Best Feed and When to Start Babies on Adult Feed

[Acre4Me]

Agree with others: freshness does rank high on buying feed. Always check the label for the mill date. Try to get it as fresh as possible.

also, store the feed in a protected area-not in direct sun, not exposed to rain. We store ours in an un-insulated barn in metal cans. We put one feed bag into the can, we do not dump the feed into the can, we leave it in the bag. So, it is exposed to the ambient humidity and cold,but it is always in the shade, so temperature fluctuations are gradual, and we do not experience moisture buildup in the can.

An adult bird will eat (on average) 1/4 lb of feed per day. So, 9 adult birds will eat 2.25lbs a day, approximately. So, you will get 20 days, or so, from a 50# bag of feed. You will go through feed faster if rodents are able to access your feed.

 

[ShianRainDrop]

Wow, you are all soooo incredibly helpful! I am sooo glad I found this site and joined! Hopefully with all of the awesome advice, I'll be a good chicken mommy in the end. I've been feeding Dumor Chick starter but now I need to look and see the protein and calcium levels in it. It seems like those are the two most important ingredients to keep an eye on depending on their age.

I also love this statement from @Ridgerunner and I totally agree!

"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."

I'm assuming the oyster shell is for the calcium and digestion?

 

[Folly's place]

The oyster shell is for laying hens, who use a lot in each egg shell. There's enough calcium in standard feeds for everyone else. Grit is different, it's small rocks that birds eat, and then hold in their gizzard, to grind up the food. Chicks eating starter feed ONLY don't need grit yet. Any other items in their diet, then offer grit, and adult birds need it all the time. If they can free range in areas that have gravel of various sizes, that works for them. It's very cheap to buy, so offering it all the time isn't a bad idea.
Mary

 

[Spicegirlfam]

So what exact age should I start feeding my adult feet?

 

[Folly's place]

I feed Flock Raiser to everyone, all ages, so don't use chick feed. There's always oyster shell in a separate container for the actively laying hens.
Feet aren't good eats! (Sorry!)
If you are feeding a medicated chick starter, they can transition to something else after they've been in your coop and on your ground for a couple of weeks, so they've met your coccidia and have some immunity.
Then, pick a diet that's fresh, by mill date, at your feed stores, and proceed.
Layer feed is meant for actively laying small breed hens who eat nothing else, and not for big birds having other choices, roosters, or birds not actively laying eggs.
Mary

 

[Spicegirlfam]

For a fun treat for you chickens to scratch around for is song bird feed mix. I give my chickens it and they looove it! it also has some good nutrition values. I honistly don’t know to much about it but the chickens love it!

 

[Doc7]

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?

I also wouldn’t give layer feed.



I use Purina flock raiser Mostly but I will purchase Any major brand that has the latest manufacture date when I go to the store (tractor supply).


The way I figure, more than half the year:
- you have chicks
- you have hens not laying due to daylight hours
- you have hens not laying due to molt (and this can be months and months of the year if you look at all the times any single hen is molting)
- You have a broody
- You might have a roo

I just see no reason to buy layer feed when any given day one of these factors could be impacting the flock and layer feed would negatively impact at least one bird. This is why I don’t even consider any feed but the most recent mill date Flock Raiser (any brand) with a can of oyster shell always present.

 

[Doc7]

I use Purina flock raiser Mostly but I will purchase Any major brand that has the latest manufacture date when I go to the store (tractor supply).


The way I figure, more than half the year:
- you have chicks
- you have hens not laying due to daylight hours
- you have hens not laying due to molt (and this can be months and months of the year if you look at all the times any single hen is molting)
- You have a broody
- You might have a roo

I just see no reason to buy layer feed when any given day one of these factors could be impacting the flock and layer feed would negatively impact at least one bird. This is why I don’t even consider any feed but the most recent mill date Flock Raiser (any brand) with a can of oyster shell always present