help - girls spilling feed!

[sedodge]

Please help! My girls are very messy eaters - I only have 3 hens and they can't keep their feed container full for more than an hour without spilling it everywhere. I just went out a few minutes ago to see that they had completely destroyed the feeder - it's in 3 parts now. Since I use organic feed, it just about kills me to see it all over the ground where they ignore it. I have this type of feeder now http://www.mypetchicken.com/Feed_and_Feed_Supplies-3lb_Hanging_Chick_Feeder-P387.aspx

They managed to unscrew the nut at the bottom and it all fell apart. Does anyone have any suggestions for a spill free feeder?

Thanks!

 

[fullhouse]

Do you have it hanging? Do you put scratch in the feed?

 

[Mahonri]

Keep your nuts screwed on tight and lift the feeder so it's above the height of their backs. I have a couple of barred rocks that just love to waste feed by pushing it out of the feeder but they are learning it's easier to get food from the feeder than scratching around the coop floor.

 

[keljonma]

Sorry to be laughing..... our flock does the same thing with the feeder. They found if they twirl it enough, they can have all the food at once! YIPPEE! We check the nut on the top and bottom every evening at lock up. And have had to change the nut four times. We got a locking nut from the hardware store and installed it on the bottom instead of the wingnut. But I left the wingnut on top, so I could still take the thing apart to clean it.

Chickens are notorious for billing out feed. If you are using mash (instead of pellets or crumbles) you should mix it with a bit of liquid (we use buttermilk or whey, warmed in winter) for feeding.

 

[Wynette]

I've got a chicken friend that takes the feeder away when they spill all over the ground. She says they'll then clean up what has been spilled; she then takes the feeder back in. A thought, anyhow!

 

[Jilara]

Funny, that's what I do, taking the feeder away! Or, if they've been shoveling it out, onto the ground, so they can high-grade what they deem the "best bits," and it's down to the tiny crumbs, I just don't refill until they've eaten what's out on the ground. Gee, it all disappears eventually.

I think they're just natural messy eaters.

 

[ams3651]

i dont have that problem since I got a 20lb dog food feeder and put it up off the ground.I have 8 and they all eat out of it just fine.

 

[WisconsinChick]

you could put a big piece of ply wood on the ground under it so when they do spill it, they can still eat it off the wood.

 

[silkiechicken]

If you hang it high up where they have to stretch to eat it, there will be lots less billing out going on. Try it.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

From the site you posted:

"This feeder from Little Giant is the perfect size for baby chicks or a very small flock of bantams."

I'm not sure if this means the feeder is not strong enough to take the abuse of bigger birds, or if this means that it only holds enough feed for small birds.

If its the former, your feeder just might not be strong enough... Just a thought...​