The Great Big Homemade Chicken Feed Recipe Sharing Thread

[jessbe]

I don't know a lot of people do that I guess it sounds like it would take a lot of time. Fermented foods are really good for the digestive systems anyway if I had the right feed I would try it. But mine is to powdery right now. What do you feed?

For protein I think it would be easier to just give chickens some meat scraps or a bit of milk. Making a molt meatloaf seems overly complicated.

What do you think of fermented feed?

 

[HeritageGoose13]

At the moment, my birds free-range and get much of their food that way. I also feed poultry pellets. In the winter they get cracked corn.

I have been reading through this thread on fodder systems. I think I read somewhere fodder can make up 80% of a chickens diet, plus free-ranging and a small amount of feed.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/713334/growing-fodder-for-chickens

Somewhere in that thread is a recipe for a "bird bread" that reminds me of that "molt meatloaf."

 

[jessbe]

I've been reading that and I think that would be more benifical and more cost effective then feeding just plain grain. For 8 chickens I can do just a couple of small/ med sized containers for them.

Once our privacy fence is up I'm gonna let them run around the yard for a little bit in the evening. (I can't wait!)

At the moment, my birds free-range and get much of their food that way. I also feed poultry pellets. In the winter they get cracked corn.

I have been reading through this thread on fodder systems. I think I read somewhere fodder can make up 80% of a chickens diet, plus free-ranging and a small amount of feed.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/713334/growing-fodder-for-chickens

Somewhere in that thread is a recipe for a "bird bread" that reminds me of that "molt meatloaf."

 

[Sidhe13]

I don't know a lot of people do that I guess it sounds like it would take a lot of time. Fermented foods are really good for the digestive systems anyway if I had the right feed I would try it. But mine is to powdery right now. What do you feed?

I reckon it is fantastic! They eat nearly half as much feed, they are certainly healthier, and the powdery stuff in the bags gets mixed in too and doesn't waft away on the breeze or get scattered around.

 

[tobystevensonjr]

If you are really interested in making your own feed you should read this first. http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/livestk/01618.html

 

[Noelygfan]

About how many pounds of feed do the recipes end up making? I would love to feed organic, but with 20 laying hens, anywhere I look is too expensive to keep up with my wishes.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

About how many pounds of feed do the recipes end up making? I would love to feed organic, but with 20 laying hens, anywhere I look is too expensive to keep up with my wishes.

Depends on which recipe, but all can be adjusted to an amount you like.

 

[jessbe]

What you can do is buy 50lbs bags of the grain that used the most in recipes and buy like 10-20lbs of the other stuff and get a barrel or whatever and a smaller bucket and make a batch then dump until the barrel is full.

About how many pounds of feed do the recipes end up making? I would love to feed organic, but with 20 laying hens, anywhere I look is too expensive to keep up with my wishes.

 

[kikithebird]

would this work
25% cracked lupins
25% pearl barley
25%wheat
12%sunflower seed
13% millet

 

[HeritageGoose13]

I had to look up lupins, since I had never heard of them before. I don't know how you would fit them into a recipe- probably similar to other beans?

What kind of feed do you want to make? Layer?