How to keep wild birds out of chicken feed

By John Walker · Backyard chicken keeper in Dallas, Texas since 2017

How to keep wild birds out of chicken feed is a question that matters more than it used to, because wild birds do more than steal feed: they can bring avian influenza and other diseases into your flock. A wild bird that eats from your feeder leaves droppings behind, and those droppings can carry disease. They also eat a surprising amount of feed, and they can scare your hens away from the feeder. The answer is a mix of covered feeders, good coop design, and daily habits that make your feed hard for wild birds to reach. This guide explains the methods that work, from treadle feeders to netting, and the biosecurity reasons behind them.

How to keep wild birds out of chicken feed: the short answer

How to keep wild birds out of chicken feed comes down to making the feed hard to reach and the run hard to enter. The best single step is a treadle feeder, which is a feeder with a step that opens the lid when a heavy bird stands on it, and which stays shut for a light wild bird.

A covered run with netting or wire over the top stops wild birds from flying in, and feeding inside the coop rather than in the open run keeps the feed out of sight.

Daily habits matter too. Feed only as much as the flock will eat in a day, and do not leave feed out overnight, because that is when rats and wild birds come. Clean up spilled feed, and keep the water clean and covered. No single method is perfect, but together they cut the wild bird visits to almost nothing, and they cut the disease risk with them.

Why wild birds in the feed are a problem

Wild birds eat feed, and sparrows or starlings can eat a surprising amount in a day, which costs you money and leaves less for your hens. But the bigger problem is disease. Wild birds, especially ducks and geese, can carry avian influenza, which is a serious disease that can kill a flock and that must be reported to the authorities.

They can also carry salmonella, mycoplasma, and parasites.

The droppings are the main route. A wild bird that eats from your feeder will leave droppings in the feed and on the ground, and your hens will peck at them. That is how disease moves from wild birds to your flock. In areas where avian influenza has been found, the advice is to keep chickens under cover and to keep wild birds away from feed and water, and that advice is worth following even when there is no outbreak nearby.

Method	How well it works	Cost
Treadle feeder	Very good	Moderate
Covered run with mesh	Very good	Moderate to high
Feed inside coop	Good	Free
Clean up spilled feed	Good	Free
Shiny tape, plastic owls	Poor, birds get used to them	Low

Treadle feeders: the best single step

A treadle feeder is a feeder with a hinged lid and a step, or treadle, at the front. When a chicken stands on the step, its weight opens the lid, and the bird can eat. When it steps off, the lid shuts.

A wild bird is too light to open the lid, so it cannot reach the feed. A rat is also too light, although a large rat may learn to open it, so a treadle feeder helps with rats too.

Treadle feeders cost more than an open feeder, but they pay for themselves in saved feed. Train the birds by propping the lid open for a few days, then letting it close a little more each day, until the birds learn to step on the treadle. Most birds learn in a week. Choose a treadle feeder that is made for your flock size, and keep it dry, because wet feed will go mouldy inside a closed feeder.

Covered runs and netting

A covered run is the most reliable way to keep wild birds out, because it stops them from flying in at all. Cover the run with wire mesh or netting, and make sure there are no gaps at the edges.

The mesh should be small enough to keep out sparrows, which are small birds that can get through a gap that looks too small to matter. A roof also keeps the rain off the feed, which stops it going mouldy.

If you cannot cover the whole run, cover the area around the feeder and the drinker, so the wild birds cannot reach the food and water. Netting is cheaper than wire, but it needs checking often, because it can tear and sag. Wire mesh lasts longer and is stronger, and it is a better choice if you can afford it. A covered run also protects your hens from hawks, which is another benefit.

Feeding habits that keep wild birds away

Feed inside the coop or under cover, not in the open run, because feed that is out of sight is less likely to attract wild birds. Feed only as much as the flock will eat in a day, and do not leave feed out overnight.

Clean up spilled feed each evening, and do not scatter feed on the ground in the open run, because that is an invitation to wild birds.

Keep the water covered too, because wild birds will drink from an open drinker and leave droppings in it. Use a drinker with a small opening, or put the drinker inside the coop. Do not put feed and water near a hedge or a tree where wild birds perch, because they will drop down to the feeder from above. And do not feed wild birds near the coop, because that brings them close to your flock.

Other methods: what works and what does not

Scare devices, such as shiny tape, plastic owls, and wind chimes, work for a few days, and then the wild birds get used to them and ignore them. They are not a reliable solution on their own, although they can help as part of a wider plan.

A dog that is used to the chickens can deter wild birds, but it must be a dog that will not chase the hens.

What does work is making the feed hard to reach and the run hard to enter. A treadle feeder, a covered run, and good feeding habits are the methods that work in the long term. If you have a serious wild bird problem, and your flock is at risk of avian influenza, talk to your local vet or extension service, because they can advise on the rules in your area.

Avian influenza and biosecurity

Avian influenza is a serious disease, and wild birds are the main way it reaches backyard flocks. In many countries, there are rules about keeping chickens under cover during an outbreak, and about reporting sick birds. If you see a dead wild bird near your coop, do not touch it with bare hands.

And report it to your local animal health authority if the rules in your area say so.

Good biosecurity is the best defence. Keep wild birds away from feed and water, keep the coop clean, wash your hands and boots after visiting another flock, and quarantine new birds. If your hens become ill, with sudden deaths, a drop in laying, or swollen heads, call a vet at once, because those can be signs of avian influenza. Do not wait, because early action can save the rest of the flock.

Keeping wild birds out of chicken feed is about making the feed hard to reach and the run hard to enter. A treadle feeder, a covered run, and good feeding habits together will cut wild bird visits to almost nothing, and they will cut the disease risk with them. That matters more than it used to, because wild birds can carry avian influenza, and their droppings in feed and water are the main route into your flock. Spend the money on a treadle feeder and the time on a covered run, and your hens will be safer and your feed bill will be lower.

Sources: poultry.extension.org and USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, avian influenza.

Related tools and guides

For more on the same topic, see Avian Influenza in Backyard Chickens. You can also browse the full list in our guides hub.

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