When & Where Do You Feed Your Chickens?

[katelk]

Trying to get some ideas of the best place to keep the feeder.

It is easy to get them to the coop at night when the feeder is in the coop, but having the feeder in the coop keeps them full and they don't seem to forage as much during the day and are much more difficult to control.

I have also tried feeding them outside the coop for limited access, making them easy to "call" with treats when I need to. I just am not sure how to keep that efficient, as it can be difficult to keep out mice when the feeder is outside.

What have you found to be most efficient? I do not have anywhere to hang a feeder.

 

[Wyandottes7]

I feed my chickens outside of their coop. The feeder hangs beneath the hen house (my coop has a henhouse enclosed in a run, with space beneath the henhouse). I always have feed in the feeder. I haven't had any problems with mice or other creatures.

If you can't hang a feeder, you could probably just put it on some concrete blocks.

 

[katelk]

I feed my chickens outside of their coop. The feeder hangs beneath the hen house (my coop has a henhouse enclosed in a run, with space beneath the henhouse). I always have feed in the feeder. I haven't had any problems with mice or other creatures. 

If you can't hang a feeder, you could probably just put it on some concrete blocks. 

You are lucky!! It is a constant battle with mice and other birds when I leave food out. I have even had to untangle a wild bird from chicken wire before trying to get to the food. Both the wild birds and mice will blatantly eat my feed right in front of me, even if I am yelling and walking right up to them. Brave little jerks!

 

[mejumpmore1]

I don't leave feed out during the day. I open the coop and let them forage all day. In the evenings I go out and fill the feeders and place it in the pen for them. They've adjusted to this routine and I will often have 2 on my doorstep and the other half wandering about the patio waiting for me to come put dinner out for them. They are a bunch of spoiled girls!

 

[katelk]

I don't leave feed out during the day.  I open the coop and let them forage all day. In the evenings I go out and fill the feeders and place it in the pen for them. They've adjusted to this routine and I will often have 2 on my doorstep and the other half wandering about the patio waiting for me to come put dinner out for them. They are a bunch of spoiled girls!

What kind of feeders do you have? I currently just have a 22 pound auto feeder. I have tried the slide open ones with the holes that you fill each feed time, but it takes the girls about half a second to tip it over and dump the food everywhere. SO I am again feeding wild animals expensive quality feed! Lol

 

[mejumpmore1]

I just have a basic 3 lb hanging feeder that I set on the ground. My girls have never knocked it over (knock on wood). They do scratch the feed out onto the ground a bit, but they typically clean up the majority of the spill the following day after I have removed the feeders in the morning. I've also got two of my girls separated out and I'm using a standard chick feeder with a 1 qt mason jar attached, which has not been tipped over yet either.

 

[LarryH]

This is my feeder which never runs out. Note the feed saving system. All the loose feed goes into the bucket and then is poured back into the tube.