Backyard Brahmas!!

[livininbrazil]

Mine were running about today with a dead dove the cat had killed! They polish off any dead bird if they can get it off the cat!

Well at least they get protein! Oh, and termites!! How they love termites! How I love them loving termites!!

 

[SD Bird Lady]

Mine were running about today with a dead dove the cat had killed! They polish off any dead bird if they can get it off the cat!

Well at least they get protein! Oh, and termites!! How they love termites! How I love them loving termites!!

That is funny, termites aren't a huge problem here as the cold winters help to control them but glad your chickens love them. It amazes me how clean they can pick bones, I guess they are related to vultures haha

 

[livininbrazil]

That is funny, termites aren't a huge problem here as the cold winters help to control them but glad your chickens love them. It amazes me how clean they can pick bones, I guess they are related to vultures haha

Well I do refer to them as veloceraptors! They get the really big spiders, small snakes, bugs, etc...it´s great! And it´s so funny to see them when the flying termites come out in the rain...the chickens are running in all directions!

 

[Huntress78]

Don't mean to take away from Summer's hens, just have a question. You mentioned that maybe they're eating too much scratch. I have a feeder in the coop with layer feed, and another one in the run with layer. I give a little bag of lettuce, apples, or whatever from the kitchen and also toss a couple small handfulls of scratch. Should I not give the scratch every day? How much is too much? Oh I should say I have five chickens, two of them are cockerels. No one is skinny or fat, although one cockerel really is big. Any ideas?

I don't think a couple handfuls a day will hurt your flock. Just think of it like a person eating rice cakes or popcorn....a snack.
I use Purina scratch but it's only 8% protein so in the winter I add oats (11% protein) and BOSS (only 9% protein but 20% fat that helps them in the cold here). I use the scratch to get them to do things they don't want to do...like come back to the pen when they're out free ranging or go outside in winter when it's cold (they don't like the snow but I think they need to get out in the sun once in a while).

 

[livininbrazil]

I don't think a couple handfuls a day will hurt your flock. Just think of it like a person eating rice cakes or popcorn....a snack.
I use Purina scratch but it's only 8% protein so in the winter I add oats (11% protein) and BOSS (only 9% protein but 20% fat that helps them in the cold here). I use the scratch to get them to do things they don't want to do...like come back to the pen when they're out free ranging or go outside in winter when it's cold (they don't like the snow but I think they need to get out in the sun once in a while).

I have a question which you guys will find dumb...but...
I realise by reading posts that scratch doesn´t have much nutritional value in it...I imagined it was some carbohydrate filler-type thing, like rice or something chucked out for them. .
Now I see that an animal food company actually produces this stuff, so I´m intrigued...whatever is it?!

 

[livininbrazil]

Anyone else have problems with their brahmas getting gizzard impaction and consequently starving? My older flock has free-ranged and grass impaction in the gizzard (not crop) has been a huge battle. So this winter, I thought I would be sure to add grit directly into their feed and it should grind everything up and impaction would be cleared. This I have done, but yet I am not getting any weight gain with this group of brahmas. The hens are extremely thin (basically skin and bones). When I think of a brahma, I think of large 5+ lbs. not 2-3 lbs. So I'm really not sure if I should end their lives now and give up hope or wait and see if they are able to gain weight? I guess I'm considering worming, but I really wouldn't suspect worms since I see nothing in their poop. The Easter Eggers seem to be better, not big, but not starving like the brahmas. What to do?

Summer, how are your birds?

 

[Summer98]

I haven't been feeding this flock scratch, but I do give them black oil sunflower seeds for added protein. The reason I am suspicious of impacted gizzard is because we have dealt with that last summer and lost several. We cut two open to verify the diagnosis. All the birds are able to eat and drink (and poop, I presume). What I'm worried about is what if the gizzard or intestine is not 100% occluded, like say 95%, whereas just enough food could pass to sustain life, but that's it? That could explain why they haven't died yet. I will probably do a fecal test at the vet's office when I can get a chance, just to rule out worms. I'm just so worried about the gizzard impaction. I might try adding some oil to their feed this weekend. Anything wet will freeze solid (it's been -35 F). Someone on another thread had mentioned that internal egg laying can cause a hen to starve to death. I will have to read about it. I don't think my EE are getting more feed than the Brahmas. I would say the Brahmas are higher in pecking order in this flock.

 

[Huntress78]

Quote:
Not a dumb question at all....
'Scratch' is whole and/or cracked grains and seed. Companies don't so much produce it as mix it. It might contain cracked or whole corn (maize), wheat, oats, various seed, etc. There is nothing wrong with it except that the birds can pick out the seed that they like so the quick eaters may eat all corn or sunflower seed and leave the oats. Processed 'feed' for chickens may contain many of the same grains as scratch but it's all ground fine, vitamins/minerals and sometimes animal protein is added, and it's extruded/pressed into pellets and sometimes ground back into 'crumbles'. The birds have no choice but to eat the whole pellet so they get a more balanced diet.
It's kind of like kids leaving vegetables on their plate but if you mix them into a soup or stew they will eat them.

 

[Huntress78]

I haven't been feeding this flock scratch, but I do give them black oil sunflower seeds for added protein. The reason I am suspicious of impacted gizzard is because we have dealt with that last summer and lost several. We cut two open to verify the diagnosis. All the birds are able to eat and drink (and poop, I presume). What I'm worried about is what if the gizzard or intestine is not 100% occluded, like say 95%, whereas just enough food could pass to sustain life, but that's it? That could explain why they haven't died yet. I will probably do a fecal test at the vet's office when I can get a chance, just to rule out worms. I'm just so worried about the gizzard impaction. I might try adding some oil to their feed this weekend. Anything wet will freeze solid (it's been -35 F). Someone on another thread had mentioned that internal egg laying can cause a hen to starve to death. I will have to read about it. I don't think my EE are getting more feed than the Brahmas. I would say the Brahmas are higher in pecking order in this flock.

It's been cold like that here too and it makes it extra hard to care for the birds. How are you keeping their water from freezing? Not getting enough water to flush feed through their system might be contributing to the problem. It's a mystery I hope you can solve soon...please let us know what happens.
Good luck!

 

[Vickis Girls]

I buy an organic soy free scratch and toss some a few hours before the chickens go to bed. It's made up of barley, cracked corn, wheat, and vegetable oil(it's 9% protein). I add whole sunflower seed and oats to the "salad" I toss early each morning. They all eat together, and seem to clean up every last speck of everything, but I must admit the feeders don't empty very fast. I feed this "salad" because they don't free range and I thought real plant parts would be good for their diet. I'm hoping to grow veggies just for them this summer, because it's expensive to always make sure we have "leftovers" from the kitchen. If he only knew where all the lettuce is going!

Yes, Summer, do keep us posted.