Rooster-friendly port-style feeder

[DonyaQuick]

I built this little feeder a while back to keep my chickens' feed clean and dry.
These are the ports I used (3.15"/80mm in diameter): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09MRMFPQZ
It has worked really well so far and kept out dirt, snow, and rain reliably. But...I just realized my new rooster can't get his head in there because his comb is just a tad too big.

Fortunately I also have been keeping a food bowl out there while he's been integrating into the flock so there is no risk of him going hungry, but I wanted to ditch the bowl eventually because it's much harder to keep the feed clean and dry (and staying in the bowl; more waste happens to spills and getting tilled into the substrate).

I'd like to build a new port feeder if I can find bigger ports. They all seem to be just over 3" in diameter which is too small. I probably need one closer to 4". Does anybody have feeder ports to recommend that would work for this fellow's head? Or are port-style feeders just not a good idea for roosters with large combs?

 

[Weeg]

I built this little feeder a while back to keep my chickens' feed clean and dry.
These are the ports I used (3.15"/80mm in diameter): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09MRMFPQZ
It has worked really well so far and kept out dirt, snow, and rain reliably. But...I just realized my new rooster can't get his head in there because his comb is just a tad too big.

View attachment 3112587

Fortunately I also have been keeping a food bowl out there while he's been integrating into the flock so there is no risk of him going hungry, but I wanted to ditch the bowl eventually because it's much harder to keep the feed clean and dry (and staying in the bowl; more waste happens to spills and getting tilled into the substrate).

I'd like to build a new port feeder if I can find bigger ports. They all seem to be just over 3" in diameter which is too small. I probably need one closer to 4". Does anybody have feeder ports to recommend that would work for this fellow's head? Or are port-style feeders just not a good idea for roosters with large combs?
View attachment 3112594

I would use PVC pipe. You can find some 4" ones for sure.

 

[DonyaQuick]

I would use PVC pipe. You can find some 4" ones for sure.

Will it work if it's just a bit of uniform tube sticking out? I had wondered about PVC but don't have a good way to cut it at an angle to be more like the current ports I have, which stick out more on top than on the bottom. I'd probably create a jagged mess.

 

[Shadrach]

I built this little feeder a while back to keep my chickens' feed clean and dry.
These are the ports I used (3.15"/80mm in diameter): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09MRMFPQZ
It has worked really well so far and kept out dirt, snow, and rain reliably. But...I just realized my new rooster can't get his head in there because his comb is just a tad too big.

View attachment 3112587

Fortunately I also have been keeping a food bowl out there while he's been integrating into the flock so there is no risk of him going hungry, but I wanted to ditch the bowl eventually because it's much harder to keep the feed clean and dry (and staying in the bowl; more waste happens to spills and getting tilled into the substrate).

I'd like to build a new port feeder if I can find bigger ports. They all seem to be just over 3" in diameter which is too small. I probably need one closer to 4". Does anybody have feeder ports to recommend that would work for this fellow's head? Or are port-style feeders just not a good idea for roosters with large combs?
View attachment 3112594

Perhaps you have an opportunity here.
If you are feeding your chickens layers pellets and your rooster is eating them along with your hens then this might be a good time to consider whether you might feed your rooster a feed with lower calcium.
I don't want to get into the calcium is fine for roosters debate. There is enough evidence including the differences in the physiology between roosters and hens to make a case without further discussion here.
You could for example make a tray of low cacium feed such as All Flock just for your rooster and feed him a bit away from the hens.
In general I've tended to avoid port type feeders for both sexes and fed all from open trays.

 

[DonyaQuick]

If you are feeding your chickens layers pellets and your rooster is eating them along with your hens then this might be a good time to consider whether you might feed your rooster a feed with lower calcium.

I'm using an all flock feed right now with fairly low calcium but I provide oyster shell and crushed egg shell on the side. I actually didn't switch because of rooster plans; my area had feed availability problems earlier this year and fresh layer feed became very hard to get. There were a lot of empty shelves and what bags did show up were 9+ months old. An all flock feed was the only thing that didn't seem to have supply issues, so I went with that and trying to offer calcium supplements on the side.

