How do you store your chicken supplies?

[Fluffy&Cutie]

hi all. so it's been about 6 months i've been raising chickens. my supplies have gone from an extra canister of feed to bags of dried crickets in my pantry! HELP! that won't work for me. how do you store your chicken supplies. OCD ideas are very welcome as are anything Martha Stewart fancy!
i know they have to be critter proof, but how do you store your feed, snacks, fodder, oyster shells, grit, etc? pictures would be great.
Happy Day

PS: We keep the dog & cat food in the pantry. And since our chickens are pets, we store the feed in the pet section of the pantry. That's how the dried bugs got into the pantry, Eeek!

 

[DobieLover]

I had live mealworms in my pantry!
They are gone now.
I mix my own chicken feed using organic grains, seeds, PNB and feed grade fishmeal. I store the bags in a stripped down apartment sized refrigerator. It is air tight. I keep it in my basement.
The oyster shell is in the garage but will move to the new coop in a storage room when we build the new coop in the spring.

 

[PirateGirl]

I keep pet food and supplies in the laundry room instead of with the people food. Also this is near the back door so it's handy when going out to feed the flock so I'm not trekking through the house in my poop boots.

 

[SueT]

I keep feed in 5-gallon buckets in a pantry in the kitchen. One 50 lb. bag fills 2 buckets, I line the buckets with plastic (tall kitchen) drawstring trash bags and keep them closed up. I used to keep feed in the basement and it got moldy down there. Feed is perishable and should be kept in a dry place. I also keep scratch feed in a bucket in the same area. I keep oyster shell and grit in the garage. I don't have any dried crickets or mealworms.

 

[lcwmt]

There is a mud room in this house, with closet space close to the door. The chicken feed, scratch and BOSS are each in food safe 5 gallon buckets in that closet. Emergency supplies (Nutridrench, BluCote etc) are in a smaller container, as are the Oyster Shell, grit and dried Mealy Worms - Soldier fly larvae, etc.
The mud room door is closest to the chicken coop and runs. This supposedly makes it easy for me to don my chores coat, boots, grab a bucket of whatever and head out to care for the chickens.
What would be better for me would be a Garden Shed, close to the chicken coop, where everything could live. Sigh. Maybe next year?

The food for the dogs and cats and the bird seed for those feeders are stored in 5 gallon food safe buckets in the people pantry - closer to the living space of the house, closer to where those critters are fed.
We are in the country. Mice can be an issue. Big containers are a necessity. I don't mind feeding things outside but prefer to not encourage them indoors.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I keep all the bags of stuff in the garage. Feed is in metal trashcans for additional pest protection. Smaller amounts of snacks, grit and oyster shell are in the coop for easy access.

 

[DobieLover]

I used to keep feed in the basement and it got moldy down there.

Exactly! This is why I use an AIR TIGHT container. The moisture cannot get at my grains to cause mold growth. Everything stays fresh. If it isn't air tight, it should not be in the basement. Of course, I also make sure not to purchase more than a 4 months supply of ingredients.

 

[Fluffy&Cutie]

awesome! thanks, keep the great ideas coming. I've only a couple of birds so i never have a large stash, hence the pantry. i like the the laundry room idea for me. i just have to clean mine out, lol! And thaks for the pics of your reused jars-i love that! nice and clean looking!

 

[blackdog043]

I keep my feed in the garage, it's kept in the original bags. I keep them off the concrete because they could absorb moisture that way. Oyster shell, grit, scratch, meal worms and anything else is kept in the shed next to the coop. Oh, my fermented feed is kept on the kitchen counter in a crock.

 

[aart]

Feed and scratch is in a metal garbage can in coop shed.
Straw and shavings are in coop shed.
Bottles of grit, OS, and crushed egg shell are in coop shed.
Bag of OS is in garage.
Anything that should not see extreme temps is in lower level lavatory cabinet.