V is for Vessel

Themed alphabets get a bit challenging at the end. I think that what they did here is so creative. V is for vessel.

V

 

vpoem

 

I know that I’ve gone through my fair share of vessels. A hanging feeder for their daily ration of pellets keeps everything a lot tidier than a ceramic bowl on the ground. But, whenever I have yogurt or something else that’s messy and wet, I use an old dog bowl. I also have a lovely, hand-thrown ceramic dispenser that I use for grit. Do you have an unusual feeder for your hens?

Comments:

  1. Yes it was creative but they missed the beautiful Vorwerk – I have one of these, called Noodle. She stands really upright and although her colouring is described as black and buff – it looks more Gold and Jet. They are beautiful – even though they have the same name as a German vacuum cleaner.
    So how about:
    V is for Vorwerk
    Proud in black and buff plume
    white eggs and white meat
    name shared with a vacuum.

    Well perhaps not and in fairness they were probably bred too late for entry into your Poultry Alphabet cards anyway.
    http://www.vorwerkchickens.co.uk

    • I was hoping that someone would mention the Vorwerk! I didn’t know about the vacuum cleaner :) Vorwerk is the name of the German gentleman who developed the breed in the early 1900s. Most likely, the writers of this series hadn’t come across the breed yet. In the USA it was never popular, but was redeveloped by a breeder in the 1960s. I get this info from “Storey’s Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds” – I have no firsthand knowledge of these chickens.

  2. This may not qualify as unusual, but is quite practical: For our cold winters, the popular choice of winter watering vessel out in the run is a rubber feed pan. They come in lots of sizes, are very durable and because of their thickness and colour, they can hold heat for awhile, especially if they are located somewher sheltered and in a sunny spot. Folks like them in these parts because they can take a lot of abuse: you can stomp on them to get frozen water out and replace with fresh warm water.

  3. I actually like a ceramic or plastic bowl on the ground because, as long as I don’t fill it too high, the girls don’t seem to knock so much out of it onto the ground. With the hanging round feeder, I found that they wasted so much trying to get to better tidbits. Also, the two Barred Rocks were adamant that our bottom-of-the-pecking-order girl would not be allowed access. I switched to one of those long metal troughs with the guard wires and have been really happy with the outcome. Every now and again they knock it over and food goes everywhere but it still seems less than what was wasted with the round hanging feeder…and everyone gets a chance to eat.

    Just as a by the way, thank you, Terry, for the information about alfalfa! I’ve been experimenting with mixing it into their food and they are definitely more enthusiastic and healthier. I just got a bag of alfalfa pellets that I’ve put in the blender to chop up into smaller pieces for them. I previously bought a bag of leaves and stems from the pet store but that is expensive.

    • Chickens are quite wasteful when it comes to mixed grains, especially the organic because they really don’t like the non-soy protein sources. You’re right that hanging feeders don’t work for such feeds – but they’re ideal for pellets.

  4. I have throughly enjoyed this series of posts. Thanks to Terry and to all who posted!