My rooster is also making sure the girls preferentially want to eat and spill his food bowl rather than use the port feeder. He's so happy when they come clean out his bowl while he stands there watching lol.

In general I've tended to avoid port type feeders for both sexes and fed all from open trays.

I can't really use a completely open-top feeder long term because of the weather in my area. Winter in particular is bad for anything open. Is wood a material I could use for this (vs. plastic)? If I can use wood, then I could build something like this where the feeder is both elevated to stop dirt being kicked in and has an overhang to protect against rain/snow. Then I could switch my old feeder to just hold oyster shell and crushed eggshells for the hens.

 

[neo71665]

My rooster has his own bucket feeder. I used a 4 inch pvc street drain on his. You search for the no waste feeder on here that's how I built my feeders. The hens use the 3 inch ones just fine but like you my rooster wouldn't because his comb was too big. If I ever have to remake any of them I'm just gonna use 4 inch for now on.

 

[Shadrach]

I'm using an all flock feed right now with fairly low calcium but I provide oyster shell and crushed egg shell on the side. I actually didn't switch because of rooster plans; my area had feed availability problems earlier this year and fresh layer feed became very hard to get. There were a lot of empty shelves and what bags did show up were 9+ months old. An all flock feed was the only thing that didn't seem to have supply issues, so I went with that and trying to offer calcium supplements on the side.

My rooster is also making sure the girls preferentially want to eat and spill his food bowl rather than use the port feeder. He's so happy when they come clean out his bowl while he stands there watching lol.



I can't really use a completely open-top feeder long term because of the weather in my area. Winter in particular is bad for anything open. Is wood a material I could use for this (vs. plastic)? If I can use wood, then I could build something like this where the feeder is both elevated to stop dirt being kicked in and has an overhang to protect against rain/snow. Then I could switch my old feeder to just hold oyster shell and crushed eggshells for the hens.

View attachment 3113196

Wow, 9.5 month old feed shouldn't even be on the shelves.
Your proposed feeder might do the trick. I would be concerend about it being knocked over though. Perhaps a large heavy base to it might be an improvement (?)
Thanks for the detailed explantaion.

 

[3KillerBs]

I can't really use a completely open-top feeder long term because of the weather in my area. Winter in particular is bad for anything open.

Consider making a shelter for your feeders.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/an-outdoor-shelter-for-the-feeder-and-waterer.76487/

I love the feeder shown in those photos. It's got a deep pan with a rolled lip that makes it *nearly* impossible for the chickens to waste feed out of it.

 

[DonyaQuick]

Kind of a combination of idea suggestions so far - I could use a plastic tray insert (light blue) and hold it in kind of like I do with the current feeder. This would let me build something out of wood (the frame & shelter) but also have a removable and easy-to-clean plastic container holding the feed. The back would probably be up against a wall, so I would only have to worry about forward tipping and could also anchor the feet with heavy things. The green parts would be hinges from the back to the lid to let me fill it more easily.

 

[DonyaQuick]

Finally got something built. Due to the plastic container I had to use for the feed being deeper than I was planning on, the dimensions ended up different than I originally thought so I did away with legs and the container itself rests on the ground right now. That meant I could just kind of do a simpler box and build the whole thing from one 4ft plank. It might need to be lifted up a bit if they can kick dirt inside. If that happens, I may need to add a bottom and some very short legs to put it up another 1-2 inches. So far so good though as far as keeping the feed clean so maybe it can just stay as-is. This is not where the feeder is intended to live; they're just getting used to it for now.

I'm not sure why my rooster looks so enormous relative to it in the pic...he can get in there just fine. The top is also hinged at the back, both to make adding feed easier and as a safety precaution in case a hen tries to climb inside (easier for her to get out if the top can lift a bit). The gap at the back is intentional; if it was a solid back it would risk getting lifted up back there by crud buildup that the area is prone to where it will be placed, and I also want a small amount of daylight to be able to shine in so I can more easily see if the feed has fallen below a certain level.