Was I bamboozled by a TS employee?

[Beekissed]

I don't think it's a rule, just a recommendation. But then again, I read the evidence and make my own conclusions. I tend to see many things in shades of gray instead of black and white. So if people ask me what food to feed young birds, I'm going to say starter/grower has worked for me. Why feed extra calcium to a bird that is not excreting it in eggshells? Plus, calcium is cheap and I'd rather buy a #50 bag and serve it on the side instead of paying a "feed price" for it.

Funny, I do that very same thing but when I do it, it only ticks off a lot of people.

And I'm not even force feeding my own conclusions on folks like I see done here, I just mentioned I don't believe in something and it's on like Donkey Kong. You can only get by voicing your own conclusions if they go along with the general majority.

 

[FridayYet]

Funny, I do that very same thing but when I do it, it only ticks off a lot of people.

And I'm not even force feeding my own conclusions on folks like I see done here, I just mentioned I don't believe in something and it's on like Donkey Kong. You can only get by voicing your own conclusions if they go along with the general majority.

Maybe that's why I get in trouble so much.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Funny, I do that very same thing but when I do it, it only ticks off a lot of people.

And I'm not even force feeding my own conclusions on folks like I see done here, I just mentioned I don't believe in something and it's on like Donkey Kong. You can only get by voicing your own conclusions if they go along with the general majority.

It's on like Donkey Kong!

What's interesting is that it's no different than the seen of a crime. Everyone saw the same thing but has a different perspective and therefor experience which leads to a different story to tell.

 

[AllynTal]

Ok, I know this is discussed constantly here, and I thought I had it down, but a Tractor Store employee has confused me (and maybe he was just plain wrong!)...

I have a flock of chickens...recently laying chickens, soon-to-be-laying chickens, will-lay-in -the-Spring chickens, and young roosters. I have been feeding them Purina's Flock Raiser with oyster on the side in a separate dish. They also (usually) get healthy table scraps for lunch, a small handful of scratch at bed-time and my non-Silkies forage all day (Silkies are in an enclosed coop/run).

I went to buy a new bag of Flock Raiser and a TS employee ran over and pointed me in the direction of Nutrena Layer feed. He said the brand was better for the same price and if I have any birds that are laying, they must have layer feed. I told him what I was doing and he kept saying that they must have layer feed. He was so emphatic, I bought it. But now I'm checking on here and think I could have been right (that it's not great to feed my roosters that and it was ok with All Flock and oyster on the side).

To throw a curveball in there, he also said a lot of people give a feed for meat birds in the winter because of the extra protein.

AND he said I should never feed bread type products to birds under 18 weeks as they can develop a condition called...angel wings? Too late for these, but in the future (I always fed my chicks grit when I started introducing non-chick crumb into their diet, if that makes a difference) what's the deal with this?

Please help me sort fact from fiction!

As lots of folks have pointed out, the over-zealous TS employee was spewing the "line" that layers need layer feed. They need calcium which they can get from oyster shell. The only thing I'll agree with the TS employee on is that Nutrena is a better quality feed than Purina IN MY OPINION. I feed either Nutrena Naturewise chick starter along with oyster shell or Feather Fixer with oyster shell. They have more protein than the layer feed, which helps the chickens recover from molt faster, the roosters like the extra protein and don't need the extra calcium, and lack of protein can make chickens into egg-eaters so that little extra protein is a plus. I tried a 50-lb bag of Flock Raiser once. It was 40 pounds of fine powder and 10 pounds of actual crumbles. Most of it was wasted. The Nutrena has very little, if any, powder in the bag. I can get Purina 3 miles away, but I drive 21 miles to get Nutrena.

And no, don't feed them bread. It has no nutritional value -- the chicken equivalent of junk food -- and can give them sour crop, which is a mess to deal with.

TS Employee: "Can I help you?"
Me: "Yes, I need four 50-lb bags of Nutrena Naturewise Chick Starter."
TS Employee: "How old are the chicks?"
Me: "Old enough to eat the chick starter. Do you have four bags?"

Is that a little rude? Maybe, but I know what I want and I don't want to argue with a kid at TS. When you answer his question, his flywheel starts turning and he starts trying to be 'helpful'.

