Where feeder should be - pros and cons

[Devorah]

A lot depends on how your coop and/or pens are set up. My coop can be completely closed up with ample room for chickens to hang out, in case we get a few bad days of hurricane weather. I have predator proof pens due to constant foxes, raccoons, hawks, etc. My pens and coop remain rodent free & the only food in the pens is suspended cabbage head or corn cob, watermelon, etc. The regular pellet feed or scratch is all inside the coop. My friends are always throwing scratch on the ground & they have a rodent infestation so I think if I start throwing scratch on the ground I may draw rodents here as well. My setup works good for me. We get times of heavy rain, wind, hail, January snow & July heatwave drought, so the coop is designed in such a way that the flock can be comfortable, safe, dry & happy, if I have to keep them indoors a few days straight. I've tried setting up additional waterers outside, in their pens, but the water gets nastier faster. The waterers inside the coop remain clean, so that's where they're going to stay. I clean the waterers weekly with bleach, & I rotate ACV & oregano in their water. I think either indoor or outdoor feeders & waterers can work well, just be diligent with cleanliness.

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That’s a beautiful coop and run! Does your run have a hardware cloth apron?

 

[Liz Birdlover]

That’s a beautiful coop and run! Does your run have a hardware cloth apron?

Dug down 3 feet deep trenches, to install several 6x6 ground treated lumber, then there's rock walkway & stones perimeter. No one has tried to dig a hole, but if they do, they won't get far.

 

[Devorah]

Dug down 3 feet deep trenches, to install several 6x6 ground treated lumber, then there's rock walkway & stones perimeter. No one has tried to dig a hole, but if they do, they won't get far.View attachment 3081561View attachment 3081592

@3KillerBs I think I still hear mulch, correct?

 

[Liz Birdlover]

@3KillerBs I think I still hear mulch, correct?

Mulch?
I did large bark mulch inside the pens this past winter. It was ok. I liked grass the prior years too, but July heatwave always kills the grass. The mulch provides fun for chickens kicking chunks around finding crickets, etc.

 

[3KillerBs]

@3KillerBs I think I still hear mulch, correct?

Not sure what you're asking?

 

[Devorah]

Not sure what you're asking?

I was referring to the cinder box placement of @Liz Birdlover It sounds like that may be different than my design since she has multiple layers of other things below the cinder blocks. In prior posts I was asking about putting granite stones on top of a horizontal apron … and you remarked that is not a good idea due to a predator’s inclination to dig starting at the nearest obstruction.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I was referring to the cinder box placement of @Liz Birdlover It sounds like that may be different than my design since she has multiple layers of other things below the cinder blocks. In prior posts I was asking about putting granite stones on top of a horizontal apron … and you remarked that is not a good idea due to a predator’s inclination to dig starting at the nearest obstruction.

Oh I have my coop elevated on cinderblocks but no one goes under. If I don't elevate coop enough, I will get resident skunk or groundhog. The height they're at seems just right, an occasional rabbit will hop under to cross to the other side but no one hangs out underneath the coop.

 

[3KillerBs]

I was referring to the cinder box placement of @Liz Birdlover It sounds like that may be different than my design since she has multiple layers of other things below the cinder blocks. In prior posts I was asking about putting granite stones on top of a horizontal apron … and you remarked that is not a good idea due to a predator’s inclination to dig starting at the nearest obstruction.

If a person has a vertical barrier then it's find to have hardscape around the coop/run -- which makes mowing and such easier.

But if a person has a horizontal wire apron it's not good to put hardscape on top of it because that defeats the purpose.

 

[MACCanadianCoop]

If a person has a vertical barrier then it's find to have hardscape around the coop/run -- which makes mowing and such easier.

But if a person has a horizontal wire apron it's not good to put hardscape on top of it because that defeats the purpose.

So if I'm understanding correctly, what you're saying is that if you have a horizontal apron and let the grass grow through it, predators will view the run wall as the obstacle and try to dig at that point?

 

[TwoShepherds]

I keep my feeder in the coop because it is rodent-proof at night when the doors are closed (I assume). My run is not roofed and would be accessible to rats/mice so I don't want grain out there to entice them. If the run had a roof to protect the feed from the weather and if I didn't have to worry about rats or mice, I would probably leave the feeders in the run.