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**MaureenHall** · 22-05-2009, 04:54 PM

Fill up the feeder in the mornings when you let the girls out and let them help themselves ad lib all day. Don't put any water in the coop, they'll only spill it and make a heck of a mess, they won't need a drink in the night. Once the girls have settled in properly and got used to their routine, you can start adding a few treats, but only give those in the late afternoon / early evening so that they've already had their balanced diet in their pellets.

Good luck with your ex-batts - I've just collected 8 today

**lettucegrow!** · 22-05-2009, 04:56 PM

They should have layers pellets or mash available at all times. I think they eat about 4oz of feed each a day but mine seem happy to scatter it everywhere and scratch around for it so it's difficult to tell exactly how much they are eating .Do you know what your birds were fed on? Keep the corn and treats for later in the day but offer green stuff. Mine love cabbage and chard. I tie it to the coop so they can peck at it as though it were a growing plant.I don't leave water for mine overnight,but might when it gets really hot.

**Hilary B** · 22-05-2009, 04:58 PM

When I had chooks, there was always food available, pellets or mash (I prefer pellets) but treats could be given sometimes. I never used a coop in which they were shut away from ALL outdoor access, so the water was in the 'enclosed garden' area (so was the ad-lib feed, in a hopper to minimise rodent-access).
Water 'indoors' has a habit of getting spilled if they are wanting out before you are there to open the door, and is a right nuisance to keep clean.

**Maddie106** · 22-05-2009, 09:26 PM

Originally posted by the4ladies View Post

You have all been so helpful so far - our girls are arriving tomorrow - how exciting!!

BUT - we have some more questions:

1) How much and how often do you feed your hens? (We are getting 4 ex-batts). Also do they always have access to some sort of feed e.g corn, or only at certain times.

2) Do you have water inside the coop - so when they are shut up at night do are they able to drink?

Think thats it for now - I'm sure I had more
Thanks in advance.

Give them layers pellets in a hopper and a supply of fresh water.
Mine have a coop with a small attached closed run, so in the spring/summer, I don't shut the pop hole....they can come out of their house before I get up! I leave the feeder in that run (under cover) and leave them a bowl of fresh water in there too when I shut them away for the night.

You cant use any dishes for food/water that are light in weight, because they will just tip them over! I have some pottery dog dishes from wilkos that don't get tiped over.

Good luck with the ex-bat girls...they will soon learn how to scratch for food, sit on a perch at night and enjoy the freedom of being proper hens!

**bluemoon** · 23-05-2009, 12:12 PM

You'll need to think about keeping the feed dry though if your run is not covered, you can buy covers which clip onto your feeder. My OH has constructed what looks like wooden bus shelters to keep the feeders in. We have to move them indoors at night though, but it's more to keep the rodents off than to ensure that the chickens can get to it and we leave the drinkers outside, but emptied, ready to be refilled with fresh water in the morning.

**the4ladies** · 23-05-2009, 12:42 PM

Thanks all.

Someone suggetsted using layers pellets and soaking it in hot water and making mash out of that - good/bad idea?

**bluemoon** · 23-05-2009, 01:06 PM

Mash is what layers pellets are made of and is simply a different way of feeding the same thing. However you still feed it dry (lots of companies now call it layers meal as people seem to think that a mash has to be wet) If you wet it the hens will probably eat it, but it will go mouldy and sour much quicker and on a hot day might dry out to become a giant layers pellet.!

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