Fermented food

[Saba2020]

"Wet mash" is one of those silly chicken terms, it's the resulting product of adding water to a serving of chicken feed, letting it fully absorb for a couple of minutes, then it's ready to serve. And yes, it looks all mashed up

Got it ! Thank you

 

[Dephora]

ok, got it - thank for clearing that up. Ive been doing exactly that with the pellets I have... the only downside is that my Cuckoo Maran seems to have very soft poop since starting the mash. Might rotate between mash and dry pellets/grains...... its all a learning experience thank for your advice

oooo yeah, whenever I start mine on fermented feed they have very runny poop for awhile, especially if the weather is hot. It takes them awhile to adjust, they are use to taking in more water because they need it when eating dry feed. They will adjust over time.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Hi! I have been fermenting for a while now. You are getting very good advice.

For schedule, I feed first thing in the morning because mine only do partial free range in the evenings. I feed in open dishes - 1 cup of feed per dish x 4 dishes for my flock of 8. No food is wasted, and the feed doubles in size, so I spend less $ on feed every month. I usually strain mine but add a bit of the water back (the soupy stuff that falls to the bottom of the jars - I figure that's where a lot of the vitamins/etc are). Then I add organic crumbles as needed to get it to a nice consistency - almost like oatmeal.

In addition, I have feeders out with regular ol' dry feed, too. That way they have a bit of variety, and I know they have access to feed all day. Plus, it is suggested that you pick up whatever they don't eat to avoid the growth of bad bacteria. By keeping the amount in the dishes low, I know it won't sit long because they will eat all of it.

If I have a chicken isolated for whatever reason, I feed at least twice per day.

I hope that makes sense....

 

[Saba2020]

Hi! I have been fermenting for a while now. You are getting very good advice.

For schedule, I feed first thing in the morning because mine only do partial free range in the evenings. I feed in open dishes - 1 cup of feed per dish x 4 dishes for my flock of 8. No food is wasted, and the feed doubles in size, so I spend less $ on feed every month. I usually strain mine but add a bit of the water back (the soupy stuff that falls to the bottom of the jars - I figure that's where a lot of the vitamins/etc are). Then I add organic crumbles as needed to get it to a nice consistency - almost like oatmeal.

In addition, I have feeders out with regular ol' dry feed, too. That way they have a bit of variety, and I know they have access to feed all day. Plus, it is suggested that you pick up whatever they don't eat to avoid the growth of bad bacteria. By keeping the amount in the dishes low, I know it won't sit long because they will eat all of it.

If I have a chicken isolated for whatever reason, I feed at least twice per day.

I hope that makes sense....

thank you - yes it makes sense. I mixed up way too much for my three hens, and let it ferment. After day 4, they weren't interested... perhaps they senses it was rancid. I threw it away. Anyhow, I'm just making small batches now.....

 

[Aunt Angus]

thank you - yes it makes sense. I mixed up way too much for my three hens, and let it ferment. After day 4, they weren't interested... perhaps they senses it was rancid. I threw it away. Anyhow, I'm just making small batches now.....

Yeah, it took me a bit of experimentation to find what works. Sounds like you've got it!

 

[DobieClose]

I just gave my chickens their first serving of Fermented food. They love it. How long can that dish stay out? Can I store extra in the fridge?
What kind of food is best for fermenting?

 

[Aunt Angus]

I just gave my chickens their first serving of Fermented food. They love it. How long can that dish stay out? Can I store extra in the fridge?
What kind of food is best for fermenting?

I suggest only feeding as much as they can eat right away. It can go moldy or dry out and become too hard to clean if left out long. I wouldn't store it in the fridge, either. Just take out what you plan to serve them and leave the rest fermenting. I think you'll figure out how much they'll eat after a few tries.

You can ferment any feed, really, but I prefer using whole seed feeds, like Scratch & Peck.

 

[DobieClose]

I suggest only feeding as much as they can eat right away. It can go moldy or dry out and become too hard to clean if left out long. I wouldn't store it in the fridge, either. Just take out what you plan to serve them and leave the rest fermenting. I think you'll figure out how much they'll eat after a few tries.

You can ferment any feed, really, but I prefer using whole seed feeds, like Scratch & Peck.

Thanks. What kind works best? Crumbles? Pellets? I read an article that said whole grains work best, but when I asked for it at TSC, they only knew of scratch grains being whole grain. Not feed.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I just gave my chickens their first serving of Fermented food. They love it. How long can that dish stay out? Can I store extra in the fridge?
What kind of food is best for fermenting?

Dish can stay out pretty much all day, though I find the birds finish it off in the first few hours. Soak it in a sink afterwards to loosen the dried remnants.

Unless it's super hot (or you're going to be away for a few days), your ferment container can stay out in room temperature.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Dish can stay out pretty much all day, though I find the birds finish it off in the first few hours. Soak it in a sink afterwards to loosen the dried remnants.

Unless it's super hot (or you're going to be away for a few days), your ferment container can stay out in room temperature.

I found it would get kinda gross if I left it out. But maybe it's my climate?