Volume of feeder?

[MonicainAZ]

Hi there! I am a newbie chicken owner setting up my first coop. I will have about 3-5 heavy breed chickens. I am trying to plan my feeder setup and have read that average feed consumption is 1/4 lb of feed daily, but what sort of volume is that?

My guess is that a 5 gallon bucket feeder will be much bigger than it needs to be for such a small flock. Perhaps a PVC pipe feeder would work? I just have no idea how much volume we are talking about. Ideally I'd like to refill about weekly. Thanks!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

You will need about a horse scoop of feed per day, more or less. So for one week, a 5 gallon bucket might do the trick for you. You don't have to fill it all the way.

 

[MonicainAZ]

Thanks, that gives me a pretty good idea. 5 gallons it is!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Thanks, that gives me a pretty good idea. 5 gallons it is!

You don't want your feed to become damp at all. So if you are in rainy weather there in AZ make sure feed stays dry (moldy feed can kill chickens) and the goal is to only put out enough that they will eat before it molds or turns stale.

You are welcome!!!

Enjoy your chickens!

 

[MonicainAZ]

Thanks! I sure hope it rains, LOL. But my coop has a good roof for when it does, and the bucket will have a lid, so I think it should work pretty well.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Thanks! I sure hope it rains, LOL. But my coop has a good roof for when it does, and the bucket will have a lid, so I think it should work pretty well.

Oh good!