Weekend getaway feeding?

[FergFarm]

We will be leaving town for 2 nights for Thanksgiving, and I’m trying to avoid having to ask a neighbor to come feed my chickens while we’re gone. If I put out extra food, will that be ok? We will feed them Thursday morning, and be back Saturday mid-day, so really Friday would be the only day they wouldn’t have attention from us.

 

[KingD]

How long does it take for your hens to finish their feeder full of food?

 

[HuffleClaw]

They should be alright if you leave extra food and water.

 

[NatJ]

Probably fine, if all of the following are true:

--enough water, that they usually do not spill or kick full of bedding
--water will not freeze
--enough food (doesn't matter if they spill it, as long as they can pick it back off the floor)
--enough safe space. (Either the coop needs to be large enough for them to stay in, because no-one will let them in and out; or the run needs to be so secure that you can leave open the pop door and be confident that no predators can come in.)

Optional:
If you have a camera you can set up, that lets you view from wherever you are going, then you would be able to check on them remotely. And if something unexpectedly goes badly wrong (like a tree falling on the coop), you could either rush home or telephone a neighbor to ask them to address it.

 

[FergFarm]

How long does it take for your hens to finish their feeder full of food?

Well I just got a new hanging trough style feeder yesterday, so I’m not exactly sure how long it takes. I feel confident if I fill it up, and fill up the hanging corner feeder I previously used (that I would fill twice daily) that I can leave enough food for that time period. My main concern is whether they would eat themselves sick or possibly just over eat and run out of food early, just because the food was there.

 

[KingD]

Chickens will only eat as much as they need. Suppose it's layers pellets

 

[FergFarm]

Probably fine, if all of the following are true:

--enough water, that they usually do not spill or kick full of bedding
--water will not freeze
--enough food (doesn't matter if they spill it, as long as they can pick it back off the floor)
--enough safe space. (Either the coop needs to be large enough for them to stay in, because no-one will let them in and out; or the run needs to be so secure that you can leave open the pop door and be confident that no predators can come in.)

Optional:
If you have a camera you can set up, that lets you view from wherever you are going, then you would be able to check on them remotely. And if something unexpectedly goes badly wrong (like a tree falling on the coop), you could either rush home or telephone a neighbor to ask them to address it.

Thank you! I feel like we have a really secure run that will keep them safe, so I’ll just make sure I elevate the waterer a little more so they don’t kick bedding into it. It sounds like we will be in good shape. So many add-ons that keep interesting me...automatic coop doors, cameras

 

[FergFarm]

Chickens will only eat as much as they need. Suppose it's layers pellets

Thank you!

 

[ackie]

Yeah mine are free fed all day every day. They should be fine. Chickens drink more water than youd think, so keep that in mind. The best metric would be how quickly your specific birds finish their waterer usually.

 

[NatJ]

My main concern is whether they would eat themselves sick or possibly just over eat and run out of food early, just because the food was there.

Most people leave food available for the chickens all the time.
Because they are used to always having it there, they just eat what they need, when they need it.