Food/water availability at night.

Uzuri

Songster
10 Years
Mar 25, 2009
1,299
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Should food and water be available at night?

I'm guessing water absolutely, if only to avoid the cases where something happens and for some reason the ladies don't get let out right off in the morning. What are people's thoughts on food? Can I get away with feeding them in the run (under a "roof", of course)? It seems like this would both keep the food and the "bedroom" cleaner, and I could also take the pans inside at night, to help head off pests.
 
I too puzzled over this when i first got chickens. I don't have food or water in the coop, but my chickens coop door is always open leading into their run. So, they are not dependent on me coming out in the morning and letting them out before they can have food or water.
 
I personally leave my feeders out. My chickens get up before I do and I would rather them have there food there and ready. What kind of feeders do you have? Having a raised feeder will keep most of the wasted feed in the feeder. If mine make a big mess I will slack off on the feed and they will go around and clean things up. I don't know what to tell you about feeding the pests and stuff. I guess my pests just get well fed.
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Haven't made feeders yet, since I don't even have my peeps yet
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I'm just trying to get all my ducks in a row, er... so to speak.
 
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O.K. then as long as you have your coop and run predator proof the rats sneaking in to eat should be your only problem with leaving the feed out and if that problem arises it can be taken care of with traps and stuff. You just want the feed to remain dry and not be moldy. Chickens like to scratch there feed so if you have raised or hanging feeders than this will cut down on waste. Leaving the water out is alright but during the summer you want to offer them clean water daily and make sure the water containers are clean. That is an important step to keeping your peeps healthy. You will want to keep there area dry to prevent any mold contaimantion.

When are you getting you peeps? What kind?
 
I'm not 100% sure when I'll be getting them (I'm going in with someone else who has done all this before, and she's handling the ordering part). I'm hoping to get two Wyandottes, two Welsummers, and two Mottled Javas... and possibly a Welsummer rooster, which I might regret as soon as he finds his voice at 6 am
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My water plans include at least two waterers so that I can have one in the house, cleaned out and drying and ready to replace the one in use every day. We do this already with our rabbits, and it seems to help.
 
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You will like the Wyandottes. I love mine and try about 4am on that roo crowing. Mine start at 3:07am but we live right at the state line, time line, central time. I don't think my roos get it.
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I have maybe 60 or more roos. Its just a normal noise for my house.
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Gotta love those roos!
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I came over to this topic to ask this exact question. Mine are only in their coop at night get let out to free range at dawn and put themselves to bed at dark. I currently have the feed inside (they can come and go during the day at will). But I was thinking that since they are only sleeping inside that it would stay cleaner longer if food was kept outside. I am not hearing anything negative about it here, so unless someone posts a really strong reason not to I think I am moving it out today.
 
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I'm hoping so
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I got them on a whim, because of an interesting personal connection (I'm a tiny bit Wyandot Indian, and my grandmother always remembered which type we were because we were "like those chickens"
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), but they do seem to be pretty popular, which is reassuring.

Roosters crowing don't bother me, and I don't think they'll bother the family, but I do worry a bit about the neighbors. We can have them out here, legally, but you still don't want to upset good neighbors. I've had my share of bad ones, no sense in making enemies
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