Blue Seal Egg Maker

[enggass]

I want to use Crumbles for my birds going forward - they like it... I currently am using Blue Seal Feeds Organic Grower Crumbles. The only Crumble they make for Layers is called Egg Maker which has higher protein, around 18%. It is supposed to promote laying and egg size... It reads:

>>A specifically designed poultry feed to maximize egg production and egg size. It is recommended for small commercial operators who have a significant number of birds, sell eggs retail, and measure rate of lay and egg size. This formula is high-protein with increased methionine.<<

Is this OK to use for a backyard chicken guy like me? or are there drawbacks to this. I want to treat my birdies the best I can. I do not need mega egg production, but I do want to use crumbles. Blue Seal's other Layer feed only comes in Mash and Pellets.

Feedback please?
Thanks.
Steve

 

[Chickie'sMoma]

i haven't had an issue with it yet! i tried to switch over to the pellets and found my birds would kick it out of the feeder looking for the crumbles! probably more mess than the pellets but the birds will still forage and clean up their mess as the day goes on and the group around the feeder gets thicker!

eta: o, and the crumbles are quicker for the birds to break down in their bodies and that is why it says it will make them produce better. for my bantams i felt crumbles were better suited to their size anyways!

 

[keesmom]

Mine have done fine on it. They don't like pellets and make a mess with the mash. so crumbles it is!

 

[enggass]

Thanks. So both of you are using the Blue Seal 'Egg Maker' feed?
The 18% protein is OK?

 

[keesmom]

It's fine. I've used feed with higher protein than that (even 22%) with no ill effects.

 

[verlaj]

I buy Blue Seal Layer Crumbles - not the Egg Maker. Blue Seal does make it in crumbles, but you may have to ask your supplier to order it for you. My feed supplier tells me I am the only customer that wants the crumbles instead of pellets.

 

[enggass]

Someone else told me that, but my supplier only has the Mash and Pellets. The Blue Seal website also only list it as having Mash and Pellets: http://www.blueseal.com/livestock/poultry/

 

[verlaj]

That's weird, because my Blue Seal Layer is labeled "Crumbles." Unless they discontinued it since my last purchase....

ETA - I followed your link and they say Grower Cal is only in mash or pellets - and I just bought 2 bags of Grower Cal crumbles!

 

[enggass]

In my store that is the case as well. Grower Cal is only available to me in Mash or Pellets.
The only Crumbles I can get are the Organic Life Grower, then the Egg Maker Layer...
Does anyone else here have any feedback on this?

 

[GardenerGal]

I sometimes alternate the Blue Seal Egg Maker Crumbles with pellets, as the crumbles look more like scratch grain and the chooks tend to avoid pellets unless there is nothing else.

Blue Seal seems to be going through some changes in its marketing strategy, including the names it gives the products. My feed store had the crumbles listed as "all-purpose poultry" feed, and "egg maker" for the crumbles, and the clerks sometimes thought they didn't have any crumbles because they couldn't find a name that included "crumbles" in it.

It's part of the "Home Fresh" product line for backyard flocks, and Blue Seal is focusing on the typical American family with backyard poultry to sell this feed by the sack. For commercial farms they have huge bulk quantity sales, not single-bag ones.