The breeds I've decided on for meat birds I'm thinking now might be harmed by to much protein after reading these comments. Jersey Giants and Langshans. I was thinking back to when I first became a BYC member and someone on the upstate NY thread posted pics of her new great dane puppy. I commented that I had had a boxer and fed him high protein large breed Eukanuba (pre wife and fam days I survived on ramen noodles and beer Lol) and he ended up ten pounds heavier and much more filled out than his two brothers that my friends had and fed cheap dog food. She said it was the worst thing you could do to a great dane, they needed a low protein diet, a special diet to help them grow slow, or they have all sorts of health issues. I looked it up and she was right. Now I'm thinking these giant birds might need the same idea being they take a long time to mature??
These are things that you have to sort out for yourself. You cannot go by what other people do on this. You can only use it as a starting place. You have to get to know your own birds, and evaluate them for yourself.
There are breed relevant concerns, but I have never heard of anything like that with the breeds you have chosen. Malays are an example. If fed too high of a protein feed they get too big for their legs too soon, and develop leg problems. There are more, but the point is that you have to know your own birds. % of protein except when they are deprived will not affect the final size, though it will affect the size early on in their lives.
If your birds are hatchery, they will be much different than the typical Standard bred Langshans and Giants. There will be a huge difference. If they are Standard bred, talk to the breeder (not propagator). Ask them what they do, but ask them why. The why matters more than the what. Then think for yourself as you move forward.
If you take one batch and feed them 24%, and then feed another batch of genetically similar birds (same breed and strain), and fed them 20% . . . . assuming all else is equal on the feed . . . . what you will see is a difference between the two at eight weeks. By twelve weeks there will still be a difference, but the % difference will be smaller. By 20 wks. you will see the average getting pretty close to the same. By 32 wks. there will not be a difference between them that you can tell.
Now genetics plays a part so they will not be precisely the same. Who knows which batch the runt is in etc. Which batch has the largest bird? You would have to do a thousand birds to get it precise. You know how statistics and averages work. BUT . . . if you are observant, you will be able to interpret the results, and you will see that the trend is that the 20% birds catch up with the 24% birds. The size of the bird has little to do with it, because they eat an appropriate amount more feed. Their genetic rate of growth seams to make more of a difference.
I have done this, and I have done this more than once. I have watched it play out in front of me more than once. The numbers are for illustration, but you will find that the trend is there.
The only reason that I feed 24% up to eight weeks is that it helps them "get feathered". Then this habit started when I was hatching earlier in the year. I was pushing them out of the brooder box. The biggest difference is seen in the first 8wks. Then the difference is gradually smaller and barely recognizable by the time they are at the end of their growth curve.
My experience is that the birds that were genetically predisposed to grow slower, benefited the least from higher protein feeds. Ironically, the smaller lighter birds saw the biggest gains. They also tended to lay too early.
When they are ranging, and you are feeding them 24%, they are not eating 24%. Even 20% clover is half water. Grass is usually less, and sometimes much less.
What you want to accomplish with these birds has a lot to do with how you manage them. You are the manager. Either you manage them well, or you do not manage them well. They belong to you, and you want them to do a particular thing. They are limited by their genetic potential. You want them to reach their genetic potential. You also have to manage the costs. Is the results worth this or that. Can they reach their genetic potential without the extras?
The extras are often more about what makes us feel good rather than actual results. Numbers do not lie, but our emotions will. Mine lie to me all of the time.
There is a tendency to try to compensate for genetic deficiencies with what we can do.
24% protein will not hurt your birds. It is not enough to hurt them while they are growing. It is up to you to realize at what point the extra protein is becoming a waste. They get to a point where they cannot use it all, and there is a place where it is not a benefit to you. Where is that? That is a place for you to find.
Protein has a pushing effect when they are growing. The younger they are, the more affect that it has. Learn your birds growth curve, and you will be able to make better decisions. There is no benefit in pushing pullets. You do not want to delay them. Point of lay does matter, but you are better off with them laying a week later than earlier. For one, their egg size will be bigger sooner. For another they are still growing at this age. They will grow less laying, than they will not laying.
Once you get settled in, and your devoted to a single breed, you try to improve them and your methods from year to year. You get to know them pretty intimately. You find your own methods and your own rhythm. Then you will be telling people what you do and why. If you are observant, you will have something of value to contribute. All of these different perspectives are helpful. If we keep it in perspective. We all have different goals, and different birds. Except for extremes, and they are out there, no one is right or wrong. The numbers do not lie though. The condition of your birds will not lie either. If the numbers make sense, and the birds are in good condition, then you have managed them well.
