Food Block on a Low Roost - Challenge for the Run

[cabincrazyone]

To relieve my own boredom right now, being stuck inside during a cold snap, I'm designing a novelty for the run.

It's a branch about a foot from the ground that swings on an axle like a teeter-totter. I'm working on making the weighted end injury proof. But let's go to the other end for a moment. A treat of any kind is suspended at chicken head height at the end of the branch. The branch is weighted so that one chicken can be on that end without it teetering. When a second bird comes along the balance is upset and they both ride the tilting branch to the ground. I'm concerned about a third bird getting under the weight at the other end and being bonked. At least it's fun to think about it and try to improve on the engineering. Any ideas?

 

[cabincrazyone]

Here's a bit of an improvement.

The counter weight is on the ground all the time, until the other end is weighted down. That way a chicken can't be sitting under the weight. The amount of time the weight is in the air and becomes a potential "bonker" is during the swing down of the other end, and presumably they get off right away ... so the counter weight would go up and then down pretty much right away ....

 

[teach1rusl]

As for the bonking part - just a little lightweight netting over the bonking end pegged into the ground, making that end "closed" so nothing could be under it????

**netting would be slack/gathered when weight was on ground, snugged up a little when weight was lifted.

 

[cabincrazyone]

Quote:
That's a great idea! Netting .... flexible, easy to install, effective.


Here's my next thought.

Perhaps a little higher off the ground ... 18 to 24 inches ... balanced and having a treat on both ends to double the mayhem. I've thought of a limiting device between the two stanchions that the axle goes through ... and with that great idea of the netting to keep "em out of the axle area it would be about as safe as it could get.
It would have to be engineered so that about ten pounds at one end or the other would start it swinging.

 

[Pinky]

That's a great idea, looks like it would keep the chickens busy and I like your chicken drawing