don't roll bales on the ground havent had good luck getting them where that i wanted them.

JWM
Its kind of hard to tell cause the little guy is really streatched out pulling, but it looks like the line of draft would be about where the bale touches the snow. Did you rig the grab hook / chain that way?

Will, I live in Northeastern Oklahoma and round bales of hay are stacked outside. You will loose some if just set them down on the ground and not cover the top. It is pretty simple to put down a wooden pallet to raise the bale off the ground and if you can place a tarp over the very top of the bale (it does not have to cover the complete sides) you will not loose much to water damage. Stack the bales end to end but they should not be touching unless they are covered. A little space allows air to circulate and keep mold from forming.

As for moving round bales without snow. One year my old feed truck was out of commission. I had a bale spear with a manual come-a-long to lift the bale. All I had was my small pick-up, so I purchased a piece of galvanized sheet metal. It was a 4 ft wide by 8 ft long and about 1/8 in. thick. I welded an eye on the front to hook a chain and tied to my pickup bumper. To keep the bale from rolling off, I drilled a hole in the back end of the 4x8 sheet and put a rope in it, pulled it tight up and over the top of the round bale and the metal sheet was flexible enough that it kinda wrapped around the round bale lifting up in the back and some in the front. I tied the rope to the front pull chain. I could have pulled that thing to china if I wanted. The only problem you might have is if the bales are too big it is more difficult to roll them onto the 4x8 sheet of metal (my bales were 4x5) but if you apply this principle to horses they could help roll the bales onto this metal sled.
When I was younger I had to store most of my hay outside. Now I try to store it in a barn but with just a little work to keep the bales of hay off the ground and minimal cover on top there is no reason for people to have so much damaged hay. If the bales are baled well (tight) they will shed water from the top and sides. It's the bottom of the bale which never gets air to dry that becomes most damaged.

the bale pulls the best (least amount of wobble), if I stab the fork in as low as possible. But to get some 'bite' I have to grab at least several layers of hay, and the very bottom is usually frozen so I usually find a place where they go in more easily which is typically 8 inches off the ground.

Janet