flicking feed

[motorboy]

I have a 30 pound hanging feeder and it usually has the little pellets of feed in it. They have never spilled any out. I bought a different type from another feed store that was little crumbs and in 3 days my two hens knocked 20 of the 30 pounds out allover the coop floor all by themselves. The gap between the container and bottom is set to its narrowest. The food does not spill out on its own, they are actually flicking it out with their beaks.

How can I stop them?

 

[TheNewMrsEvans]

They may not be used to this feed and are searching through it to find what they want. Just go back to pellets...much neater and you know they are getting everything they should in one bite.

 

[39jdeere]

MotorBoy
how high do you have your feeder set, should be
set off the ground as high as there backs.
an you have very little waiste with the crum type off feed.
Any lower they will have it all over you should use about 4 oz per bird give or take

Craig

 

[motorboy]

I suppose I have always had it a little low, but it was never a problem. Yesterday, out of spite I did raise it after I found 20 pounds of feed all over the ground- to 5 feet. I thought if your old enough to waste food, your old enough to eat it off the ground.

Don’t worry, today I felt bad and lowered it to a hair higher than their backs to see if that’ll stop’em. I figured I didn’t want them to eat any shavings or poop.

I bet they were trying to dig down to find the chunks and there were some.

The next time I buy feed it will be pellets. After this it will be soon.

4 oz per bird? Tough to calculate, But I had 5 chickens in the fall and now only 2 and they are eating twice as much. The coop is heated to about 40 and they rarely get let out now because it has been cooold.

Thanks, Justin

 

[Dawn419]

I started our girls on layer crumbles and switched to layer pellets for this very reason.

We've not had a problem with wasted feed from them "billing" it out of the feeder since.


Dawn

 

[EliteTempleton]

Quote:
Same here.

Crumbles for Chicks, after that its Pellets.

But I did have them eat it off the ground, I put a board under the feeder so less of the feed got buried/lost.

No concern about them eating their own poo, it's gross but they do it when your not looking anyway, I guess they need some of it to keep their enzymes straight.

 

[tcal]

same here.......bag of crumbles was $1 cheaper but they waste at least 1/3 of it!
Will save money by spending the extra dollar.

 

[animal nut]

I have been experimenting with the crumbles and the pellets. Crumbles cost $3.00 less than the pellets. We mixed the two at a 50/50 ratio. They waste less now that they have been eating it for a couple of weeks but, you are right they do waste. So now we are going to mix them at a 70/30 ratio.

 

[cluckychick]

We were feeding pellets but switched to crumbles when we found a cheaper feed. What a mistake....my chickens went through food like it was going out of style. We decided to go back to the Purinea because it last longer and they don't waste it. Now the feed prices are coming down again. #50lb bag Purinea pellets are 11.55 here.