So i have a group of asf that are wasting food. They were in my fb rack, before i moved them to this new rack i built. The mesh i think is 1’4 inch. Sould i add smaller mesh over the feeder section wire,? Or change out the wire for that part of the rack ?
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Could try throwing some Popsicle stix or small bits of untreated wood in there to keep them busy. Boredom or stress can definitely give rise to chewing behavior.
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I give my colony plenty of things to chew on (wood and cardboard) but every once in awhile I get one individual that just wants to chew the food to dust. Unfortunately this seems like it’s a learned behavior and they won’t stop until the culprits are culled. When that happens, I’ve just been putting the blocks directly in the bin and they stop. I continue to do this until the ones that were chewing are gone (or I just cull them) and then I can put the blocks in the hopper again
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Yeah that’s true too.
I had a rat that taught the others to chew on the bars for attention. That one never got solved as they were all pets. XD
The worst is when they start teaching everyone to do it. So yeah, sadly waiting them out or culling are the best options for feeders.
I have to cull one of my normal feeder rats after she’s done nursing because she’s just gotten way too aggressive the last 2 weeks of motherhood. =\
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If it was me, I would replece it with 1/2" meshing. Lowes and tractor supply both have it.
If you have extra of your original, then you can try to put another piece over the feeding section as a test. Keeping it aligned and securing so it does notnlobe might be difficult.
I just recently started to make my own bins to save on the cost. I used the 1/2" mesh and found restaurant buss pans almost the same size as the others bins. So far it works.
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The main issue for 1/2" mesh with ASFs is the babies tend to go through it and escape. A lot people who do use 1/2" mesh will make a lid with 1/4" mesh so the babies can’t escape through that. They’ll still get in the hopper, but they can’t go beyond that
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Do you have something to measure with? Hard to tell scale but sort of looks like 1/2” mesh. I’ve used 1/4” for years with ASFs and believe it works best for several reasons. You want them to have to work a bit at the feed. Also, with 1/2 they can probably get noses through to chew tub edges. And also the baby escape issue.
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I mistaken this 
for 1 1/4, not 1/4". 1/4" would work best if you cen get it. I was only able to find 1/2" and it seem to be working at this time.
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yes i found out the mesh is 1/2 inch. i am going to be replacing it with 1/4 mesh.
i also culled off some older asf & multiple males I had. then separated into 2 colonies 1.3 and 1.2
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Sounds like an excellent plan. I’ve also had good luck supplementing ASFs with boiled eggs, milo (the bigger red bird feed) and even mealworms (sold as chicken treats). I wonder if the mouse feed doesn’t have everything they need so they overeat. With a little supplement they eat a lot less pellets.
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