Problems found for milo grain as feed????

[catdaddyfro]

Milo is a perfectly good grain to feed chickens as the hen scratch that I've mostly used usually contains about 50% chopped/cracked corn, prolly 35% milo and the other 15% is either wheat or oats sometimes both, just enough to say its in there usually.

So its fine to feed as a treat as long as it is not the sole ration of the chickens diet, because it is only about 8% protien and not a very good source of vitamins/minerals that a chicken needs to be productive. It'll keep them alive but not a very healthy life.

catdaddy

 

[Ronnie C]

Is I feed my chickens half milo and half laying feed or half wheat and half laying feed would that be ok?

 

[Fred's Hens]

Milo, wheat, corn, etc is typically 8% protein. Layer feed is typically 16% protein. If you mix 50/50 you must average the protein.

Your result would be 12% protein.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Some milo or feed grain is bred to repel birds. If you have ever seen a ripe field of milo during the fall black bird migration you can understand the farmers' need for bird resistant milo.

Chickens btw are birds and avian resistant milo repels chickens, or at least that is the theory.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Thanks!

But I would wonder why those strains of milo would be included in poultry feeds because they can be identified.

Clint

Looks like the reasons would be availability and money. In countries where it is more economical to grow high-tannin because of wild bird problems, they'd feed it because it is what they have, does say it can be used if handled correctly. Don't think you would find it often in the US since pretty much nothing but low-tannin is grown, and it looks like the little high is used by the beef industry.

 

[Speceider]

I know more about duck nutrition, and I doubt increased tannins would affect ducks (mallard derivatives), because acorns, which are high in tannins are a large component of the diet of wild birds. I assume, the tannins may deter Icterids (blackbirds), but am not sure what other avian orders that may be affected.

Clint

 

[Kelsie2290]

http://ps.fass.org/content/69/10/1685.short
http://publicazioni1.altervista.org/papers/136.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11201445
Had these bookmarked from when I googled milo awhile back to see if I was going to kill my chickens by feeding it to them, bless the internet. The ducks are interesting, looks like water is the big difference, bet the same thing holds true on acorns. Would think in the wild you get a wet/dry cycle because ducks just live near water and rain etc and it has the same effect.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

...I would wonder why those strains of milo would be included in poultry feeds because they can be identified.

These strains of milo are NOT supposed to be in poultry feed.

Years ago one of my neighbors got what he thought was a good deal on grain sorghum seed. He harvested his crop and took off to the chicken feed mill with the first load. They refused to buy it. The inspection revealed it to be bird resistant milo. He spent 3 days driving from grain elevator to grain elevator before he found a buyer. I think it finally was used in hog feed.

How do stories like this about milo get into circulation?

My theory is that some well meaning city dweller reads about avian resistant milo in the local library. Then he or she with the help of little to nothing in the way of REAL knowledge about agriculture puts two and two together and comes up with 3.14 or pi. Therefore the conclusion is that milo is bad for chickens unless you stand there all day and force feed them Tums while they eat the milo.

At least that is my theory. You did see were I said that this is just a theory didn't you? Don't ask for scientific proof, I don't have any! Have a good day.

If you want to see another case of my theory in operation notice how many people on this forum feed their chickens meal worms, usually meal worms produced by unknown growers. If you wanted to grow millions and millions of meal worms for the pet food trade there is no better place for you to grow your meal worms than in the litter below the poop cake of old abandoned commercial chicken houses. The only other thing you would need is a shaker table and screening devise to separate the meal worms from the chicken litter so that you can return your brood beetles to the used chicken litter so they can begin another crop of meal worms, and then my friend you are in the meal worm business big time.

The complete list of chicken diseases transmitted by meal worms or the parent beetle is daunting. The list of worm eggs that meal worms or their parents can pass on to chickens is equally impressive. So remember that those meal worms you buy may have marinated their whole lives in a virtual ocean of chicken germs and parasites.

WWW.aces.edu/darkling beetle

 

[Speceider]

Please, I respect your qualifications,,,you know what you are talking about.....I posted that ,,. in jest....knowing the answer....

Clint

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hey, I like semi-rhetorical questions. Learned three things today, ducks vs tannins, bird cherries can kill moose, and chickens can get raccoon roundworm. Now if I can just get my chickens to stop eating earthworms since apparently those are going to kill them too.