I used hemp for the winter. I just cleaned it out & it was nice & dry, but I think the dust comes from the chicken crap, as it dries it so much that it turns to dust. Not sure I would keep in in a year. I liked it, but at $55 for 44 lbs. it's still expensive bought locally.
You can find good layer formulas with higher protein like Kalmbach's Full Plume & Feather Feed at 20% or Purina's High protein Layer feed at 19%. I go back & forth even with a rooster. My hens devour oyster shell either way. Way back in 1993 I articles suggested 21%-layer feed & back then they...
Kalmbach makes a 20% layer feed Full Plume & Feathering & Purina makes a 19% Layer Feed. If you are thinking Purina dog food & Purina chicken feed are made by the same company they are not.
I am always amused when people put down organic because they don't want to pay the premium or they don't like it. They always go on to denigrate it to justify their decision. Some people see value in organic. I would buy any local organic product over conventional every time if I could. Don't...
I am feeding Kalmbach 20% Full Plume & Feathering Feed. I always feed 18-20%. This is a layer feed. Got this from Chewy for $22 a bag just a bit more than the $21 I pay for Kalmbach Flock Maker locally. Chewy's price was a special for doing autoship so I won't be getting it there again. I could...
Any Easter Egger I have ever had started at around 5 months like all the rest of my breeds. Are you sure she is not laying, as she could be laying a brown egg.
If you waited until 8 weeks to integrate it is really too late to go smoothly. Most would then wait until they were the same size. It's easiest to integrate at 3-4 weeks allowing for an escape place that only the chicks can fit into. This is only feasible if the chicks are incubated in the coop...
I've fed Nature's Best Organic at times & even though the layer is 16%, the chickens laid more. Your experience may be different, but it is not proven that they less on organic feed.