Frequently asked questions
CONTROLLING THE RATION
Stock lick feed out of a groove between two Adjusters and through the gaps in the Adjuster Guard. The licking period is limited to about 5 minutes because stock need saliva on their tongue to get the feed out of the groove. Sheep lick at about 120 times per minute and cattle, about 60 times per minute. In five minutes of licking at the most restricted setting, sheep will only get a heaped tablespoon and cattle, half a cup. The Adjuster Guard stops bulldozing and makes stock stand in one position when feeding – stopping bullying behaviour. The ration cannot be controlled without the Adjuster Guard
Bully stock have the same amount of saliva as shy animals. Because the bully stock run out of saliva, they walk away from the feeder and allow stock that would otherwise be shy to go to the feeder without being pushed around.
In a paddock situation:
- Sheep can be restricted to approx. 200grams/day
- Mature cattle can be restricted to approx. 2.0kg/day
- Weaner cattle can be restricted to approx. 1.0kg/day
If stock are in a feedlot/containment area, the lowest setting is about double the consumption of a paddock situation.
Advantage Feeders have 2 adjuster plates that move perpendicular to each other. Depending on where they are positioned it can restrict the stocks’ ability to lick the feed up. In the most restricted settings stock need their tongue to be moist enough for the feed to stick to it and come up out of the groove. After about 5 minutes of licking the tongue dries and they cannot get the feed to come out.
The feeders come with a feed rationing chart on the panel above the trough. This will provide a good starting point of what amount stock will consume at each different setting. This is a guide only and farmers need to record actual feed intake to work out their own calculations because the different types of feed and other conditions can affect the intake. If stock are consuming more than desired these slides should be closed. If stock are eating less than desired then the slides should be opened.
Our system relies on the animal having saliva to be able to get the feed out. Bully stock have the same amount of saliva as shy animals. Because the bully stock run out of saliva, they walk away from the feeder and allow stock that would otherwise be shy to go to the feeder without being pushed around.
USING ADVANTAGE FEEDERS
There is potential to finish stock on pasture with creep feeding and grain assist systems. This can eliminate the need to feedlot or background stock. If stock are to be lot feed, Advantage Feeders can reduce the labour to background/pre-condition stock by stopping trough feeding. The Advantage Feeders system can be used to accustom stock from a low concentrate ration to a high ration simply by repositioning the adjustment system.
The feeder has a 90mm outlet. A feed mix with less than 25% chaff and cut to less an inch long will flow but the ability to control the ration is limited. The mix must also have less than 1% molasses.
The feeders can be skidded or picked up with a front end loader.
The 150HD, 800HD and 1800HD feeders can be picked up and moved full. The 3800HD can be moved with 2000kg of feed in it. The 800HD and 1800HD feeders can be skidded full. The 3800HD can be skidded with 1500kg of feed.
Stock prefer fresh feed. Feed in a trough can become stale with stock ignoring and wasting it. It is best to set the adjusters up so the feed is almost flowing into the trough. Stock have to scoop the feed into their mouths. The trough is generally empty because it is slightly easier to consume any spillage from the trough than lick it out of the wide gap between the adjusters.
Rubber mat is the most cost effective and practical system in most situations.
The feed sits 40mm down in the licking area and birds can’t get their beaks in and have trouble fitting their feet in, so they can’t easily reach the feed. If they can reach it, the Adjuster Guard stops them flicking the feed out. When feeding sheep, the Creep Panel is commonly used to deter birds and reduce weather getting in while allowing ewes to feed.
Pigs can get the feed but they are also restricted by saliva so will only get a few table spoons each 5 minutes and won’t empty the feeder.
At sheep height, it is 1.8m, at cattle height, it is 2.0m and at extended cattle height, it is 2.2m.
It depends on if what you are feeding blocks up the licking area. The flange on the Adjuster Guard allows more feed muck to build up before it stops the flow of the feed, so if the licking area is clogging more than once/week, use the Adjuster Guard in with the flanging inhibiting part of the licking area. If the licking area isn’t clogging regularly, use the Adjuster Guard in the standard way. This allows smaller rations to be fed because the feed in the bottom of the licking area can be set lower.
It depends on the feed. If you are feeding clean grain, there is no issue. If you are feeding poor seconds grain and pellets, they can clog up and will need cleaning from time to time. If you are feeding dusty pellets or grain seconds, we have engineered an Adjuster Guard for this application. It is still common to run a cleaning tool along the licking groove once per week. This is easy with our feeders because our Adjuster Guard clips in and out.
Advantage Feeders offers a 5 year warranty that the products are fit for purpose with using appropriate feeds. We are the only manufacturer in Australia that offers any warranty.
The 3800HD holds 3800 litres, the 1800HD holds 1800 litres and so on.
On the 800HD, 1800HD and 3800HD, the pins that fasten the skids to the body work can be taken out and put back in with the skid at a different height. The 3800HD feeders come with 2 separate centre braces under the trough. One is for cattle and the other
Yes, they can be attached to the feeders at any stage after the feeder is assembled.
No as it is quite expensive to put the compartments in. Some farmers buy 3 Mineral Attachments and put a different substance in each.
All the bolts go into captive nuts so you only need the provided tube spanner on the head of the bolt. All nuts and bolts are stainless steel.
LIVESTOCK WITH ADVANTAGE FEEDERS
It is best to start with feeding safe, low starch, pellets with buffers in it, ad-lib for about a week. The adjusters should initially be set wide. The stock will be easily able to access feed which rewards them and imprints in their mind that coming to the feeder is a good idea. After you see stock regularly going to the feeder, the adjusters can be closed and the feed changed to higher starch feeds.
The Adjuster Guard has all burrs removed and then it is powder coated. We have never had a cut tongue with our feeders.
No as it has spring clips at each end of the trough to fasten it in.
Advantage Feeders developed a test by putting in blue food dye with the feed. The dye colours the face of animals that are feeding. Within a day, you know which ones are and aren’t feeding. The ones that aren’t feeding can be managed separately. Many farmers observe that the trough space of an Advantage Feeder is rarely full, feeding is less frantic and stock are frequently coming and going between the feeder and the mob when the mob is grazing.
Yes, all the external areas are reinforced to cope with all types of stock.
The bars have 300mm gaps and should not be used with bulls. Advantage Feeders have engineered a “bull kit” to reduce the size of the gaps to prevent the issue with bulls.
