another question about feed

[chickmchickie]

i am sure it will if i have to buy it online and paid tons of shipping i will.. at what age can they be put on reg chicken feed?

 

[Opa]

Once you have exhausted your supply of start n grow you can switch to Purina Flock Raiser with no ill effects. The protein level just is as high. If you want to increase the protein you could grind up some dry cat food and add that to the Flock Raiser.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

i heard many places stop selling it after chick season..

Any decent feed store will order any feed you want at any time.

Just because they don't always keep it on hand doesn't mean they can't get it when you want it.​

 

[ashleylancaster]

There Was A Post That You Can Give Them Scrach But Its Not As Good. Maybe You Could Get A Bag Of Scrach And Give Them Half Scrach And Half Chick Feed. That Way Their Still Getting Good Nutriants And The Feed Lasts A Little Longer.

 

[gale65]

I don't think 50 lbs will last very long. We have 12 chickens and our first 50 lb bag just ran out and they are about 6.5 weeks old.

 

[ChicKat]

Hi chickmchikie,

Good luck with your chicks and the feed situation.

It will be important to provide the feed that chicks need for their optimum growth. I was just looking at the book 'Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens' , and there is a table that states that
for Layers 0-6 weeks their feed should be 18-20% protein,
6-14 weeks 16-18% protein,
14-20 weeks 14-16% protein and from
20 weeks onward 16-18 percent protein.

The feed sacks for chickens at your store should have labels on the bag that give you the precentages of protein. You can see that the first six weeks have the highest requirement and very possibly your chcks can make it that long on the 50 pounds.

You could then buy what your store has available and if needed you could supplement them with some protein like mashed boiled eggs. Storey's Guide even suggests that you can put powdered milk (dry powder) in with their dry food to give a protein boost.

You do have a lot of options on the internet, and it will be expensive to get it shipped, but then sometimes when we travel around, we don't realize that the driving we do ---even to get to the local co-op (we have a feed store in town here, but about 45 minutes drive to our co-op)--the driving we do is an expense.

The difference between the non-starter feeds often is the amount of protein. You may be able to boost the protein that your chickens consume by using some of your table scraps, for example if you have scrambled eggs, and there are left overs chop them up with the feed you have if you end up with something like 'flock raiser' with a protein of 18%.

So you may be in very good shape with what is available in your town.
Meanwhile, you will have a few weeks at the minimum to research your alternatives, and if you make a trip during that time to a bigger city with more feed choices available, you may be able to pick up a sack of feed before your other runs out.

Congratulations on getting your chicks--- tomorrow right?

 

[PineLaneFarms]

I agree with Bear Foot Farm any reputable farm supply store should order it for you as long as its not a special order or anything off the wall at anytime you ask them. I was just at my local feed store picking up DE since they are the only place in town that has it and they told me they would be happy to order me purina if i didnt want the store brand any time i wanted as long as i gave them a heads up. Maybe its just because they want me to do more business with them than TSC. who knows. But like you already said buying it online might be your only option. hope it all works out

 

[ChickenAl]

Quote:
Ordering online may be the way to go. The shipping can be rough depending on how far away you order from. A 50lb. bag from Virginia to NY cost me $16.50 in shipping. Better than I thought, but sill more expensive than picking it up locally. You should get a couple to three weeks out of the bag so you have some time to stock up. Being they are young they will start consuming a lot of food by the end of the three weeks so your feed bill will go up.

Regular grower feed is started usually between 6-8 weeks, depending on the feed manufacturers suggestions. Some leave them on starter until they lay. Two more bags and you should be good to go until you can put them on grower. You should stock up on the grower, especially in the fall. If the local stores close in the winter you may get caught short.

 

[2 britts]

Quote:
X2

 

[wyomingleghorn]

hi
i recived my 25 chicks on the third of july and they were 48 hrs old they are ten days old and i have gone through almost fifteen pounds of chick starter and i think every day it gets worse you might check walmart.com i know they ship to home address on most things but dont know about chick starter.
i know my local walmart carries cause i work there but worth looking in to