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The Best Treadle Chicken Feeder on the Market Is…

Two main types, guillotine doors and swing in door

The two feeders on the left are guillotine type , so named because the door swings up and down.  The two feeders on the right are swing in doors.

Guillotine doors can trap a chicken’s head as the door swings up and down, also making it difficult to train the birds as the large door is coming right up in their face as they step on the treadle.  Users report that a guillotine type feeder will take two to four weeks of training with the feeder blocked open for most of that time.   These types feeders are prone to leaking in some of the more expensive models.  Most will sport a rather large treadle step which allows rats, squirrels, and flocks of wild birds to overwhelm the  treadle and access the feed.  These feeders generally have a smaller feed capacity and are the cheapest of the treadle feeders mainly because the Chinese imported feeders are dropping prices on that style of feeder.  There are no counter weighted models and no spring loaded door models so there is nothing that prevents larger rats and squirrels from simply pushing the door open to steal the feed.

Swing in door feeders are much safer and make it easier to train the birds as the door always swings away from the bird.  Some models require the birds to lean way over and in to reach the feed and others have the feed delivered right to the front of the feeder.  These feeders are more waterproof than the guillotine style feeders, safer for the birds, and much quicker training comes about due to the inward swinging doors.  Some models do get a bit complicated and not all brands have robust door axles. 

There is only one brand of swing in door feeder that is counter weighted and only one model, the same model actually, that has a spring loaded door so most of these brands of feeder are vulnerable to rats and squirrels pushing the door open.

Door axles are a big factor in durability of the feeders.   Most guillotine style feeders rely on a complicated series of linkages that can wear and bind.  The swing in door models generally will have either a wire axle or a welded steel axle.

Materials Used

• Galvanized sheet metal is predominant
• Some use plywood construction
• One brand uses plastic extensively
• Aluminum sheet metal is used by some European brands

Galvanized sheet metal is the best material, impervious to a rat’s gnawing teeth.  Rats must continuously gnaw to wear down their teeth or the teeth will curl up into their heads.  The gnawing also keeps the teeth razor sharp. 

Plywood construction is easily chewed through and warps with moisture.

Plastic is easily chewed through by mice and rats, not recommended

Aluminum sheet metal can be chewed through by rats and mice as it is softer than galvanized steel sheet metal

Door Styles

• Guillotine style, swings up and down, more dangerous
• Swing in style, swings back and forth, much safer

Treadle Styles

• Aluminum/galvanized sheet metal wide steps
• Wire/mesh step
• Plastic grid wide step
• Wooden wide step
• Wood narrow and distant step

The wide sheet metal steps make it easier for smaller chickens to use the feeders but they also make it easier for the rats, mice, wild birds, and squirrels to push the feeder door open.  Not a single one of these style feeders are advertised as rat proof or squirrel proof.

Wire mesh treadle steps tend to clog with chicken manure and litter which makes the treadle step heavier, changing the force needed to open the feeder and defeating the purpose of the feeders.  Their wide steps also allow vermin easier access to the feed.

Plastic degrades in UV light, is brittle at cold temperatures, tends to flex and warp more than steel or aluminum treadle steps. Like the wire mesh treadle steps chicken mature and litter will clog the grids, making the treadle heavier and altering the balance and weight required to open the feeder door.

The plywood/solid wood feeders usually have a wooden or plywood step that is wide, making it less rat resistant.

Only one brand has the narrow and distant step.  That feeder uses a one piece metal bar with a narrow wooden perch at the end, making it impossible for vermin to overwhelm the feeder treadle and reach the feed.

Note that nearly all of the treadle feeders available, especially the ones sold on Amazon, Ebay, and other ecommerce sites are Chinese made. Even the original Grandpa feeder was Chinese made and shipped to New Zealand.  There is one brand that is made in the Philippines and since 2020 made in the U.S. due to the pandemic and the shipping container price surge.