Anorexic chickens

[kvmommy]

I'm not sure how chickens are supposed to feel, but when I feel them I can clearly feel the breastbone. They look filled out and fine, but I was always under the impression they should be fuller. At 2 mo. I switched them to grow out feed instead of chick starter because the guy at TSC recommended it to me. Is that the problem? They always have food and water, and I feed them scraps and scratch and worms occasionally. But it seems like they've lost weight since I switched to the grow out feed. I'm not sure though.

 

[CMV]

Chickens are pretty skinny until they are over a year old. The older they get, the fatter they get if all is well with them. You have to figure that as soon as a chicken reaches its full size, they pretty much immediately start laying eggs. That takes a lot of resources out of the body, so they don't reach their full weight until later. Also you need to look at breed. Certain breeds tend to be lankier than others. I had/have some EEs that were the skinniest birds you ever saw, but I am pretty sure they had some OEGB blood in them based on their body build.

Did you switch from crumbles to pellets when you switched out feed? Sometimes that throws birds off for a while.

 

[kvmommy]

They were both crumbles and they have no problems eating it. Maybe its just that they're young. Because they look fine, they just feel so much thinner than I thought chickens looked. But they're not even 3 mo. old. Thanks!