Treadle vs Dine a Chook to deter wild birds?

[sample]

We are having the biggest issue with wild birds.
We bought 4 x 20kg bags of food (roughly a month's worth) and it's gone in 3 weeks because of the wild birds.

Has anyone got any feedback on the treadle feeders vs dine a chook?
We currently use the plastic ones and have done since we got our girls, but the wild birds are ALL OVER them and it's only been the last few months that they've really amped up.

the feeder/waterer we currently use ^

Any feedback/info/tips greatly appreciated.

 

[Altairsky]

I can't see how Dine a chook could deter small wild birds like house sparrows. I use a treadle feeder and that solved both my sparrows and mice problems.

 

[sample]

I can't see how Dine a chook could deter small wild birds like house sparrows. I use a treadle feeder and that solved both my sparrows and mice problems.

I sort of assumed the same, but someone suggested it I think on a Facebook group so I was trying to look into what the best option was and came here.

Are there any issues I should be aware of with treadle feeders? I love my girls but I don't think they're the smartest bunch so don't want to end up with one of them hurting themselves - that and we have a pretty huge weight difference between our smallest & largest girls.

 

[Altairsky]

My largest hen is 4kg and my smallest is less then 1kg and they all use the pedal. These feeders must have a clean solid base (I use bricks) because they can tip over or the pedal might get blocked by pine shavings.

 

[ChaosMom]

We are having the biggest issue with wild birds.
We bought 4 x 20kg bags of food (roughly a month's worth) and it's gone in 3 weeks because of the wild birds.

Has anyone got any feedback on the treadle feeders vs dine a chook?
We currently use the plastic ones and have done since we got our girls, but the wild birds are ALL OVER them and it's only been the last few months that they've really amped up.

View attachment 4068436
the feeder/waterer we currently use ^

Any feedback/info/tips greatly appreciated.

Where have you got your feeders?

Is your run protected with some sort of barrier on top?

 

[Al Gerhart]

I sort of assumed the same, but someone suggested it I think on a Facebook group so I was trying to look into what the best option was and came here.

Are there any issues I should be aware of with treadle feeders? I love my girls but I don't think they're the smartest bunch so don't want to end up with one of them hurting themselves - that and we have a pretty huge weight difference between our smallest & largest girls.

Yes, treadle feeders are for adult hens only, no chicks, no poults under a couple of pounds. There is no such thing as a 100% safe treadle feeder, there is a small risk but more of a risk from wild birds and rodents bringing in disease and pests like fleas or mites. If you want to be sure of a chicken not hurting itself wrap it in bubble wrap and place it in a freezer.

Treadle feeders can be sorted into two types; wild bird proof only and bird proof and rat proof. You will not find a rat proof feeder on Amazon, that is for commercial products cranked out at a fraction of the sales price so they can pay the huge percentages to the platform. Check the negative reviews to see if any customers say they didn't work for the rats.

You can further separate treadle feeders into upward swinging doors, the majority of feeders sold, and inward swinging doors. An upward swinging door like the Chinese made Grandpa feeder and the many clones cannot have a spring preload on the door because the door has to be light to prevent too many chicken deaths. Chickens get on top and then step down on the lid, crushing chickens feeding at the trough. Inward swinging doors can be spring pre loaded so the rats and wild birds cannot just push the door open. But the more rat proof a feeder is the more likely a hen or rooster can find a way to off itself. Again, the risk to the entire flock from disease and pests is many times more dangerous.

The other thing is to make sure that the treadle is narrow and distant to prevent pigeons and rats from ganging up on the treadle and being able to reach the feed. And no plastic parts, rats can chew through it and it becomes brittle from UV damage or has so much lead and other toxic heavy metals as UV inhibitors that you bring a new danger into the coop.