# Need FEEDER ideas



## anawhitfield (Jun 9, 2013)

We have 24 animals but we don't live at the farm so I am looking for automatic feeder ideas. We currently have two 6ft PVC pipes, cut long-ways to make their feed trough but I have to manually go fill them up every day, twice/day. I want to make something on a timer which will dump the food at set times and then distribute it evenly in the trough. My husband can build anything - we are just looking for ideas. This is what I found so far....
Any ideas? Any advice? what do you guys use?


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## JAR702 (Apr 28, 2014)

I am looking at using deer feeders when I can't be home to feed the goats. They can be set to feed at different times and different amounts. You can put a bucket underneath it to catch the feed. Good luck


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## anawhitfield (Jun 9, 2013)

We thought about that but how are 24 goats going to eat out of one bucket?


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## chelsboers (Mar 25, 2010)

Would a cattle feed trough fit under a deer feeder?


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## anawhitfield (Jun 9, 2013)

My husband could customize it to fit. 
I've never seen a Deer Feeder. Does it pour out the feed evenly or does it dump it in one pile?


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## MsScamp (Feb 1, 2010)

Ana, it is not my intent to rain on your parade, but have you given thought to what could happen if the electricity goes off or if the feeder malfunctions? I fully understand what a royal pain it is to have to drive out somewhere to feed twice a day, but it might be the safest thing for your animals. Not only in terms of feed, but because it also gives you the opportunity to check them daily and stay on top of illnesses. Just a little something to think about.


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## anawhitfield (Jun 9, 2013)

Thank you Oscar. That is definitely something to keep in mind. They will be on a lush pasture with plenty of hay in the barn and unless there is a major emergency I would be checking on them every other day, especially since our garden is also there. But driving 28 miles one way every other day is still much better than doing it twice a day 
This is a temporary arrangement. We hope to start building next year and move there in a couple of years - hopefully 
Still in the mean while I am looking for as much automatization as I can especially since my husband loves to invent and build stuff.


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## chelsboers (Mar 25, 2010)

anawhitfield said:


> My husband could customize it to fit.
> I've never seen a Deer Feeder. Does it pour out the feed evenly or does it dump it in one pile?


I think it just drops it in a pile, but maybe something could be rigged on the bottom to help distribute the grain. You can set it to drop several times a day so all the goats would be able to get grain through out the day.
Why not just use a creep feeder? I have two pastures and that's what I use at the one away from my house. I just figure how much each goat should be getting every two days and only put that amount in the creep feeder. When the grain is provided all the time they actually don't just sit around eating all the grain at once like they would if you fed them twice a day.


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## GoatieGranny (Jul 26, 2013)

If you use something automatic and it's only twice a day, you could even hook up a small solar panel to ensure you always have power. A small set up would be no more than $150.00 and would be plenty, more than enough, to fill up their food x2 per day. This way you can rest easy if there are storms or other situations where power may go out. Oh, if you don't have a deep cell battery, like a golf cart battery, you would need one of those, too, which would push the cost up to about $250 total. That would be for a 100 watt solar panel. If you get a 50 watt, it would be less, but still enough power.


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## JAR702 (Apr 28, 2014)

Maybe your husband could look at this plan and adapt it. Good luck
There are many diy deer feeder plans on the internet.
Talked with my hubby and the guys in our MAG and they said you could use an timed door system like is used on a chicken door. Any timer that could be used to open a flap on a trough along with a gravity feed system should work.

http://www.diy-hunting-and-outdoors.com/motorized-automatic-feeders.html


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