Am I Fermenting Correctly?

[Eddie12109]

Hi all,
On Sunday I decided to start my first fermenting feed process.

I use New Country Organics Grower/Broiler feed. I give this because I have a 7-8 year old hen who is still laying eggs and a 9 year old who has retired from egg laying and I doubt the extra calcium will help her. (I provide egg shells and oyster shell on the side)

I filled up a mason jar halfway with feed and my drinking water (no chlorine) until the water was an inch higher than the feed line. Came back 10 minutes and the feed looked like it was about to overflow from the jar. I switched to a bigger jar and filled it up until the water was 2 inches higher than the new feed line. It has been like that since Sunday.
On Monday and today I started noticing bubbles developing on the top. I stirred it twice yesterday and only once today.

I also noticed a smell to it and it smells very similar to broccoli. Is this suppose to be normal?

I will attach pictures of it when I am passing by it later.

I live in Florida and have been keeping it inside in the air conditioning on my desk. I have been putting the lid on the mason jar but not closing it all the way. Enough for things to get in but if I pick it up by the lid the lid still stays on.

Is this what is suppose to be happening?

On Wednesday, if I have done everything correctly, I am planning on draining the liquid from this batch and using it to start the next, then letting my hens test it out.

@azygous @DobieLover

 

[Eddie12109]

@Wyorp Rock @TwoCrows @speckledhen

 

[Battlepants]

I don't believe the broccoli smell is correct. That might have gone bad.

The process that I used for my brief run with fermented feed was to start it like you did, but mix in a blob of active sourdough starter to jumpstart the bacteria cultures.

As a rule of thumb:
If it smells like a bakery, all good!
If it smells like a brewery, it needs more material to process, the bacteria is hungry.
If it smells bad, you MIGHT be able to save it with more material to process, but you might just be throwing it out.

 

[speckledhen]

@Wyorp Rock @TwoCrows @speckledhen

I am the wrong one to tag here. I am 100% against fermented feed for avian species.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I don't really ferment my feed. I do offer wet/soaked feed in addition to making dry feed available. I make my soaked feed "fresh" every night. I put what they will eat in a day in a clean bucket, then add water, let it sit overnight to soak up the water and puff up a bit, then feed it all the next day. I basically start over each night.
So...I'm not sure what fermented feed should smell like.
I know there's some threads about it here, so you may want to search them out.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

It really shouldn't smell like broccoli.

Typically, a proper lacto-ferment will smell sour or a bit yeasty. I use a method somewhat similar to the one @Wyorp Rock described, but I leave some previously-made FF in the bucket each time as a "starter" to accelerate the process. I also only moisten the crumble/pellets enough to achieve a thick oatmeal-like consistency when completed. I'd say the process is more analogous to sourdough than to sauerkraut.

You may find this thread helpful. Best of luck with your FF adventure!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Different fermented feeds smell different (and different people smell things differently), so no idea if what you're smelling indicates anything's wrong.

I ferment, but I make it as simple as possible. Big glass jar (1-2 gallons), about half full of feed, and water about 1" over the level of that (which gets absorbed in a few hours). No need to actively stir or drain. I start feeding at the 24 hr mark and aim for a resulting consistency like thick oatmeal. When the jar is low/near empty my "backslopping" technique is to just add more dry feed, more water.

 

[Happily Retired]

I am the wrong one to tag here. I am 100% against fermented feed for avian species.

Why are you against FF? Everything I have read/seen is very pro FF. I am just starting out with chickens and know nothing from nothing. Thanks!!

 

[speckledhen]

Why are you against FF? Everything I have read/seen is very pro FF. I am just starting out with chickens and know nothing from nothing. Thanks!!

Because of the nature of what happens on BYC and the extremely zealous nature of those who are proponents of it and the bullying that accompanies dissenting opinions about the subject, I refuse to get into it here. Needless to say, having been involved in a conference call when an acquaintance's flock was dead and/or dying from it (necropsies confirmed the deaths were caused by crop issues started by the feed), I will never have a positive opinion of it. Avian species have a crop-based digestive system, unlike mammals, and it is highly sensitive to certain things. That is all I will say here, but if you want further information, send me a private message and I will link a video from my YouTube channel for you where I discuss it in detail.

 

[TwoCrows]

I've tried fermenting feed in the past as well. I followed the advice of those here on BYC on the process, the ingredients, and how to feed it. Half my birds refused to eat it and the ones that did, developed crop issues. Wild birds will never eat wet seeds of any kind, risking dying from mold, toxins or mildew. Unless we test our fermented feed after each batch is produced for toxins, we can never be sure it is clean enough to run through their systems. I personally don’t believe chickens should be eating fermented feed, but this is just me. I do however feed dampened feed and even this I am cautious with, throwing out any damp feed not consumed that day. Molds and toxins are not to be taken lightly.