[Lynda_T]

Hi everyone, has anyone else got my prob....im currently feeding half the bird population of my villiage! Starlings, sparrows, thrush, the crows have now moved in
I dont mind so much them picking up the scratchings but they are now as brave as goin into the run which is open to let my girls wonder around the garden and eating from the feeders!!  My girls used to chase them off but now dont seem to care?!!

At this rate its gonna cost me a small fortune!!

 

[Beano]

Yes, this happens to me also. In the winter it was the starlings. They went back to their summer retreat and all was fine for a while. Now the magpies and jackdaws have started. The magpies are a particular problem as they sometimes go into the coop and help themselves to eggs. Caught one of the blighters last night in the covered run, he didnt come out alive.
I would like to know how to solve this problem.

[Hayley'sHens]

Im fairly new to chicken keeping, so dont have any advice but will keep my eyes on this thread for any advice, I have the same problem but with squirel's as well as wild birds 

[nicky d]

the only thing with wild birds is the dreaded red mite  nickyx

[dizzylizzie]

And lice

[pandora]

The thing is unless you keep your birds hermetically sealed from the big outdoors you are going to struggle to keep ALL wild birds out - I often get robins in my house in the summer if I leave the back door open!

To keep the wild birds from helping themselves I got a treadle feeder which works very well. (It also means if I have a lie-in in the morning occasionally I don't have to worry about the chickens going hungry.) I used to get lots of crows stealing food which sent the hens ballistic, but they have given up visiting now they can't figure the treadle feeder out.

[Beano]

I'll have to invest in a treadle feeder. I can imagine the starlings laying dozens of eggs after eating so much layers pellets lol.

[grumpydad]

the robin and sparrows go through the netting near the roof to the run to get in, the collared doves sit on the run roof and wait till the gate is open to get into the food, but the chucks dont get much corn, dont seem interested in it, but they pick up what the birds drop from the wild bird hanging feeder, its the same mixed poultry corn anyway, cheaper than wild bird food

[Chablis Dog]

I have exactly the same problem too and it drives me nuts!!!  This time of year my barns are full of swallows which has always been a pleasure, until this year when I got my chooks.  Now they are cheeky little thieves!!!  My hen house is inside a huge hangar with a large entrace door giving out onto their paddock, so all the birds are just flying in and helping themselves to the food bowls on the floor.  I am thinking about making a scarecrow and hanging old CDs from the rafters so that stuff is flickering in their field of vision.  The treadle feeder also sounds a good idea although I am sure some of the feed will still fly across the floor as chooks seem to be naturally messy eaters.  Everyone else I have spoken too also has the same problem.

[goodegg]

my mate who has chooks next to me had this problem so i sold him my rat proof treadle  feeder problem solved i think it was about 50 quid with postage but he said it was well worth it it didnt work for me as i had young chooks with the older ones and they couldnt feed they were not heavy enough to open it you need to put a old brick or some thing on it starting of to keep it open but they soon get used to it and when they tread on it it opens good luck .