springchicken81
Chirping
We just recently moved our flock of 6 to their coop and run. They’re 7-weeks old and have adapted wonderfully. We have 6 happy chicks!
But we have some questions regarding feeding them:
-We have the OverEZ chicken feeder which holds 50 lbs of feed. But our chickens keep spilling huge amounts onto the ground. It really just one chicken who’s the culprit. We’ve made a tray to sit underneath so that we can catch it, put it back in or throw it away without it landing on the ground and rotting. But there’s so much waste. How can we reduce this?
-On a related note, can we leave our food out overnight? Last night we noticed a raccoon near our run on our camera, but the chickens are safe inside their very secure coop. The run is fully enclosed with 1/2 hardware cloth and an apron all the way around. Is there any harm is leaving the food out overnight?
-Lastly how do people manage this when they go away. We have an automated door which opens at 5:30am and closes at 8:30and has been working great. But how to manage food? Especially with messy chickens and food in the run. I’ve heard of automated feeders that open when a platform is stepped on. But our chickens are young and I’m not sure they’re heavy enough.
Any help on any of these questions would be so helpful!! How do others handle food, predators, and travel?
thanks!
pic of overEZ feeder before we made the tray. Another pic of curious chicks in their coop.
But we have some questions regarding feeding them:
-We have the OverEZ chicken feeder which holds 50 lbs of feed. But our chickens keep spilling huge amounts onto the ground. It really just one chicken who’s the culprit. We’ve made a tray to sit underneath so that we can catch it, put it back in or throw it away without it landing on the ground and rotting. But there’s so much waste. How can we reduce this?
-On a related note, can we leave our food out overnight? Last night we noticed a raccoon near our run on our camera, but the chickens are safe inside their very secure coop. The run is fully enclosed with 1/2 hardware cloth and an apron all the way around. Is there any harm is leaving the food out overnight?
-Lastly how do people manage this when they go away. We have an automated door which opens at 5:30am and closes at 8:30and has been working great. But how to manage food? Especially with messy chickens and food in the run. I’ve heard of automated feeders that open when a platform is stepped on. But our chickens are young and I’m not sure they’re heavy enough.
Any help on any of these questions would be so helpful!! How do others handle food, predators, and travel?
thanks!
pic of overEZ feeder before we made the tray. Another pic of curious chicks in their coop.