Night time

[Mashell213]

Question..do you need to bring chickens in at night? Also..what type of waterer and feeder to do keep inside?

 

[DobieLover]

It is best to secure your flock in a predator proof, dry, well ventilated coop at night where they can roost in safety.
I have a horizontal nipple waterer in the coop and the feed troughs in the attached fully secured run.

 

[Perris]

hello @Mashell213 ! welcome to BYC
do your birds want to roost in trees?

 

[coach723]

They do need to be secured at night for protection from predators. Some people keep food and water in the coop, many do not. If your birds will have to be cooped due to harsh weather, or extreme predation, then they will need access to food and water while cooped. If they are only in overnight, then having food and water available in the run outside the coop when they get up is enough. There are lots of kinds of feeders and waterers, each has it's own pluses and minuses. If you keep feed in the coop (and feed spilled anywhere) it's going to attract rodents, so best to use a method that you can keep cleaned up as well as possible.

 

[Chef JimmyJ]

We feed and water in the Run. Keeps the mess down. From observation, once the birds Roost and settle in, they don't get up to eat or drink until morning. Feeding in the Run let's you get your act together before you open the door to the MAD RUSH! My wife will take her time filling the feeder and waterer. Tidies up the Run, then releases the chickens when SHE is ready to observe them for problems and such. Additionally the feeding frenzy, keeps the birds out of the Coop. This results in an undisturbed cleanup in there. Since no food or water in the Coop, cleanup is just a couple of minutes to scrape the Poop Boards and add a few handfuls of fresh Pine Shavings and spread 2 Cups of PDZ. In and out in under 10 minutes...JJ

 

[Uff Da]

I think whether your chickens need to come in at night depends on your chickens and your local environment. Ours roosted in a dense tree when I was growing up. Despite a high predator population, we didn't really lose any to predation. Or cold, for that matter. They were wiley, half-feral barnyard mixes.

I keep mine in a coop now, because they haven't found a safe place to roost outside where we are now.

In Mexico, where my husband is from, all the chickens roost in trees for the night. Again, these chickens are practically wild and have access to primitive habitat to keep them safe.

For most chicken keepers in the US, I would recommend bringing them inside a coop at night. Even urban areas have high predator populations, since people don't hunt or trap anymore. And most landscaping, even with lots of trees, is too manicured and open for nighttime safety. And most varieties of chickens kept in the US have been domesticated past the ability to watch out for themselves.

 

[Farmer Connie]

Question..do you need to bring chickens in at night? Also..what type of waterer and feeder to do keep inside?

I have some who come in and some who prefer trees.
They always return to their roost. No matter what it is.
A house
A tree
A barn
A deck railing
Now if you were to lock em up over night in a new location, you will need to break their habit of returning to the original roost.



Water-er- No matter what type you purchase, keep it level & off the ground to reduce contamination.
Feeder- No mater the type, make sure there is plenty of space for every bird to fit in and feed at the same time.

I feed inside and outside

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