How low of a supply until you order feed?

[cindyv3737]

I was think about my feed supply this morning and thought I would post a question. How low do you let your feed supply get before ordering/buying?
Personally, I will not allow my feed levels to drop under 2 weeks.

 

[Siany]

When my food bag is half empty i will order some more

 

[ChinnyMom]

i have the luxury of having a really good mom n pop style pet/vet supply store not far from my house that always has Oxbow in stock, so i generally go pick up another bag when my current one has about a week left in it.

 

[caiti]

By a week left, I will order more. So probably between 1-2 weeks mostly. I know I can always drive far away and get some PRCS if it's an emergency and since I don't own hundreds of chins, I don't like the feed just sitting when it's going bad and needs to be used. So I wait until about a week probably tops, enough time for someone to ship it to me.

 

[Twilight Chinchillas]

I buy food about every 2-3 weeks, and make sure I always have at least one full bag in stock.

 

[Essentia]

I never let myself get below 10 lbs of my main feed (PRCS), and 5 lbs of my other feed (Mazuri). How often I buy depends on how many rescues I have hat the time. The more people that order from me online, the more often I order in bulk from the feed store, so it also depends on how many orders I got that week/month. Normally I order one bag of Mazuri and one bag of PRCS around once every 2 weeks to a month.

 

[GorillaJTA]

I usually 10 pounds around when I have 2 pounds left (so 2 small bags of oxbow when I have about half a bag left).

 

[RDZCRanch]

I buy every two to three months. I don't usually let my supply go below 2 weeks or I get angry chinnies. I swear they know when their feed is low and the babies take extra effort to throw as much of it in their bedding an on the floor as possible.

 

[Laurie]

My feed store is about 10 minutes away. I wait until I have about 3 days left of feed then go and buy another 25lb bag. I have never run into a situation where they did not have Nutrena on hand for me in the 4 years I've been feeding it to them.

 

[greychins]

I buy three bags at a time (25 lb Mazuri each). My food storage container will hold 50 pounds, so when I have to open that third bag, I call up the feed store and get in more. Even with all the chins, the 25 pounds lasts long enough that they always get it in before I'm scrambling for food....

 

[Snickers]

I use 2 to 2 1/2 - 50 lb bags a month. I try to order 6 bags at a time. When I get down to 2 bags I place another order just in case I have a hard time getting it.

 

[Megan]

I order when I have about 3 weeks left (or 2 bags of feed). The feed mill usually takes 2 weeks to get the feed in(freshly milled), so that gives me a week of play time.

 

[Sandi]

I don't order until I get down to 1 weeks supply.

 

[Pikaia]

I buy 25 lb bags of Mazuri, so I just order another when it gets kinda low. It takes my feed store 4 days to get it, so I order it when I usually have 2-3 weeks supply left.

 

[ticklechin]

I buy when I have about 5 lbs left.

 

[Spoof]

I'm not particular on when I get it, I wait until I'm in the general area of the feed store and need to pick up other things as well. I do make sure I keep enough for at least a week on hand and moveable in a quick-like fashion during hurricane season along with 4 10-hole crates. I hear this year is going to be a real doosie.

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

ah a sore subject with me. I TRY to go to the feed store when I am down to 100#. The place I get my feed from will not let me order...even when I ask them to order 300# at a time. They just won't do it. So I have to drive 45 minutes and hope they have at least 4 bags for me to get. Sometimes I will call ahead for them to tell me oh yeah we have it in stock. Then I show up and it's either a) still on the pallet and they refuse to get it out for me. So I am stuck to get what's on the floor which usually amounts to 2 bags and the other four will be in back. or b) I get there and it's the wrong stuff.

I wish I could switch my chins. I just recently tried Nutrena but they refuse to eat it. My critters are very very picky.

Jessica

 

[6Dusters]

I order 75 pounds at a time. I use Mazuri and when the third bag is half full I place an order. It depends on when she placed her shop order. I might have to wait a next week if she already placed it.

Good gravy Jessica......I'd pull my hair out over that set up. I do know how hard it can be to get feed. I wanted to try Tradition but could never get the Virginia distibutor to return my calls. Despite several attempts. :impatient:

 

[mishellyshel]

I ususally eyeball my stash and when my container is low and i go. I usually will try to coordinate this with when I need shavings so I do not have to make 2 trips to the feed store. But typically I will have a couple weeks of food in that container. I buy 50lbs of PRSC at a time and am about to buy a big bag of Mazuri again for one of my boys and will donate what i wont use in 6 months, which will be about 1/2 the bag!

 

[designer chins]

When I have 50 lbs left, I call Tractor Supply (45 min away) to confirm they have feed & I make sure they set some aside for me. I got burned by the local feed store a few summers ago, ordering a month in advance and 5 weeks later they STILL didn't have my feed!!! Considering they initially told me they only needed a week's notice, I was VERY unhappy & in a minor panic (well, possibly a major panic!). Lesson learned. On the up side, since I started special ordering my feed at Tractor Supply its become so popular that they now stock it: no more special order! Much fresher than what the local feed store was bringing in, which is a shame because I prefer to support the local small businesses.