Where to store feed?

Hi there as I am getting closer to getting my chicks out into the coop and we are finishing the interior I started wondering, where should I store the feed?? I am planning on having the feeders in the run but should I keep the feed in the coop in metal trash cans or buckets with gamma lids? Will that attract predators and I should be keeping it in my house? What if my husband built me a bin in the run that the storage containers would fit into, like a big wooden box with a lid?

I keep my feed in a separate room in my coop away from chickens. Back when I had a smaller coop, I kept it just outside of my run in galvanized metal garbage cans or in my garage. In 20years I've never had mice or rats get into the metal cans but I know that they can as I remember opening the lid to my horse feed as a kid and seeing mice run around. Maybe my lids are just tighter??. Anyhow, as a rule of thumb I never store feed in the same place that my chickens sleep/roost.

We store feed in metal trash cans (leaving feed inside the feed bag). We put the trash cans on wheels to easily move them around. We store these in the barn. The feed gets picked up and brought into the barn at night.

Keep the cans where a larger, more nimble, predator (raccoons as an example) cannot get into them. Keep them from large temp swings to avoid condensation, so in the shade always. Keep them dry bc many people have found that rain can find a way into the handle areas of the lid.

If you choose to build a bin to store it in, then I highly recommend lining it with welded HWC of 1/4” or 1/2” size. Metal is the only thing rodents cannot chew through. A rodent can chew through a wood bin within a few hours, same for plastic. If you have a bin (lined with HWC) with a locking lid, then a raccoon will not get into it in a night’s time.

We keep the feed bags inside. We have too many smart bears running around to trust that much feed outside.

Our house is mouse free because of all the cats, but sometimes the cats steal the pellets!

Sometimes there is feed in our enclosed run. A bear tried to climb on top if it once, but nothing else has really bothered it.

Saveria said:

We keep the feed bags inside. We have too many smart bears running around to trust that much feed outside.

Our house is mouse free because of all the cats, but sometimes the cats steal the pellets!

Sometimes there is feed in our enclosed run. A bear tried to climb on top if it once, but nothing else has really bothered it.

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Oh yes I didn’t even think about the bears… I’ve never seen one in our yard but I know they are around…

Gwhite3678 said:

Oh yes I didn’t even think about the bears… I’ve never seen one in our yard but I know they are around…

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You may want to post specifically how to keep out bears, bc bears can try to go after chickens. There are specific ways people do this. Electric wire is commonly employed, but the coop and run need to be able to withstand a bear attempt. You can also search the forums for threads about bears bc many posts on that topic.

Yeah, are you northern or southern NH? If you are south of Concord I think you may be safe. Or maybe it is how much forest you have around. My mom lives in the seacoast and she never sees evidence of bears.

I'm from Alaska, now in Oregon, bears are a thing in both.... Dogs and electric fencing. I had electric fence in Alaska to keep my horses safe, but just dogs in Oregon. The neighbor has bear issues because his garbage is not secure enough. I've never seen the bear he speaks of due to my large dogs and secure trash.....

Saveria said:

Yeah, are you northern or southern NH? If you are south of Concord I think you may be safe. Or maybe it is how much forest you have around. My mom lives in the seacoast and she never sees evidence of bears.

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I’m like 20 minutes west of concord
I’ve never seen bears but I’ve heard people in the area complaining of them I think right now the biggest issue in my town is a bobcat that keeps getting peoples chickens

Gwhite3678 said:

Hi there as I am getting closer to getting my chicks out into the coop and we are finishing the interior I started wondering, where should I store the feed?? I am planning on having the feeders in the run but should I keep the feed in the coop in metal trash cans or buckets with gamma lids? Will that attract predators and I should be keeping it in my house? What if my husband built me a bin in the run that the storage containers would fit into, like a big wooden box with a lid?

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I store my feed in a metal barrel that has a clip on ring and I have another one for any grit, cracked corn, oyster shells. I still store it seperate in a huge Tupperware container ( big enough to hold the barrels)
I have it away from coop onn my back porch