HYPOTHETICAL DISCUSSION: What to feed your chickens when we can't buy chicken feed anymore

[Beekissed]

This is a really good point. So many people ask "Why would you want to do all this crazy prep stuff?" My question is, why wouldn't you? If any kind of disaster ever were to happen, you'd be much better off than most people out there. And if nothing ever does go wrong? Well, so what. As you said our preparations have given us something to do, and I think for most of us it is often things we enjoy doing anyway. We've most likely made our lives healthier and happier. There are so many benefits to being as prepared as you can for whatever may come, and if nothing horrific ever comes to pass, we've still been doing things we enjoy and improving our lives in the process. It's a win-win.

The only time I can see that it presents a problem is in this question: Do you have your preparations...or do your preparations have you? Those initiating preps in a knee jerk reaction to a failing economy by getting 3 chickens in the backyard that they cannot kill because they love them too much, have spent tons of money to have the chickens, trying to grow bits of food on postage stamp lawns in the suburbs and spending endless amounts of time on discussion, planning, supposing zombie apocalyptic situations and spending tons on special kinds of containers to store food but never actually producing enough food to warrant the money and time spent...well...there I can see a problem.

It may make one feel better but it doesn't really ever get them any closer to survival of the hard times to come....and rest assured, there are such hard times coming that stored food, food trees and a few chickens will not help.

 

[LilyD]

You know, I'm not a spring chicken. (66) I moved in with my daughter and her family last year and we moved to a couple of acres in the sticks. NW Louisiana. I watch what is going on in the world and the conditions. My family doesn't.. So I decided quietly to prepare a little for us my myself. I decided to grow a garden and maybe store up seed. So I did. Next, I've decided to get some chickens ("But, why, Mama, it's so much cheaper in the grocery store!!") Yeah, so my first bunch of chickies will be here in the middle of January. Next on the agenda is a food forest. I plan to plant fig trees ( I have 6) and blackberries (1). I want to be able to buy blueberries, some kind of pecan trees, and I have a good sized Black Walnut already growing. I'd like to be prepared enough that I'll have some kind of barter if needed. What's next? Rabbits? A hog? My daughter would die.

I'm 40 and I am trying to do the same thing. My goal is to can all my vegetables for the year as well as fruits from our apple, pear, peach, cherry and berry bushes. We also raise our own chicken and turkey here and talked my sister who has more land in to raising beef, pork, goat, and lamb at her house. Hopefully if anything were to happen we would be able to do all right for ourselves or trade for anything we don't have. It's good to be prepared no matter what.

 

[Jedi Clampett]

Bee is right, what is eventually coming can only be prepared for with Grace. The question is, what kind of trials and tribulations will we have to endure before that end comes? Prophecy is very clear that bad times are coming and we don't know how many days/weeks/months/years we will have to feed and protect ourselves and families while we are waiting for the Second Coming. Personally, I believe that God gave us those warnings for a reason..... Also, as Aphrael correctly pointed out, there are benefits to raising our own food whether we need it to survive or not. The worst that can happen is that you have a healthier diet and a better understanding of where your food comes from. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.

 

[pegm]

Bee, you are exactly right, I know we cannot sustain ourselves where we ended up, but it is what it is. Fortunately, we are in an agricultural community, and that will help. We have a very close congregation, and good neighbors. We have to pray, without ceasing, and all will be well.

 

[Beekissed]

You are correct...."be anxious for nothing..."

No worries.

 

[Steena]

I was wondering if you have a specific food you use to fulfill the protein factor for the chickens.
I thought about meat scraps, but I usually don't have much meat. I may have some liver in the freezer and can thaw and cook it up. Would this be a
good source of protein and something chickens would think - good!

I look forward to your thoughts.
Steena

 

[Aphrael]

I was wondering if you have a specific food you use to fulfill the protein factor for the chickens.
I thought about meat scraps, but I usually don't have much meat. I may have some liver in the freezer and can thaw and cook it up. Would this be a
good source of protein and something chickens would think - good!

I look forward to your thoughts.
Steen,sk

My chickens get all our scraps, meat included. Plus they get any offal from butchering and any bugs they can catch (which we have a bounty of). I swear all summer and fall you could not even step out the door without having walking sticks crawling on you, and the chickens LOVE them. They gobble them up like french fries. Recently, my husband brought home a deer and I kept out the liver and pureed it for the chickens. They went absolutely bonkers for it. But you'd just have to try it out with yours to see if they like it. Not all chickens like the same things.

 

[LilyD]

I do sunflower seeds in the winter to help with mine since we are up north and the bugs all go away. Also raising meal worms for them is great and it's an amazing source of protein. I give food scraps as well. Primarily veggies but some dried beans that have been cooked like in hummus or chilli and also some meat if I have a combination dish. If I really need to up the protein a large scoop of meal worms for each coop works great and they love them. It takes under a minute for them to be all gone. It's really fun to watch.

 

[Jedi Clampett]

I do sunflower seeds in the winter to help with mine since we are up north and the bugs all go away. Also raising meal worms for them is great and it's an amazing source of protein. I give food scraps as well. Primarily veggies but some dried beans that have been cooked like in hummus or chilli and also some meat if I have a combination dish. If I really need to up the protein a large scoop of meal worms for each coop works great and they love them. It takes under a minute for them to be all gone. It's really fun to watch.

Sunflower seeds and mealworms are excellent ideas. This is something that almost anyone could grow, almost anywhere. Free-ranging might not be an option for many people and the fat content (sunflower seeds) and protein (mealworms) would supplement whatever vegetation you could scrape up to feed them. Sunflowers will grow just about anywhere in almost any soil. Zucchini is another idea that produces an enormous amount of food in a relatively small growing area. Also, garden waste that they normally wouldn't eat can be cooked and they would be more likely to eat it.
Keep those ideas coming!!

 

[LilyD]

I had someone tell me once that anything that you would eat the chickens will eat you just might have to chop it up smaller so they can get it in their beaks. Anytime I use veggies I will cut up the parts that I don't use small and then throw it right on my compost pile. They love playing there and adding the veggies gives them treats that they love to eat too. Plus when it's warm being able to get to the compost gives them access to large amounts of natural bugs which I really like because then us humans don't have to deal with them. Win win all the way around.