I've been using a port style feeder for my chickens for a few years now and it's been working great. Very little waste and no signs of rodent infestation that I can see.
This spring I hatched some chicks for the first time, they are 4 weeks old and currently living with a broody in a separate area. However due to an upcoming trip I am planning where I'll be out of town for a few nights I was hoping to integrate them into the flock soon so they can learn how to roost with the other chickens in the main coop and be kept safe by our automatic chicken door at night. Our run is not fully enclosed but we've never had a predator problem as long as everyone is shut in at night.
So, the problem...I've read that port feeders can be dangerous for chicks under 12 weeks since they can get stuck in the ports and die. Mine will be 6 weeks at the time I need them integrated. I'm planning on making a creep feeder for the chicks so the bigger hens don't dominate all the food sources, but I'm trying to figure out a way to make the port feeder "chick safe" while we're gone. I don't need the chicks to be able to eat from the adult port feeder as they'll have their own separate feeder, I just want them to not get stuck in the holes. I was thinking if I set the adult port feeder up on a cinder block with a smaller footprint than the feeder itself (and therefore no "ledge" the chicks could use to stand on to crawl into the ports) then it would be hard for them to both hop up and dive in at the right angle to get stuck.
TL;DR version: Need to integrate 6 week chicks to use automatic door while we're out of town, currently using port feeders in main coop but worried about chicks falling in.
Anyone successfully used port feeders around chicks without mishaps? What did you do?
Thanks!
This spring I hatched some chicks for the first time, they are 4 weeks old and currently living with a broody in a separate area. However due to an upcoming trip I am planning where I'll be out of town for a few nights I was hoping to integrate them into the flock soon so they can learn how to roost with the other chickens in the main coop and be kept safe by our automatic chicken door at night. Our run is not fully enclosed but we've never had a predator problem as long as everyone is shut in at night.
So, the problem...I've read that port feeders can be dangerous for chicks under 12 weeks since they can get stuck in the ports and die. Mine will be 6 weeks at the time I need them integrated. I'm planning on making a creep feeder for the chicks so the bigger hens don't dominate all the food sources, but I'm trying to figure out a way to make the port feeder "chick safe" while we're gone. I don't need the chicks to be able to eat from the adult port feeder as they'll have their own separate feeder, I just want them to not get stuck in the holes. I was thinking if I set the adult port feeder up on a cinder block with a smaller footprint than the feeder itself (and therefore no "ledge" the chicks could use to stand on to crawl into the ports) then it would be hard for them to both hop up and dive in at the right angle to get stuck.
TL;DR version: Need to integrate 6 week chicks to use automatic door while we're out of town, currently using port feeders in main coop but worried about chicks falling in.
Anyone successfully used port feeders around chicks without mishaps? What did you do?
Thanks!
