16% layer or 20% grower plus oyster shell?

0die

Songster
8 Years
Apr 20, 2015
345
315
196
corpus christi, tx 78413
well I'm about to switch my girls to a layer diet...but there seems to be different methods to everything.

here are my two plans...straight 16% layer or just keep them on 20% grower permanently and provide oyster shell on the side

please comment on pros & cons of each

it's a mixed, all hen, backyard flock...they free range the back yard almost daily...but just have grass and what few bugs they can find...eventually the bugs will be few and far in between I assume.

I'm kinda leaning to staying with 20% grower since they won't be finding much bugs since they work the yard over pretty good everyday...and grass doesn't sound like much protein...

is 20% protein too high for a layer? or will that improve or enrichen the eggs?

I know there are other recipes but these are the two that I think I'm most likely to do for simplicity. Feel free to recommend your personal program...
 
You can get a Grower/finisher which is a little lower in protein. I had to lower the protein because I have ducks and high protein can cause angel wing in water fowl. Whether you're feeding layer or grower, you still need to provide oyster shell for the calcium. Laying hens need a LOT of calcium to prevent them from taking it from their bones to make eggshells, and layer sometimes just doesn't have enough.

With a mixed flock, it's just plain easier to give everyone starter/grower or grower/finisher. I don't think it makes much of a difference, health wise. It just keeps you from having to separate layers, non-layers, almost-about-to layers, and mama hens. If you have all laying hens, you can go ahead and feed layer. It's a bit cheaper and they'll probably go through less oyster shell too!
 
they offer a 15% finisher feed as well but I passed on that....protein seemed too low to me...

I don't mind paying a little extra for 20% plus oyster long term if there is a benefit over the 16% layer option....

Also I figure they are all gonna molt at different times...and when molting I'm assuming they don't need the layer feed with calcium already mixed in.

do they need more protein during a molt?
 
they offer a 15% finisher feed as well but I passed on that....protein seemed too low to me...

I don't mind paying a little extra for 20% plus oyster long term if there is a benefit over the 16% layer option....

Also I figure they are all gonna molt at different times...and when molting I'm assuming they don't need the layer feed with calcium already mixed in.

do they need more protein during a molt?
They do need extra protein, but most of the time, they molt in the fall. They also usually don't have an adult molt in their first year. Some people suggest that 20% over a long period of time may cause kidney damage, but many people use all-flock (20%) with no problem. The calcium in layer won't hurt a molting bird, since it's only a month or two. Cat food as a daily treat can help with protein during molting.
Either way works just fine, I don't think there are health benefits leaning either way. Whichever is easier for you :)
 
When they molt they generally stop laying and use the protein that was going to make the eggs to make feathers. That’s nature balancing things out. You can certainly up the protein level when they molt if you wish, it will not hurt anything, but personally I don’t. A lot of people do.

The amount of protein and other nutrients in any one bite is not what is important. The total amount they eat in a day is what counts, and even that will depend on what they eat over a few days. If all they eat is chicken feed, then 16% is what commercial operations feed their laying hens so they can get plenty of large eggs. Those hens don’t forage or get lots of treats to mess up their balanced diet. If yours forage for a lot of their food or get low-protein treats then a higher protein chicken feed will help balance that out. Some of that depends on the quality of your forage.

Our chickens are generally not the commercial egg laying hybrids. Our chickens are usually larger so they need more protein to maintain their larger bodies as well as produce eggs. Most of ours either forage some or get treats other than commercial chicken feed. We are also not trying to squeeze the utmost production out of our hens as economically as we can like the commercial operations. They have to make a profit or go out of business. We have a lot more flexibility in what we can feed our chickens. We don’t have to be nearly as precise in what we feed them as commercial operations. Since mine forage a lot I’ve lost that precision anyway.

That 15% Finisher/Developer has a specific use. When commercial operations are feeding chicks that will become a laying flock, they start them off with a fairly high protein content Starter to get them off to a good start and feathered out quickly. Then they switch to a 16% Grower since that is all they need to develop properly. Then about week 13 they switch to a 15% feed. This slows their rate of growth down to give them a chance to develop their skeleton and let their internal organs mature. They do not want their chickens to start laying too early. They delay them starting to lay using lights mainly so when they do start to lay they get more Grade A Large eggs which sell for a better price. It also gets those hybrid pullets to a bigger size and more mature so they are better able to handle laying the eggs without developing medical problems.

The more protein a hen eats the larger her eggs normally are. That’s fine up to a point but think of a woman giving birth to a 10 pound baby as opposed to a 7 pound baby. Don’t get ridiculous about going for larger eggs. Most of us can feed anything form a 16% to a 20% protein feed and do fine. I put my upper limit at 20%.
 
You've gotten some great responses, but I'll chime in. :)

How old is your oldest bird? Your youngest bird?

If you have any birds under 16 weeks of age, I wouldn't give layer feed. 20% grower is okay, but a 16-18% grower would be best (unless you have super young chicks...then they should have 18-20%). And free choice oyster shell for the layers, of course.

Hope that helped!
 
The reason many of us feed 20% protein Flock Raiser, is also to allow for the free range, kitchen scraps, and scratch that are also fed, even if in small quantities. I think FR is a very good all-flock feed anyway, unless you are committed to all organic feed. Mary
 

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