Feeding Bantam Roosters, Hens & Silkies

[Whittni]

My flock is growing up (4 weeks) it's been quiet a few years since I last raised chickens. I will have a couple banty roosters, silkies and other Bantam hens.

What do you recommend feeding them and starting at what age? They're currently on Purina Medicated Chick Starter (monitoring silkies closely, they're doing great).

I saw a video stating roosters get kidney damage from layers feed. I also read that silkies can't eat layers feed now? I've never heard of such things and never had any issues feeding my old flock regular chicken food.

 

[BastyPutt]

I think if you look hard enough, you will find something that supposedly kills everyone : ) ESPECIALLY in the silkie community. They are loved more than some folks love their human children, so because of this, I believe they have a reputation for being much more prone to illness or ailment than the really are.

The only thing I would say, would be to discontinue the medicated feed. It isnt that great for the birds to start with, but is only intended to be used for the first week or two.

In general, you will want to look for a "Flock Raiser Crumble"

Here is a link for Purina's. Some brands may call it something different, but you should fine it at most all feed stores

https://www.purinamills.com/chicken-feed/products/detail/purina-flock-raiser-crumbles

 

[Brooks_]

I saw a video stating roosters get kidney damage from layers feed.

Any chicken not actively laying will be prone to the same issue. Calcium toxicity is cumulative. A couple weeks because you're out of what ever is fine, years on end though is different. I agree with above that flock raiser is a good choice. Most any all flock or starter/ grower will be fine. Just serve a dish of oyster shell separately as a calcium supplement. If your chickens have been on the medicated and exposed to the native soil for two to three weeks, it has done what the medicated is intended to do and you can switch at any time. I would still say to finish the bag as to not waste feed.

 

[BastyPutt]

Just serve a dish of oyster shell separately as a calcium supplement.

100%

 

[Whittni]

Thank you all so much! Wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything crazy in the last few years without chooks. I'd asked because Purina had this on their website:

Purina Website: How long do you feed medicated chick starter? Regardless of which chick starter feed you choose for your baby chicks, feed the same starter-grower feed from day 1 through week 18, or when the first egg arrives. At this time, you can begin the transition to a layer feed.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thank you all so much! Wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything crazy in the last few years without chooks. I'd asked because Purina had this on their website:

Purina Website: How long do you feed medicated chick starter? Regardless of which chick starter feed you choose for your baby chicks, feed the same starter-grower feed from day 1 through week 18, or when the first egg arrives. At this time, you can begin the transition to a layer feed.

What they are saying is that whether you choose a medicated or non-medicated feed, you can feed it for the first 18 weeks. You don't have to feed that same starter/grower the entire 18 weeks, but you can. Many of us start with a Starter, switch to a Grower, and then switch to something else or feed Grower or Starter or something else like Flock Raiser or All-Flock for the rest of their lives with oyster shell on the side for the ones that need the extra calcium for egg shells.

That "transition to a layer feed" assumes you have the same egg laying hybrids the commercial operations have and that you raise them the same way the commercial operations do. Their chickens are especially bred to start laying at a young age and they control when they start laying by manipulating the lights. We don't usually have those chickens (especially your Silkies) and we don't manipulate lights like that. Our chickens often do not start to lay until a month or more later than theirs do. We don't follow the same schedule.

You are certainly not the only person that has questions about this. Thay are basically not talking about our chickens or how we raise them.

I saw a video stating roosters get kidney damage from layers feed. I also read that silkies can't eat layers feed now? I've never heard of such things and never had any issues feeding my old flock regular chicken food.

It's not that roosters will absolutely get kidney damage and fall over dead if the eat a bite of Layer feed. There are studies that roosters, growing chicks, and other non-laying chickens can possibly get kidney damage if they eat too much calcium. Possibly.

One bite won't kill them. The damage can come from how many total grams of calcium they eat in a day. Those studies clearly show that if all they eat is the Layer feed, some of them will be affected. But the more low calcium food they eat, the less harmful the amount in the Layer feed is. If yours forage for a lot of their food it is less likely that there will be any damage. When there is damage you may not notice it in the way they act anyway. It may make them a little less productive or maybe more susceptible to stress. If you have a chicken die in excessive heat it may be because it had an underlying problem, like damaged kidneys. You'd blame that death on the heat not on it eating Layer feed.

I may occasionally joke about Silkies being walking toilet brushes and such, but they are chickens. The same things apply to them as apply to other chickens. For some reason I have seen a lot of posts the past month or two about all the special things Silkies need, especially related to food. I have not seen this in all the other years I've been on this forum. I don't know where this is coming from. To me, they are chickens and should be treated as chickens.