Alis girls Posted May 6, 2019 Share Posted May 6, 2019 Hi can anyone recommend one please. In light of the fact we had rats we want to help prevent problems in future. Are they any good? One on Amazon said it frightened their girls. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia W Posted May 6, 2019 Share Posted May 6, 2019 I’ve got bantams so not heavy enough to operate the ones I’ve found. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamrhind Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 Alis, check out the thread I started here: My hens had no problems with the feeder and, with some adjustments, it also rid me of all the rats as they couldn't get to the feed any more. I would recommend one, though I can imagine those where the top opens could frighten the hens. If you have any questions, just let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy ben grace Posted May 8, 2019 Share Posted May 8, 2019 I’ve got a grandpas feeder . It was really expensive but after a couple of weeks my hens were using it no problem. They were wary of it to begin with but they soon overcome that . I would definitely recommend one especially if you have a rat problem and to prevent them too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted May 9, 2019 Author Share Posted May 9, 2019 Thanks for replies - just a silly question if a rat stood on it wouldnt it open anyway? Or if they couldnt smell food I assume they will leave alone. The bait I have put out isnt being taken so hopefully they have died. - but I want to prevent problems in the future. Just re read Patricias comment - rats not heavy enough to open it ? I have hefty hens . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beantree Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 We have a couple of Grandpas feeders which haven't yet been used. I've fetched one out today to check it over because we intend to use one for a group of hens we will buy just for egg laying. They will be well away from the house and in an isolated area which may attract rats? The step on one has been rebalanced to reduce the opening weight, however that may be a mistake, because two or three rats on the step might now open it? They are noisy when the lid closes, but a little foam strip under the lid should perhaps quieten it. Time to experiment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beantree Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 Pieces of foam rubber under the lid reduces the closure noise dramatically. We have the large version, but the leaflet inside says there is a smaller version for bantams. I think a large rat would open that but was reminded by the leaflet that it certainly would keep out sparrows. At our last place we had dozens of them raiding the feeders, but as we were moving didn't get these feeders out of storage. When we arrived here there were and still are no sparrows; our feed consumption dropped by a third. We did set up a Trigger Feeder in the coop most affected. Took a fair bit of building and a long time to train the chickens, but they now all take great delight in bashing the trigger and cleaning up what falls on the rubber mat underneath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachel84 Posted May 12, 2019 Share Posted May 12, 2019 We have a grandpas feeder and the chooks are fine with it, they learnt in about a week I would say. I’m not convinced that a fat rat couldn’t open it as I often find squirrels on the treadle eating from it. I have also found mice in there although not sure how! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamrhind Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 On 5/9/2019 at 11:38 AM, Alis girls said: Thanks for replies - just a silly question if a rat stood on it wouldnt it open anyway? Or if they couldnt smell food I assume they will leave alone. The bait I have put out isnt being taken so hopefully they have died. - but I want to prevent problems in the future. Just re read Patricias comment - rats not heavy enough to open it ? I have hefty hens . The rats can't open the one I have unless they work in union. They were able to open mine to start with but I used some fridge magnets to increase the weight of the flap so that the chickens could open it but the rats couldn't. Worked a treat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted May 18, 2019 Author Share Posted May 18, 2019 We set it up today with a piece of wood on treadle so they can get used to it. Rubylu our eldest was in like a shot. Have found 2 dead rats , no more holes. Continuing with bait till sure all gone, . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hungry chickens Posted September 3, 2023 Share Posted September 3, 2023 Hey guys I purchased a foot operated chicken feeder a few weeks ago, due to mice/ birds eating all the chickens food. It seems they are not using it and are very hungry each time I give them a snack/ food scraps. (We have followed the steps of leaving fully open initially so they become acustomed to the new food resource). Is it worth leaving it fully open for another week or so? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat tails Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Chickens will hold out eating pellets when they know something else is coming. I would stop feeding anything else for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
