Would you buy a 25# bag of feed?

[crtrlovr]

Quote:
this x2

when my dh was gone all summer, I ended buying a wheelbarrow because I had a hard time bringing the 50 lb bags all the way to the barn. plus the straw and hay bales too. I always buy 3 bags of layer, 1 bag of scratch, and 1 bag of Boss per month. the wheelbarrow was so much easier and I found I could haul 2 bags at a time in it without feeling like it was too heavy.

I now use the wheel barrow for a lot of things...well not so much right now cause well there is a lot of snow on the ground, lol. plus my dh is home and he can now do the heavy lifting

I had been having trouble dealing w/ the bigger (larger than 50#) bags & heavier items due to a back that went bad WAY before it's time, a knee replacement, and a rotator cuff repair. I treated myself to a small 4 wheel garden cart (approx. $60 at Kmart) and it has been a lifesaver! I make fewer trips to TSC or Pet Farmacy b/c I don't have to "pace myself" as much. The box the cart came in says it has a capacity of 600#, but I can't pull that much at one time b/c of the knee. I have no problem with 3 or 4 50# bags of feed or scratch, though, and I can get 3 square hay bales on it with no problem. The sides drop down if you need to haul something bigger or flat, too. Go ahead -- I dare ya: ask me if I like my cart!

ETA: That being said, if the 25# bags were the same price per pound as the 50# ones, I'd probably get them b/c they would still be easier to lift and pour into the metal cans I keep the feed in. It's like the cat litter thing -- I know it's easier to handle smaller boxes of cat litter (and has been STRONGLY recommended by my dr., and even MORE strongly recommended by my DH -- not because he carries them except on rare occasion if he happens to be here when I get home with them, but because he sees that I have done it and gets mad because I'm not supposed to be doing it!) but when a 22 or 28# box is more than a 40# box for essentially the same product, and the volume per pound is the same, well... I can't see not getting the most for my $$$ whenever and wherever possible.

 

[Ohhhdear]

Quote:
Another option is to just leave the 50# bag in your car. Assuming it's upright, use it to fill your chicken's feed container until the bag gets light enough to lift out. Tie it shut with a piece of heavy string (baling twine?) to keep it from spilling out while you drive. Cover it with a blanket if it looks strange running around town with a feed bag in the back. But it sure beats hurting your back!

 

[jomoncon]

Quote:
I understand your frustration too well. I get my chicken feed in 50 pound bags, but I have my DH to carry it. When I buy my Mom's dog food in 50 pound bags I cannot move it. Here's my solution: First, have them put the bag on on the car seat, lying down, with the top near the door. When I get home, I grab a big bucket, cut open the bag near the edge of the seat I let the dogfood pour into the bucket. When the bucket is full, I can take the bucket to the storage bin & dump it in. I've found that I have to make 2 trips with a full bucket of dogdood before the bag is light enough for me to move it.

Yeah, it's more work, but at least I can get it moved.

 

[drumstick diva]

I have the same situation - I can barely lift 25 bags. I know they will load heavier bags in the car but no one will lift them out for me. Come from a family with alot of bad backs and other health situations where they can not lift. I do what another BYCer said, when I get it home I open it up and put into smaller containers. I have to do this with everything, ice melter, peat moss, laundry detergent. Everything comes in big sizes and usually cost much less than 2 of a smaller size.

The world doesn't seem to care about those who can't do things on their own.

 

[kuntrygirl]

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Love your BYC page. Beautiful chicken coops and houses.

I feel your pain and frustration as far as unloading feed. I use to be in the same predicament. Luckily, I was able to find a feed mill that has exactly what I need, someone to unload all of that feed and somewhere to store it, so I am able to purchase large amounts of feed (1,500 lbs) at one time. That lasts about 4 -5 weeks for me. When that is all gone, it's time to take another run to the feed mill. But when I was buying feed at TSC, I would only get 50lb bags because it lasts longer. But the 25lb bags are more expensive. Your best bet is a 50lb bag, even though it takes forever for your chickens to eat it.

When I was buying 50lb bags, I would open up the bag at my vehicle and pour it into the 5 gallon buckets and take it out to fill the feeders. It was so much easier and I didn't have to fight with unloading 50lbs of feed. Sometimes the bags would ride around in my SUV until the next feeding.

 

[WV_Chicken]

I bought (3) 50 lb bags today. So no is my answer.

 

[ranchhand]

I've had to get creative due to a bad hip and a DH who works hard and long all day.

So...

I have a classic little red wagon I got a zillion years ago at a yard sale. I back the truck as close in as possible. I drag the feed bag out of the truck, plop it into the wagon. Pull the wagon the 20 feet to the porch where the feed is stored. Now, I can't lift the 50# bags at all and there are 3 steps. So I take the galvanized can, roll it to the top step on it's side. I "ooch" the bag from the wagon into the can. Then I tilt the can, bag of feed inside, up to the angle where I can rotate/roll it back in place. Works pretty well.

Since the smaller bags are *usually* more expensive, it's worth the effort. But do check the price per pound cost. Dog chow is less expensive for me in the smaller bags, a discovery that made my day!

 

[jomoncon]

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Isn't it amazing the way we women can get things done even when we can't get it done.!

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

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My wife prefers 25 pound bags for chicken starter feed.


They are easier for a lady to handle, and besides, we usually only have a handful of little ones at one time (we've had as few as two at a time), so even the 25 pound bags last a long time if you have only a few very small beaks to feed...

 

[TrystInn]

Nope, I wouldn't. I use a combination of 4 wheeled gardening wheelbarrow and a handcart you can set to pull horizontally, instead of vertically. Works great. I'd rather just get it over with and I'm a bit afraid that if I started with smaller bags, I'd lose what strength I've developed in my bad knee and bad back.