On the morning of the storm last week, I put out a round bale for the sheep in the field without setting up the feeder enclosure around it as I usually do.  This was motivated entirely by expediency rather than any lofty management goals.  Folks use bale feeders to keep their livestock from scattering and wasting the grass in the bale, but I noticed that the sheep were eating the unenclosed bale rather neatly, and with considerably less effort than when the feeder panels were in place.  The feeder panels are awkward to wrestle into place and set up, so I decided to try the experiment with a second bale.  No conclusions yet on efficiency of feed use, but the unenclosed bale is providing new opportunities for the more athletic ewes in the flock.