Best starter feed

[Mia1023]

I’m hatching chickens for the first time. I’m on day 15 but I’ve been so focused on making everything perfect for them that I haven’t found a feed. What’s the best feed and how long should I feed it to them?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I feed hatch to hen medicated for at least 4 weeks usually and then turkey grower until they start laying at least. But thise are from a local mill, not sure what's avaliable other places anymore

 

[sdm111]

Since its your first I'd go medicated feed and get a bag of corid to have on hand incase you have a bout of cocci. If you don't already know then research symptoms and what to do. By the time it's apparent you need to move quick that's why to have the medicine on hand

 

[3KillerBs]

Chick starter is both formulated for chicks' nutritional needs AND ground particularly finely to enable them to eat with their tiny bills.

Medicated and unmedicated are usually both available and people use one or the other for many different reasons. I *personally* choose to use the medicated feed because I make no attempt to raise chicks in a sterile environment and believe that this practice gives them an edge in developing their immune system.

It's also possible to use and all-flock crumble. If I were to do so then I'd be sure to have Corrid on hand just in case.

I don't favor any particular brand, choosing whatever is fresh and available at a reasonable price.

 

[Ridgerunner]

What’s the best feed and how long should I feed it to them?

Is there anything special we should know about them? Are they for eggs, meat, eggs and meat, show, or pets? Some of those might do better on a special feeding regimen, especially a few weeks or later after hatch.

If they are to be an egg laying flock (whatever you do with the boys) there are a lot of different ways we approach that. I don't know if your "best" includes any criteria for Organic, non-gmo, or something else and whether cost is a factor. I don't know where in the world you are located or what might be available to you.

If you look at the label on the feed bag you should see an "analysis" that tells you what percentage of certain ingredients are in there. The only two you should be worried about are Calcium and Protein. Chickens should not have a high calcium content feed until they are laying. You are looking for a Calcium content of around 1% until they are laying. Then you can use a feed with around 4% calcium if you wish.

Protein is a real wild card. You can find protein content everywhere from 15% to 20% in feeds recommended for chickens, many people use feeds with an even higher protein content meant for other species. We have a lot of different ways we feed them. I start off with a relatively high protein feed called Starter-Grower, 18% protein, and feed that anywhere from the first 4 to 8 weeks to get them off to a good start and help them feather out faster. When that bag runs out I switch to a 16% protein Grower. They basically stay on that for the rest of their lives with oyster shell offered on the side for the hens that need the extra calcium for egg shells.

Others start them off on a higher protein content feed and leave them on that the rest of their lives. Others switch them to a higher calcium content Layer feed when they start to lay. I've seen Layer feed have 16% or 18% protein content. The terms Starter, Grower, Layer and such are more marketing names and can have varying protein content. I consider the information in the label more important than a marketing name. There are other marketing names like All-Flock or Flock Raiser out there too. These are typically a higher protein feed and may be used at any stage or all stages of their life. You may see Developer or Finisher. These are typically lower protein content and are sometimes fed between Starter and Layer to slow their growth in their puberty years. Their bones and internals will develop as they should but the overall final body size won't be as large. Some of us prefer that instead of growing them as large as we can.

If you feed them treats you are changing the balance of nutrients in their feed. A general recommendation is to limit treats to 10% of their diet so they still maintain a balanced diet. If you let them forage much you lost all ability to micromanage what they eat. They will determine that.

Ground commercial feed comes in three forms: Mash, Crumble, and Pellets. They gather all ingredients and grind them to a powder. This is Mash and is often served as a damp paste. To make pellets they add water to Mash to form a paste, then extrude it through a die and flash dry it. To make Crumble they partially crush the Pellets. You want either Mash or Crumbles for younger chicks, the pellets are too big for them to eat. The main reason they have the three different forms is that different automatic feeders work best with certain forms.

Some people use medicated feed. I'd want to know what medicine is in the medicated feed before I discussed it much. I choose to not use medicated feed, I find it unnecessary. For some people it is a good choice.

Probably a lot more than you wanted. I think you will find that "best" is going to depend on the person, their goals, their experiences, and a lot of personal preference.