Author Topic: Treadle feeders (Read 4031 times)

MiriMaran · « **on:** June 07, 2009, 02:59:31 pm »

My husband has just bought 2 Treadle feeders off the internet for our hens to try and stop the rats getting the lions share of the food! I know this questions is a bit late in asking, but are they any good?

Does anyone have any experience of them? How quickly do the hens learn use it? Any opinions would be great.

harry · « **Reply #1 on:** June 07, 2009, 09:25:47 pm »

more importantly how long do the rats crows magpies take to learn how to do it? you could have used my method to stop thieving rats.. in and earlier post last week, it costs almost nothing and works 100%...

Birdie Wife · « **Reply #2 on:** June 08, 2009, 01:58:23 pm »

I've got a couple of these too, they are really good but not 100% weather proof. Granted, we get some pretty severe weather up here, and I've only noticed a problem when the rain has been blowing straight towards them. Water collects a little bit in the bottom of the hopper then and the pellets can swell up and not flow properly. I usually check this by stepping on the treadle each morning, especially when there's been rain. Undercover, there wouldn't be a problem at all. Rats can't get in, but my wyandotte bantams can manage fine. I don't think anything much lighter than that would manage it. Crows and magpies? Not sure, don't get big numbers of them up here.

MiriMaran · « **Reply #3 on:** June 08, 2009, 07:20:35 pm »

Harry, we are inundated with crows, magpies and Jackdaws and although your contraption is good for rats its not birdproof.

Birdie Wife, horizontal rain is not unheard of in Derbyshire either! I will do the same as you and check it every morning. We don't have any bantams so we should be OK. We have 42 hens so decided to get 2 so that there isn't too much squabbling at the feeders.

Birdie Wife · « **Reply #4 on:** June 10, 2009, 11:15:10 am »

Quote from: MiriMaran on June 08, 2009, 07:20:35 pm

Birdie Wife, horizontal rain is not unheard of in Derbyshire either!

LOL got to pay for all that wonderful scenery and open landscape somehow

Forgot to say, it took my birds a bit of time (a couple of weeks properly) to learn how to use them. Once one or two have worked it out, the rest aren't far behind them. I scattered pellets around and under the feeders to bring them in closer and they would step on the treadle but got scared off when it made a noise. Looking back, maybe I should have tried conditioning them to think of food when they heard that noise - you could scatter food for them and step on the treadle when they eat it, so they start to associate the noise with good things. Eventually though I just had to get tough and they worked out how to use them once they were hungry enough!!

MiriMaran · « **Reply #5 on:** June 14, 2009, 09:05:55 pm »

I've put the treadle feeders in the field this evening. For the time being I have put a rock on the platform and scattered pellets around the feeder. Fingers crossed they will work it out!