amount of feed per day

newfie bullet

Chirping
6 Years
Apr 1, 2016
17
7
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I'm not new to rearing chickens. Have seen some people think that too much feed will lead to fat layers and they won't lay as good.
So this year iv'e tried feeding my new layers 1/4 lb of 17% layer each a day. the birds have just started laying about a month or so . ( used to feed my layers free choice and free rangeing summer and free choice penned up in winter , lots of snow here)one pen of birds are laying well the other ones not so well and egg size is usually medium. barred rocks , light sussex and americaunas. will giving them more feed a day help increase egg size.
 
I don't know. My five 9 month old sex-links lay 32 to 35 eggs a week 62 to 71 grams 2 1/8 to 2 1/2 oz most days. Yesterday I got a 76 grams egg. But they have unlimited access to layers pellets, except when I'm cleaning the coop and waterers and refilling the feeder once a week, about an hour. I toss out some scratch grains at that time to keep them out of my way. But they still want to help and inspect to see if it's to their liking. GC
 
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I'm not new to rearing chickens. Have seen some people think that too much feed will lead to fat layers and they won't lay as good.
So this year iv'e tried feeding my new layers 1/4 lb of 17% layer each a day. the birds have just started laying about a month or so . ( used to feed my layers free choice and free rangeing summer and free choice penned up in winter , lots of snow here)one pen of birds are laying well the other ones not so well and egg size is usually medium. barred rocks , light sussex and americaunas. will giving them more feed a day help increase egg size.
One thing NO one understands....Layers need balanced nutrition....100% balance........

Yes, in general free range is good....The amount of hours a day on range plays a big part in the overall daily intake of nutrition.....
Hybrid Layers have a higher need of balanced nutrition with higher protein.....Others still require high protein, but not as much as Hybrids, White leghorns and Sex Sal Link Browns......

As a rule...If keeping layers?......Keep all scraps and fillers to a minimum .......They can not preform without consistent feed practices.........................

How do I know???......Excellent information....


Cheers!
 
High egg production is VERY 'labor intensive' metabolically, and these birds need and deserve quality balanced feed, fed free choice! Limiting feed or altering the balance of the diet is counterproductive, causing malnutrition, and limiting production. The same thing applies to feeding dairy cows producing 100 lbs or more milk per day! Not like feeding a wild jungle fowl, or an adult pet steer. Mary
 
I leave my feed in a bucket where the chickens are free to eat whenever they want. I haven't noticed my chickens over indulging themselves. I do let my chicken free range for a few hours every day. They're more interested in that then the feed.

If compare my chickens to one of my neighbor's chicken who does not let their chickens free range; Their chickens are much bigger and fatter than mine, same breed.
 

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