Best Feed and When to Start Babies on Adult Feed

[ShianRainDrop]

Hello. I did a search for my question but didn't find what I was looking for. This is my first post outside of my intro post so please move or delete this if I am posting in the wrong place, or if I am asking something that has already been answered despite me not being able to find that answer.

I have 9 chics ranging from 1.5 weeks old, to 2.5 weeks old. They are currently getting chic starter feed but I'm curious about the two things in my topic title.

1st, I'm getting ready to place an order for a 50lb bag of adult layer feed (guessing I'll probably have to buy way more than that once they get full grown), so I can go ahead and mix in a canister of the pelleted top dress poultry booster to be ready for them to eat. I've been using whatever they have at Tractor Supply (something that starts with a D), but do you guys/gals know of a 50lb bag of something I can get from Amazon or elsewhere that may be better? Since I have so few chickie babies, I don't mind spending a little more since they won't go through it as fast as if I had 20+ chicks.

2nd, when do I start going to adult layer feed for the little ones?

Oh, and another question, how do you folks store your food? I am thinking about buying some sort of bin that will store 50-100lbs of food so I don't have to worry about running out too soon.

Ohhh, and also, maybe I should have said I have many questions because now more are popping up. My apologies for my ignorance of chickens. I've been watching videos for months and thought I knew most things but I'm always coming up with more questions. LOL!

What is the difference in chicken scratch mix and laying feed? Should I be giving one or the other, or maybe mixing? Or is scratch mix something to throw out in the run for them each day to go after and eat? I live in a sandy climate so I'm pretty sure they will tear up most of the grass fairly quickly so they'll be living on sand. Thankfully it has great drainage so mud shouldn't be a problem.

So sorry for all of my noob chicken mommy questions. Just coming up with more and more as I see my little babies growing and one day being ready to go to the mansion coop I built them. Jeez, I went OVERKILL with the coop I think. I have pictures here if you are curious to see the mansion. I can't believe I went that complicated on it now that I know that it didn't need to be as such. #facepalm. These aren't even updated. The whole coop is closed in right now and all I have to do is finish details... and the run. Ooof on the run. It's going to be big. shorturl.at/cuvWZ To see the pictures, just double click on the first one and you can scroll through from there. <3

Thank you so much for your feedback and sorry this ended up so long. I type a lot and have the attention span of a peanut. Hahaha!

 

[pibb]

Scratch is kinda like a treat (not full nutrition) and layer feed has extra calcium only needed for layers to help make shells stronger. Roosters and chicks do not benefit from the extra calcium and actually burdens their kidneys.

You would only want to give layer feed when they go to laying or at least close to the time, about 18-20 weeks old. Alot of people, incuding me, just give regular feed and put a side dish of oyster shells (calcium) for them to take when they need it.

 

[ShianRainDrop]

So aside from chick feed while the girls I have are young, what should I give them if scratch is a treat and layer feed is only for when they are laying? Also, how do I handle feeding my one rooster if laying feed is a burden on his kidneys? They will all eventually be living in the same space so how do I seperate their food?

 

[pibb]

I dont give my chicks anything but starter grower until they get out of the brooder. Ill still give them a little chick grit in case they eat some bugs. After the brooder, I might give them some kind of scratch or a treat in small quantities..

You can keep on feeding unmedicated starter grower or an all flock with free choice oyster shells. Some people feed roosters layer feed and dont notice anything except maybe a shorter life span. I personally wouldnt go through the trouble of separating food for hens and roosters, but for chicks I would.

 

[sloanbychoice]

Definitely starter until they’re close to laying age, like they said. I switched to layer feed when mine grew up, but I didn’t have a roo. When I did get one, I got some all flock. I keep feeders with layer feed for the girls, and feeders with all flock for the boy. I’m lucky, and mine each eat what they’re supposed to. I think it’s instinct.

As far as bins to keep feed in, definitely get something rodents can’t chew threw, and that closes fairly tightly. I ordered some from Amazon that are front open type of hard plastic. They work ok.
I also have one of those bins that people store outdoor cushions in, that I keep extra bags of feed in. (I buy in bulk.)

Extra treats aren’t necessary for youngsters. I never gave ours anything but starter. I wanted them to have all the right nutrition. I know some people do, but if you do, make sure to give the chick grit so they can process it.

Hope all goes well!!

