Overnight food and water

[BigTex19]

I am debating whether or not to put food and water in chicken and duck coops overnight. Now that it is dark at 5:45pm here and I let them out at 6am every morning, that is over 12 hours with no food or water. Is this OK? I have a very large run for them that they are in during daylight hours. Any advise would be helpful. I am almost at my 1 year point of being a chicken and duck owner and loving it.

 

[GregnLety]

We put water in with our ducks but nothing in with the chickens.

 

[RubelliteRose]

We don't have food or water in the coop. Ours go up on the roost right at sunset and don't come down until sunrise when we let them out of the coop, so they wouldn't be eating or drinking anyway. I also worry that the food would only attract mice or rats into the coop if we kept it in there.

 

[BigTex19]

We don't have food or water in the coop. Ours go up on the roost right at sunset and don't come down until sunrise when we let them out of the coop, so they wouldn't be eating or drinking anyway. I also worry that the food would only attract mice or rats into the coop if we kept it in there.

We were also thinking about that as well since we live around farming fields. I just want them to go hungry. The ducks just don't seem to eat much even in the day, well except for our Pekins.

 

[3KillerBs]

They don't eat or drink in the dark.

Before the big, open-air coop was built I had to keep the feed and water in the run because it didn't fit in the coop.

I prefer it that way because it gives the chickens a reason to go out into the run and spread out -- also I could put multiple stations out there so no bird could guard the feed.

I do have the feed and water in the Open Air coop because it's coop and run combined (with an additional run area outside).

 

[Sally PB]

They don't eat or drink in the dark.

This.

I also worry that the food would only attract mice or rats into the coop if we kept it in there.

And this.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Starting from about 4-5 weeks old I remove access to food and water overnight. As others noted, they don't eat and drink in the dark, and having food left out can attract rodents.

 

[RooStar Chicken Gang]

Do U mean inside the actual dark part of the coop like where they nest? Hard to know what U mean without seeming Ur coop. Once put shallow water in dark coop but that was just for chicks.

 

[BigTex19]

Do U mean inside the actual dark part of the coop like where they nest? Hard to know what U mean without seeming Ur coop. Once put shallow water in dark coop but that was just for chicks.

The Coop where they sleep. It is big enough that I was able to put their food in a corner that they couldn't poop in it while roosting. The water is mainly my concern. Our Pekin Ducks have to stay in our chicken coop because they badly bullied our other, smaller ducks in size (Roen, Khaki Campbells, and one Cayuga) in the duck coop, and they get water all over the chicken coop. This in turn ruins the bedding, so I have removed the food and water from the coops. I am just wanting to hear from others with more experience in poultry raising than me to make sure I am not hurting them. I value the feedback from experienced poultry raisers I can get and have enjoyed reading the advice. After what I have read thus far, I am not hurting them since I let them out just before sunrise.

 

[blackdog043]

The chickens will be fine, like said above they don't eat or drink in the dark and your letting them out early.

I have food and water inside and out, personal choice. In my old coop I was doing deep bedding, which needs to stay dry. I had a large garden pot saucer under the HZ nipple waterer to catch drips. Now I am doing deep litter in a converted horse stall(dirt floor), so moisture is needed, no saucer.