Chicken Feeders

A good chicken feeder holds a week of feed, keeps it dry and hands it out only to hens. Everything else is a trade between price, waste and rats. Here is what to know before you buy, with a link to each guide in this hub.

Size it to the flock. A laying hen eats about a quarter pound of feed a day (University of Kentucky), so multiply hens by days by 0.25 lb. Ten hens for a week need about 17.5 lb. Allow 2 to 3 linear inches of feeding space per adult bird (Utah State Extension) and set the bottom of the feeder at about back height (Alabama Extension).

Cut the waste. Pellets spill less than crumbles, and covered ports or a lid stop hens raking feed onto the floor. The best chicken feeders guide compares six covered feeders sized from 8 lb to 65 lb, with a sizing table and the owner complaints linked.

Keep out the rats. Rats eat whatever food is abundant, and Norway rats favor cereal grains (UC IPM), so an open feeder at night feeds them. The rat-proof chicken feeder guide sets each maker’s trigger weight against rat weight and covers the coop fixes that finish the job.

Try a treadle if rats or wild birds win. A treadle feeder opens its lid only under a hen’s weight. The treadle chicken feeder guide covers the pros and cons, how long training takes and what to do with bantams.

Laying hens also need calcium for strong shells. The oyster shell for chickens guide covers when to offer it beside the feeder and when grit matters.

Feed is half of the setup. Chickens drink about twice as much water as they eat by weight (University of Kentucky), so pick a feeder and a waterer together: the best chicken waterers are the next stop. If rats are already around, the predator-proof coop guide covers the building side.

Choose a feeder by the job it needs to do

Gravity describes how feed reaches the opening. Hanging describes how you mount the feeder. A hanging feeder can also be a gravity feeder, and neither feature closes the feeding tray against rats.

The automatic chicken feeder guide separates gravity, treadle and timed designs. Start with the DIY chicken feeder guide for bucket, PVC and trough options, then use the PVC chicken feeder guide for that build’s mounting and clean-out details. For a complete feeding station, compare chicken feeders and waterers together.

If you want to buy a gravity, hanging or trough feeder, the best chicken feeder comparison explains which features matter. If rats are already visiting, start with a closed feeder and the storage and coop fixes above.