Cutting back on the chicken feed

http://imaginacres.com/urban-chickens-how-to-rid-your-coop-of-a-rat-invasion/

So the bottom line is don't feed the rats!
Work out how much food the chicken needs...be sure to add in heaps of greens for them but no 'food' for the rats.

We've had rats since we've had compost and even more since we've had chickens.
Ever had a rat up your trouser leg...YUCK! Was not a pleasant experience. We have used poison but really I think its terrible and I really worry about all the other animals around when we put out poison so we hardly ever do it.

So we need to cut back on a few things.
I know what we need to do but its getting round to doing it.

1. Coops need to be bird proof and easy to move and clean.
www.omlet.co.uk

This design I feel is answers to many problems we have...moving them easily, cleaning them easily, feeding them easily, sleeping purch up and away, nesting boxes...oh it makes me dribble and babble on. The other big plus is it looks good too. So Dave when should we do it?

2. Chicken food can not go on the ground!
We have used a 'grandpa's feeder' but our chickens don't seem to understand how to stand on them to open them and not freekout ...but maybe we just have to work at it.
The other option is use a pipe feeder with a cap? Not sure how this would work and if the kids would be keen to put the cap on at the end of chicken feeding time.

Updated...

Oh oh DINE A CHOOK could be the answer...because Dave and I have so much time and money to waist lol...and our kids are old enough not to chop off their foot while working on a project (not looking at anyone in particular DD9) we'll look at buying one ready made and see how we go. http://youtu.be/lzSNtbqn5-8

3. Food scraps (for now) have to go into a worm farm. Where?...in the top garden the pumpkin patch corner.
I've seen one on www. growing a greener world which used a metal rubbish bin drilled with holes through and sunk into the ground...fitted with a tight lid on top.

www.growingagreenerworld.com

If you fast forward to about 9mins she'll be talking about the compost worm bin I'm thinking of.
www.bunnings.co.nz
Pick up one of these

4. Chicken health
We really need to get back to the point of letting each family out to graze for greens and bugs everyday...we've had a few baby roosters which need to be tamed.

5. Removing the chicken's which we don't really have any love for :-( we got these chickens as old hens so never really bonded with them.
We have some really large black orpingtons that are toooooo large for our kids and our garden and we can't free range them as the hawks get into them and they are not tame. So we have to put them on trade me :-( feeling very sad but truly we have to downsize and cut back.

6. Ultimately I would like to be like my hero Kay Baxter...

www.koanga.org.nz

And work my whole garden into becoming self sufficient

7. Make garden closh as a polly house and a

So lots of work to do...