Feeding in the hen house????

[Farming Feathers]

Should food and water be kept in the hen house where they nest, and roost...or should that be kept in the run our outside a run for free ranging Chickens...sorry if it seems a foolish question, but I don't know or wouldn't ask. Kind regards all

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Really depends on your set up and environment, but from my experience, no, it is not a good idea.

First, the chickens make a mess with it, which makes your coop a mess requiring more cleaning. Spilled feed mixed with poo, at least in my area, molds. Mold is really bad for chickens as it can cause Aspergillis, a fungal infection of the air sacs.

Secondly, feed attracts rodents. Unless your coop is metal, closing the coop merely entices rodents to chew through the wood corners....yes corners, and any little nook and cranny. I picked up feed at night and placed it in the coop, with hatch closed, door locked, to avoid feed loss to rodents, who were cleaning me out...and the rodents? I now have nice rodent holes in my coop that I have to patch.


As to water, unless it is secure, and a nipple type that doesn't drip, they spill it, then it mixes with the feed to make an encrusted paste on the coop floor which is hard to clean. Then it molds.

So all told, while tempting, and sometimes necessary (broody hen with chicks), feed in the coop merely makes a mess one way or another unless you are talking a chicken building for winter where coop and enclosed run are one.

LofMc

 

[aart]

I keep my feed and water in the coop.
Easier for me, especially during my harsh winters, and my run is not covered,
and because I use supplemental lighting it's essential for the birds.
But I have a roomy walk-in coop, no rodent problems, a spill proof-waste free feeder, and use a horizontal nipple waterer.

 

[BantyChooks]

Others have covered this very well already. I personally keep both outside because I have ducks too.

 

[Ohmyheart]

I have mine outside also. I also have plugs to stop any rodents from getting into the food. It seems to be working so far.

 

[Folly's place]

Mine is inside both my coop and covered run, because it needs to be available when the birds wake up in the morning, not when I wander out there later.
To me, 'outside' means out of the coop and run, where the 'wild things are'! When I stopped having feed and treats out there, many fewer raccoons and other varmits showed up at night.
I'm going to be fighting mice as long as I don't live in a Manhattan high-rise, so that's part of life, IMO.
Mary

 

[Ohmyheart]

Good point Mary, then mine would be inside my covered run.

 

[igorsMistress]

You can jang water from a chain over a rafter. We have a 2x4 across the top and the chain can slide across to get it out of the way when cleaning. No spills. Feed can be done the same way.
We are going to try a treadle feeder because I'm tired of feeding wild birds. They're ridiculous.

 

[rosemarythyme]

It all really depends on your setup, the amount of space you have, etc. Like aart my run isn't covered so the food and water go inside the coop. Because my coop is tight on space and because of rodents the feeder is removed at night and kept in a metal trash can. My waterer fits in a slot designed for it atop the coop so I see no reason to move it.

 

[GardenTillers44]

Really depends on your set up and environment, but from my experience, no, it is not a good idea.

As others have said, it depends on your setup. For us, keeping the coop clean was a real issue even with nipple waterers and PVC pipe feeders. 20 chickens in the coop found ingenious ways to mess it up. This summer I added a covered run with two doors and an automatic door to the coop. We have heated "no-spill" waterers and our hanging crumble feeders in the run with large trays under them to catch the inevitable spillage. The automatic door has worked flawlessly now for 6 months and has really helped with our morning schedule. We don't have to be out there at the crack of dawn to let them out of the coop and feed them.
Plastic trays ( http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/category/large-trays ) placed under the feeders and waterers help contain the mess and make for easy cleanup if you have room in the coop for them. We even have them under the roost to catch the nightly poops.