most birds can be tamed down with time..you just have to spend alot of it with them...they actually come up to me at the gates and wait for me to walk in..sometimes im afraid they will get out..you know...little bugers are fast...feel free and post pics of your birds...not sure if i posted these on here already but i got some new birds that were not so tame last week and boom after about a week they are already eating out of my hand...so just work with them....my key is that i feed them there regular stuff in their containers and then once a day i go out there with sunflower seeds and feed them straight from my hand...the new ones that dont know you ...you have to throw some on the ground and get it closer and closer until they are eating out of your hand...see the new ones are still sceptical when i get up so they run off...the other ones however just pile on in and get them seeds...hope you peeps like the pics...
If you build it they will come..inside and outer small walls complete with 2by4 inch wire netting...im putting smaller netting towards the bottom...and not sure what im going to do for a temp wall on the bottoms...prolly just plywood
we are supposed to get snow tommarow...so ill be building snowmen while i work...gotta put all the snow down for santa...you know...maybe he will drop me some elfs to do the work for me...lol
Thanks beverly, you're really helpfulSorry, forgot to answer what you asked. Any feed will ferment and all it takes is to cover the feed with water, (any water,) when it is all absorbed add enough to have a wet mortar consistancy, (not runny,) stir a couple of times a day for 3-4 days, (less if warm weather or more if cold, but not a consideration if done inside where it is warm,) and voila you have ff! To make it happen over nite you cheat and use apple cider vinegar with the mother in it, kefir, kombucha, or one of the many starters they have on the market. I prefer to let nature do it. You make enough to last several days and when it gets low, like one feeding left, you add water, stir it up real good and add new feed. No need to add anything as the probiotics and good bacteria in the remains of the original batch are enough to ferment the new. Most feed enough in the AM for them to finish in a morning and then feed them half that much at nite before they go to bed. If they free range and get other nourishment, otherwise give more. They let you know. I personally mix steamed or rolled oats, half and half with layer feed, then add about a quart of black oil sunflower seeds and scratch for good measure. In the winter I also add alfalfa, about 1/4 of the total, as there is nothing green in my yard for them. BTW I only have 30 chickens and 10 0f those are growouts and bantams. The amount of work involved depends on how many chickens you have. How many do you have? Hope this helps. It is really simple, don't make it complicated and it will work for you.
