For the MINIMALISTS - those who think less is more in chicken keeping - Please help

[GetFitWithKrista]

Good price!

I'm paying $19.50 for the 22% gamebird grower and putting up with the bacitracin because I can't budget the ~$24 for the 18% all-flock in the name brand.

Good to know that their price is comparable. Thanks for that info. How long should a 50 lb bag of food for 5 birds last?

That's great that they said this -- excellent ethics in retailing.

I thought the same thing and even thanked them for their honesty. Values still exist!

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

If this is a feed with the components identifiable then it will be best fed either fermented or, at least, as a wet mash do that the chickens can't pick out their favorite treat portions and leave the other stuff (and the vitamin mix powder), in the bottom of the feeder.

Many people find benefits in fermenting feed. I don't consider it worthwhile *personally* while feeding crumble or pellets, but I'd do it if I were using a whole-grain type feed.

Ah, GREAT tip on them picking out their favorites. Sneaky little suckers. I often pick out the chocolate pieces of the trail mix - drives my husband crazy.

I've read about fermenting. I don't think I want to do that. I'd really like to try to utilize a PVC feeder and wet food would equal a big old mess.

So I really want to go for feed where everything looks pretty much uniform?

 

[3KillerBs]

So I really want to go for feed where everything looks pretty much uniform?

Yes, look for a pellet or a crumble. Crumble at this age is probably better.

Thanks for that info. How long should a 50 lb bag of food for 5 birds last?

Good question.

I have 20-ish adults (?), and a number of youngsters and find that 100# lasts me about two weeks.

One "rule of thumb" is that on average an adult, dual-purpose hen will eat roughly 1/4# dry weight per day.

 

[AnnPann]

Did you end up adjusting your roosts? I think I recall you saying that. It seems like there's not much room under the roosts. How often do you find you have to clean the board? I'm trying to keep my daily/weekly upkeep minimal so I can spend my time hanging out with them.

I did not go off the plans for the length or height of the roots. My roost bar is a bit shorter (I think around 7'), and is about 6" above the poop tray. Poop tray is about 15" above the floor. I think... we just eyeballed it and put a chicken in there to "try it on" as we went, to make sure it fit. On ours there is plenty of room under the poop tray for them to walk/hang out, which was important to us. I didn't want to lose the floor space. Even the large hens can comfortable walk under there. Some of the pullets have even declared it nest space, and I find eggs under there every day.

I scoop it every other day or so, but it only takes me 5 mins. Scoop it into a bucket, dump the bucket into the compost. I avoid doing it on windy days because of the dust, but with 14 it gets dirty fast. The PDZ really helps keep the smell down.

 

[AnnPann]

I'd really like to try to utilize a PVC feeder and wet food would equal a big old mess.

I did the whole DIY 4" PVC feeder thing and it was a TOTAL fail. I don't know what I did wrong but moisture kept getting into it and it would get moldy. The smell when I took it apart to clean was horrendous. Maybe it's just too humid here for this system to work. I've tried several feeder styles and my favorite is a giant metal dog dish from Target set on top of a couple of big pavers. Yes they spill it sometimes, but they also don't mind eating off the ground when they do. One huge benefit of this coop design/plan is that it keeps the mice OUT. So you don't have to pickup food at night to keep the rodents from stealing food. Just be sure you don't trap the mice INSIDE during the build like I did. Took me about a month to figure that one out and get them trapped and relocated! Haven't had a problem since, and I never pickup feed at night.

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

Yes, look for a pellet or a crumble. Crumble at this age is probably better.

Excellent, thanks

Good question.

I have 20-ish adults (?), and a number of youngsters and find that 100# lasts me about two weeks.

One "rule of thumb" is that on average an adult, dual-purpose hen will eat roughly 1/4# dry weight per day.

WOW how do they eat that much? And how do you get 100 lbs of food home?

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

I did the whole DIY 4" PVC feeder thing and it was a TOTAL fail. I don't know what I did wrong but moisture kept getting into it and it would get moldy. The smell when I took it apart to clean was horrendous. Maybe it's just too humid here for this system to work.

Did you glue the pieces together? A lot of people who demonstrate how to build the PVC feeder, glue the parts. Did you try the horizonal or vertical feeder? I could see how the horizontal ones would accumulate moisture since they're open. Not sure how the vertical ones would though.

I've tried several feeder styles and my favorite is a giant metal dog dish from Target set on top of a couple of big pavers. Yes they spill it sometimes, but they also don't mind eating off the ground when they do.

I'm really surprised this doesn't attract rodents. So you just leave the bowl of food out all the time? How often do you find you have to refill the bowl? I'm trying to make my system as automated as possible, if I can.

One huge benefit of this coop design/plan is that it keeps the mice OUT. So you don't have to pickup food at night to keep the rodents from stealing food.

Thank you SO much for letting me know that this coop plan doesn't have room for a critter to get in. I was wondering about that. Do you think it's because it's pretty much fully enclosed in hardware cloth?


Your info has been REALLY helpful, thanks for taking the time to share. I appreciate it very much.

Just be sure you don't trap the mice INSIDE during the build like I did. Took me about a month to figure that one out and get them trapped and relocated! Haven't had a problem since, and I never pickup feed at night.

I'd love to hear how you figured it out??

 

[3KillerBs]

WOW how do they eat that much? And how do you get 100 lbs of food home?

It's a matter of how many birds I have.

The farm store workers load the 2, 50# bags of feed in the back of the car for me and I have teen sons and a gorilla cart to get them into storage.

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

I did not go off the plans for the length or height of the roots. My roost bar is a bit shorter (I think around 7'), and is about 6" above the poop tray. Poop tray is about 15" above the floor. I think... we just eyeballed it and put a chicken in there to "try it on" as we went, to make sure it fit. On ours there is plenty of room under the poop tray for them to walk/hang out, which was important to us. I didn't want to lose the floor space. Even the large hens can comfortable walk under there. Some of the pullets have even declared it nest space, and I find eggs under there every day.

I scoop it every other day or so, but it only takes me 5 mins. Scoop it into a bucket, dump the bucket into the compost. I avoid doing it on windy days because of the dust, but with 14 it gets dirty fast. The PDZ really helps keep the smell down.

I didn't think we were going to the tray but it sounds tempting. Do you find that using the board saved you time and effort in the long run or is it about the same?

I read that using PDZ with deep bedding can kill the beneficial good bacteria. Anyone want to share their thoughts?

We're almost finished our henhouse, thank goodness. We're at the ladder part. Did you do the 2x4 ladder that the designer recommended? We were going to do something a little wider but we've got the lumber for 2x4 and we've hit our budget so I'm hoping this will be sufficient, at least for a while.

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

It's a matter of how many birds I have.

The farm store workers load the 2, 50# bags of feed in the back of the car for me and I have teen sons and a gorilla cart to get them into storage.

Yes, put those boys to work! It's good for them.