My coop, raised about 3 feet up, will have a run that is partially under it - very weather protected. I will be closing my chickens (only have 2) in at night. My question is: Do I put the feeder inside or out? Inside, it will keep it from attracting raccoons and such, but they'll have to go in and out to eat. Also, it will be there for them when they wake up in the morning, and possibly keep them from making too much noise early in the morning before I get out there. (Neighbor) Outside, less messy, less waste? Help me think this through!
What's your run like? Is it open, or covered? If it's covered, are the openings in the wire large enough to let small birds like wrens through? A feeder outside will attract wild birds during the day unless the run is impervious to them, and a feeder left outside at night will attract other critters that you might not want sniffing around your coop. I actually do both: I have a feeder out in the run during the day that I bring in at night (the run is covered with 1/2" hardware cloth), and a feeder inside the coop at all times.
The run will be covered in hardware cloth - 1/2 inch, I believe. So birds will not be a problem. Even though the girls will be locked up tight, and the run should be impervious to intruders, I don't want to attract anything to even THINK about getting in there! I will have a wire fence skirting around the run as well. Come to think of it, though, won't the chickens spill and scatter a lot of food on the ground in the run anyway? Will that attract critters? Am I over-worrying? Ha ha, my chicks are only 2 weeks old at this point! Never too soon to start worrying!
