The chickens just scoop out the feed with their beeks, and it flys everywhere. Do you think if I raised the feeders a few inches they wouldn't be able to do this? It drives me crazy.
I have mine stacked on a couple of bricks so it's about level with their chest... and it has been working rather well! They don't get shavings or poop in it, and they seem to keep it all rather contained!
Agreed. They should be level with the smallest chicken's back but they will still scoop the food out, just not as bad. Roosters instinctively scoop food out to attract hhis girls and make it easier on them but hens do it too. I don't know your set-up or the ages of you chickens, but if you feed pellets instead of crumles if they are old enough and maybe put a flat container under the feeder to catch the feed, it does cut down on waste. I keep my feeder outside on bare ground so they can find the pellets.