 

[junebuggena]

As lots of folks have pointed out, the over-zealous TS employee was spewing the "line" that layers need layer feed. They need calcium which they can get from oyster shell. The only thing I'll agree with the TS employee on is that Nutrena is a better quality feed than Purina IN MY OPINION. I feed either Nutrena Naturewise chick starter along with oyster shell or Feather Fixer with oyster shell. They have more protein than the layer feed, which helps the chickens recover from molt faster, the roosters like the extra protein and don't need the extra calcium, and lack of protein can make chickens into egg-eaters so that little extra protein is a plus. I tried a 50-lb bag of Flock Raiser once. It was 40 pounds of fine powder and 10 pounds of actual crumbles. Most of it was wasted. The Nutrena has very little, if any, powder in the bag. I can get Purina 3 miles away, but I drive 21 miles to get Nutrena.

And no, don't feed them bread. It has no nutritional value -- the chicken equivalent of junk food -- and can give them sour crop, which is a mess to deal with.

TS Employee: "Can I help you?"
Me: "Yes, I need four 50-lb bags of Nutrena Naturewise Chick Starter."
TS Employee: "How old are the chicks?"
Me: "Old enough to eat the chick starter. Do you have four bags?"

Is that a little rude? Maybe, but I know what I want and I don't want to argue with a kid at TS. When you answer his question, his flywheel starts turning and he starts trying to be 'helpful'.

Nutrena and Purina are both owned by the same parent company, Cargill. It's pretty much the exact same feed.

 

[AllynTal]

Nutrena and Purina are both owned by the same parent company, Cargill. It's pretty much the exact same feed.

That may be true, but I'm not paying for 40 pounds of dust that is wasted. I don't get dust in the Nutrena bags. I have the nutrition and ingredient tags from the Flock Raiser and the two Nutrena products that I buy, all purchased within the last 45 days (the FR and FF within the last 15 days). The percent of each nutritional requirement is not the same and the list of ingredients don't match, so while they may come from the same parent company, they aren't exactly the same product.

 

[casportpony]

 
Nutrena and Purina are both owned by the same parent company, Cargill. It's pretty much the exact same feed. 

That may be true, but I'm not paying for 40 pounds of dust that is wasted. I don't get dust in the Nutrena bags. I have the nutrition and ingredient tags from the Flock Raiser and the two Nutrena products that I buy, all purchased within the last 45 days (the FR and FF within the last 15 days). The percent of each nutritional requirement is not the same and the list of ingredients don't match, so while they may come from the same parent company, they aren't exactly the same product.

The "dust" problem is not a brand problem, it's a problem at the mill. Here in California, the Punina products and TSC house brand feeds come from the Turlock mill, and all of them are mostly powder, so I no longer buy products that come from that mill.

-Kathy

 

[the poppster]

I have fed "AllFlock" or "Finisher" year round with a treat of black oil sunflower seeds, whole corn and cracked, wheat and oats...my girls have access to oyster shell in a separate bowl...along with grit for all...I've bought bags of deer apples and carrots this deer season and toss them a couple handfuls daily...and cabbage if I can find it. Pumpkin is a favorite...also squash...they go all soft after they freeze...I peel off the thought skin and open up the top...poke a hole in the bottom and impale it on the center of an old angel food cake pan...they eat the stringy inside, all the way to the skin. I made the mistake of buying layer feed from TS and after less then a week of feeding it....my girls quit laying and went into molt...I won't fight mother nature so I've decided that they will probably be better off with a good break...but I switched back to the all flock.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

That may be true, but I'm not paying for 40 pounds of dust that is wasted. I don't get dust in the Nutrena bags. I have the nutrition and ingredient tags from the Flock Raiser and the two Nutrena products that I buy, all purchased within the last 45 days (the FR and FF within the last 15 days). The percent of each nutritional requirement is not the same and the list of ingredients don't match, so while they may come from the same parent company, they aren't exactly the same product.

I have bought two products from the same parent company sold under different names and experienced the same thing, different ingredients and amounts of dust and not the same exact nutrient levels. The crumbles weren't the same size either. I debated if the dust was an issue since I ferment. Ultimately I went with the product that appeared better (bigger crumbles, less dust, slightly yellower, and $1 more per bag). But I still don't like breathing in the dust as I pour it. Now I realize for a lot of thing with a larger flock, I need to adjust. And getting a mask to protect my airways is one thing I must do ASAP.

 

[casportpony]

Here's why I don't buy feed from the mill in Turlock: