Treats and containers

[tcates]

Have a very frustrating issue.... I love giving my girls treats in a bowl......easier to carry and place in tractor. Problem is, bowls are quickly dumped of their contents and the bowl is now used as a toy... keep away, attack, and the favorite... try to see if I fit game. Problem is, I then have to crawl into run to retrieve bowl, and treats are all over the gound. Any advice? I have used glass, plastic and even basket weave bowls to no avail. I see all these pics on BYC of the sweet chickens eating out of bowls.... are mine just too rowdy or is their a manners class I need to conduct?

 

[donnavee]

I've also had bowls dumped, especially when the chickens are younger and they just want to jump into the food. I use long flat planter trays- probably came from Home Depot or Lowes. It is about 3ft long by 6in wide and maybe 1/2 to 1in deep. I have a couple of these so I normally put treats in 2 trays and place them apart from each other. That way, everyone isn't jostling for space at one tray. Seems to work pretty well for my flock. Good luck, chickens in the middle of treat frenzy can be a hoot.

 

[baileychic]

I use frisbees as treat holders. Hard to dump and they just walk in them anyway!

 

[johny]

I use a shallow plastic freezer tray about the size of a large lasagne pan. For the most part they eat well until it is nearly empty. Then they start to walk into it and occasionally flip it over.

If you never want the treat pan flipped over, try a big, heavy ceramic lasagna baking dish.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
I was going to suggest something heavy like this -- or just throw the treats on the ground. Maybe create a sort of permanent plate by sinking a few bricks to ground level so they can't move them, if the ground bothers you.

I have a walk in yard so I use plastic bowls and let them do what they want with them.

 

[Ruth Ann]

I use a clay flower pot saucer...
it is heavy enough that they can't flip it when they walk in it.
not sure WHY I bother...them seem to eat it fine dirty..
...cause most ends up in dirt anyway.

 

[fargosmom]

I use an oversized aluminum cake pan I got cheap at the grocery store. They manage to tip it over once in a while but yes, they do eat out of the dirt anyway so I don't give it too much worry. It's more for the convenience of carrying their treats from the kitchen to the coop.

 

[FinsUp]

If you are looking for something to carry out - try a no-tip dog dish. We have an old one in the run that they have yet to tip. Everything else gets tipped over.