How Much DE (Diatomaceous Earth) Should I Feed My Chickens

[stevethack]

Again...50%+ difference. And throwing in that last bit about "the wide variability in individual counts failed to indicate a statistically significant difference" sounds straight from an ad mans dialog.
You raise a herd by numbers and pounds and averages....50% less count "average" in this case is good result. with a 2-3% higher weight minimum it's a good thing for lamb growers. Adding in a minimum 25% ADDED price break for an organic rating and it certainly looks like a win.
A 50% total difference in most things leads one to normally think there IS a difference. I never blindly accept test results without reading and comprehending how the testing was performed. Last test was x-DE x y-control= a paint/slant job on results.

 

[CrazyTalk]

Here's a primer on statistical significance:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistical_significance

If you're not willing to learn about statistical significance, and the deeper points made by the numbers, you should really just read the conclusion and implications of a particular study. These are very common terms in scientific studies.

Quote:

 

[stevethack]

Soooo... why don't you just give me 50% of $100,000 then if it's not anywhere near a statistically significant amount?
Herds, eggs, broilers all are raised commercially on averages. 2% to 3% less money is a significant amount in the real world of farm incomes. Possibly not in the ethereal world of mathematics...but in the real world it is in this day and age of volatile markets.
Organic farming is at best hard to do. Prices are good usually. Keeping the organic rating isn't easy. If it makes a 50% difference "average" less worm load and a 2-3% better weight gain and someone really smart in mathematics does the math and figures out of it's money ahead spending it on DE against the commercial wormers and the cost of losing your organic rating is factored in...then I will pay attention to "statistically significant".
But anyone force feeding DE and anything to a day old to 6 week old lamb is lucky to have any reach 6 weeks or more from scouring themselves to death. Feeding it to a nursing ewe and even counting hairs on it's nursing lamb is misleading<----this is a given! for any math.

Personally I'm not totally convinced DE is a good wormer if a flock is badly infected. It may/may not work as a decent deterrant? but then again I'm not totally convinced. That's why I read, and study. But I vastly prefer decent studies not comparing apples to fence posts and coming up with slanted/skewed findings.

 

[ConPollos]

This is a study of DE used as a wormer on sheep: http://www.midamericaagresearch.net/documents/Evaluation of diatomaceous earth.pdf

It shows no positive results - there were no statistically significant differences between the control group and the experiemental groups.

Here's another study : http://www.mtsylviadiatomite.com.au...iles/Research/de_natural_dewormer_study_0.pdf

Again, no statistically significant differences between the DE group and the control group.

Again, I am not opposed to using chemical wormers, so I am not biased towards DE. I have witnessed many times over the years that DE is an extremely effective wormer, so I don't believe any study that says it's not.

That study could have been paid for by a corporation that makes big money on chemical wormers, like the studies that were funded by the cigarette companies that claimed smoking wasn't harmful to our health. Or those studies could have been flawed by not using the right kind of DE or in the right amount, for the right period of time, in the effective way.

 

[CrazyTalk]

Again, I am not opposed to using chemical wormers, so I am not biased towards DE. I have witnessed many times over the years that DE is an extremely effective wormer, so I don't believe any study that says it's not.

That study could have been paid for by a corporation that makes big money on chemical wormers, like the studies that were funded by the cigarette companies that claimed smoking wasn't harmful to our health. Or those studies could have been flawed by not using the right kind of DE or in the right amount, for the right period of time, in the effective way.

If you'd actually read the study, you'd know exactly who funded it. You'd also know exactly what they used.


Anectdota is not evidence.

 

[ConPollos]

If you'd actually read the study, you'd know exactly who funded it. You'd also know exactly what they used.


Anectdota is not evidence. 

Evidence is what I witness from first hand experience.

 

[shortgrass]

DE has been used for decades here, in the feed for everybody... Mostly for the cattle, but the chickens get the benefit too... Here's more info
.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...-gcImA&usg=AFQjCNGCB1827QPHFTfwdnZlKp4IT15wTA

That one is almost 20 years old, so its been being used for a long ol time, with great success...

DE is already in the feed lol; its applied at the granary when harvest comes in

Next, internal parasites are only PART of the DE benefit...
http://www.extension.org/pages/3947...tle-would-de-dusted-on-cattle-ki#.VeXh4SPnbqB

And
http://www.pinnaclefarms.ca/Gaia_Tree/kelpDEsupport/DEtestimonials.html

Here they are using it for Buffalo.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...eclBKw&usg=AFQjCNGpHFt3FztrelVP9iIOgLbxZq9Q6w
And HERE is why it works when used to its fullest capacity, by knowledgeable individuals who understand the FULL concept.

http://www.skylinesfarm.com/parasitecontrol.htm


Oddly enough, THAT one is for sheep lol...

The whole scheme of things is actually quite interesting; works synergistically, hand in hand, almost no effort required


Edit* oh to answer the question "how much"? ...2% of feed rations. So per 100# of feed, 2# of food grade DE.

 

[BDutch]

I have a note how to use DE, supplied from the shop. It recommends 5% of the food weight and give this suplement for two months.

 

[ConPollos]

I have a note how to use DE, supplied from the shop. It recommends 5% of the food weight and give this suplement for two months.

Or you can give daily at 2% year round.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I read often on here people adamantly claim that there is no benefit to using DE in their feed, but a few nutrition experts whose opinions and practices I glean from highly recommend it. I think really that there a lot of outlandish claims of DE being some magical cure-all and that brings on the detractors.....

I read often on here people adamantly claim that there is no benefit to using DE in their feed, but a few nutrition experts whose opinions and practices I glean from highly recommend it. I think really that there['s] a lot of outlandish claims of DE being some magical cure-all and that brings on the detractors.... I just try to learn from those who I believe know their stuff. One thing for sure, my chickens' poop is not the runny mess that "bird poop" typically is, but nice and well-formed little logs like Dr. Oz would be proud of and it doesn't stink nearly as much either. Even my peeps drop the cutest little turds and I recently "rescued" a fledgling pigeon and fed my peep food to it - the poopies went from runny, messy bird-like poops to nice and well-formed turds. A good looking turd is a sign of a healthy bird....

Pigeons feed their young on "Pigeon Milk" so to feed young pigeons anything less than pigeon milk may not be in the birds' best interest. Unfortunately there is a whole universe of mountebanks out there like Dr. Oz, Dr. John H. Kellogg, and C. W. Post; all of them making ridiculous claims while chasing your pocket book. Post BTW made one of the most ridiculous claims when he claimed that Post's Grape Nuts breakfast cereal was responsible for making your blood red. I would like to delve into Dr. John H. Kellogg's beliefs further but this is a family oriented forum so i will go no further.

To find the "Plain Facts [of life] for Young and Old" download this free E-Book.

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19924/19924-h/19924-h.htm

Warning, this book is hilarious reading, but what the hey, at least it is "organic"

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19924/19924-h/19924-h.htm

"Truth in Advertising" Dr. Kellogg the vegetarian lived to the ripe old age of 92, but the Sausage and Baloney king, Oscar Mayer lived to be 95 and ate what he pleased..