New hens / feed and water location

[atomic_chicken]

Hi just got 5 new australorp X hens( 2 months approx) and they are not to sure about getting back up their chicken ladder. My question is if I leave the water out in the run are they OK overnight with no water in the coop. I am assuming
when they get older they will go in and out all day to eat or drink? I have a wall mount feeder in the coop and have also put food outside for now so they can eat during the day. Is it OK to have water and food strictly in the coop or should it be in both places?

I just want happy chickens!

 

[burbankchix]

We are new hen owners, so I can only tell you what we do. We put our chicks out at 4 weeks old, due to the weather (CA), they had no trouble going up the coop ladder, sliding down in between the little stops was pretty funny though! It didn't take long before they were up and down with no problem. As to the water and feed, we put it in the coop and the run when they were small. Now that they are 10 weeks old, we have hung a large feeder and waterer in the coop, and we have just an auto-fill water bowl in the run. They do drink at night, so I think it's safer to have water in the coop at night, not just during the day. Now they go in and out of the coop all day, and they go into the coop at night on their own, no chicken wrangling needed. Good luck from another "new egg".

 

[atomic_chicken]

Thanks I had to put them in the coop last night so I guess they will figure out about going up the ladder by going down the ladder. The water and food will be inside come winter so I guess they will figure it out. Who knows. Thanks for the advice.

 

[The BackYarder]

I would recommend not putting food or water in the hen house.

It is more important that they have food and water durring the day, when it is warm to hot. They do not need it when they are resting in the night.

I strictly keep all the food and water outside the hen house.

They will figure out the way up and down soon, don't worry.

BY

 

[newchick13]

I put my babies outside in their coop for 3 days/nights before I opened the pop door to the run. I have food and water inside and a water outside. I think that since they are 50% water, I'd make sure there was one inside. The first 3 nights I had to physically put them inside the coop in the evening, but they did figure it out on their own...the little cuties!

 

[JodyJo]

I have food and water in the run, run door open to the coop 24/7.
When winter comes, I will lock up the run door to keep the sub zero wind out...

I then put the water inside on a heater base. The food will stay outside.
This way if I am not outside early enough, they will have water to get to.

 

[7L Farm]

I only have one four sided coop & I keep water & feed inside the coop & only provide water in their run. My other coops are three sided which is the way to go here in Texas so there food & water is always there for them 24/7. Plus, I don't have to worry about the pop door.

 

[Amethyste]

I keep food and water in coop only. I do believe it helps reinforce the idea of HOME. I do put out water in the run when it is hot as additional sources for them since they drink more then. I often do not let them out until later in the morning to reduce the chance of early am coon attacks so they need to have food and water inside for them.

The food and water are both elevated and off the floor. By having it inside and elevated, I feel it minimizes the risk for us to have critters trying to get the food in the run, and then escalating to my birds.

I do give treats to them however, in the run, but 90% of the time it is outside only. If the weather is bad and they are coopbound, then I will give them treats inside the coop in a designated area, again raised off the ground.

 

[DTRM30]

I think where you put the feed and water is mostly a personal preference.

During the winter, I keep feed and water inside the coop - to help keep the water from freezing. During the summer - I keep the water outside - to minimize any spillage that gets the bedding wet. The feed I keep in the coop all year round though - hanging, not sitting on the floor. Hanging it helps keep bedding out of the feeder when they scratch around.

I found that if I left the feed outside - I was losing a lot to the birds/chipmunks/squirrels/etc. I'm not paying for chicken feed to have everyone but the chickens eat it.

Whatever you feel comfortable with is fine.

 

[atomic_chicken]

Wow. Thanks for all the replies. I have been putting food and water inside and outside but I think I will just have extra water outside for them when it's hot.