 

[adirondak5]

I fed my chicks Starter/Grower(Purina start & Grow Crumbles) until they were 18 weeks , then I switched to Layer (Purina Layena crumbles) and I also offer oyster shell on the side (free choice). I store my feed in metal trash cans with locking lid . I won't buy more than 50lbs and only when I am about out and I check the mill date on the bag I am buying . Old feed is bad feed IMO , I look for feed that has a mill date of 4 weeks or less than the current date . I do give my 6 pullets scratch 3 to 4 times a week (1 cup only for all 6 of them ) , they love it but its just a snack , their regular layer feed is what I want them to eat the most .

 

[Ridgerunner]

Part of your problem is that you have many different options. There are a lot of different things that can work. My only rule is to not feed growing chickens Layer. The extra calcium in Layer can damage a growing chick's internals.

I'm not sure what your goals are. I assume you want this to be a laying flock when they mature.

My general suggestion is to feed them a fairly high protein feed until they are feathered out, typically 4 to 5 weeks. Say a 18% to 20% protein feed. The calcium content should be around 1%. Layer typically has somewhere closer to 4% calcium.

Then your options kick in. Some people switch to a low calcium Grower, typically about a 16% protein feed after that bag of feed runs out. Doesn't matter if that is four weeks or much later. Others maintain a higher protein feed, 18% to 20% forever. Some people switch to Layer when they start to lay. Others like me never use Layer but offer oyster shell on the side. The ones that need the extra calcium for the egg shells seem to know it. The ones that don't tend to not eat enough to harm themselves.

Many bags of feed have a chart on them that shows when to switch from one type to another. These are set up for the commercial operations that use the hybrid layers and use lights to control when they start to lay. I don't use those hybrids and don't manage the lights so I ignore that chart.

There is some debate on how much the extra calcium in Layer hurts non-laying adults. The effects on growing chicks is well documented. I avoid that by feeding low calcium feed to all of them and offering oyster shell on the side. Another side to it is that one bite won't kill them. It's not how much calcium is in one bite, but how many total grams of calcium they eat in a day, and even that is averaged over several days. If they forage for most of what they eat and the Layer is a small portion of their daily food it won't have the effect of Layer being all they eat. Also, if the hens forage for a lot of what they eat the amount of calcium in what little Layer they eat may not be enough for hard egg shells.

All this can get really confusing so I just offer oyster shell on the side and feed a low calcium feed. That's as simple as I can make it. I like simple.

Do not stockpile feed that much in advance. It loses nutritional value as it ages. I store it in a metal garbage can that rodents cannot chew through. It needs to stay dry. If it gets wet it can mold, which can cause injury or death to your chickens.

If you look on the label of regular chicken feed you will see the analysis. This shows the minimum amount of certain nutrients, usually in percents. You will recognize some of those, protein, fats, fiber, calcium, and such, but a few will look really strange. These are certain amino acids chickens need. Scratch will not have these essential nutrients. If yours forage for a lot of what they eat you've lost control over micromanaging their feed intake, but they will get some of those amino acids from creepy crawlies they catch and eat. But if you are providing practically all they eat you need to keep scratch or other treats to less than 10% of their daily diet, on average. That's to keep them on a balanced diet. You do not need to give them scratch or other treats like kitchen scraps or stuff from a garden, the chicken feed has all the nutrients they need in percentages they need. But many of us like to do that.

 

[Folly's place]

I too like simple, and have birds of different ages, some laying eggs, and some not, and roosters. I feed an all-flock feed (Purina Flock Raiser) to everyone all year, with separate oyster shell for the actively laying hens. Good for all of them, all the time!
Buy fresh! Check the mill date on each bag before purchase, aiming for within four weeks, store it in the original bag in a metal garbage can, and use it up within another month, or a bit longer. Older food isn't better!
Feeds made up of whole grains are tricky, because some birds will select the tastiest bits and not get a balanced diet, not good.
Scratch and other goodies are treats, meant to be offered in smaller quantities. Use them to train your bird to come to you!
Pictures! Post pictures!
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

Having food delivered sounds good, except that you have zero control over it's freshness. Buy it yourself, and check those mill dates, and anything that just seems wrong. Return any opened bags if it's not fresh, moldy, or bug infested. Yuck!
I've never had it happen, but some people have.
Mary

 

[Acre4Me]

Good feed reply above by @Ridgerunner.

we feed a 20% all flock pellet. We supply oyster shell and grit in the side. We also have males in the flock. We feed chicks a crumble feed that is 20-24%, depending on what we buy. We have scratch, but use for the older flock as a way to attract or as a diversion...so, we shake the scratch container and say “chick, chick, chick” to get them to come back into the run after free-ranging a bit.

if chickens are fed anything besides prepared crumble or pellets, they need grit. there is grit that is small for chicks and regular size grit. Grit is usually granite. Oyster shell is not grit.