can chickens live off scraps and free range forging?

[MrsLahman]

I have 1.5 month-old chickens I let free range 6+ hrs a day plus give them vegetable scraps and scratch (mixed and handfulls of oatmeal) everyday and they seem to not be eating much feed (only over night). I would LOVE to get them off feed in the summer months to save money. Does anyone have experience feeding this way? How do you do it?

They have ample space and I get scraps from my house and a resturant.. I just want to make sure they are getting all the nutrience they need. Are there things I need to watch for malnutrietion? I see they get diarhea every now and then but they're happy and growing!

Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[Quail Keeper]

Yes, it would be possible for a chicken to live off of free-ranging and food scraps, but, is it healthier to raise them on different feeds? Yes. A chicken naturally comes from the wild where it forages but over the years, their bodies have changed where they need some substituted feeds such as scratch and crumbles, etc.I would suggest you feed them substituted feeds every other day or so to keep them up in tip top shape. Hope this helps.

 

[what did I do]

I would feed about a cup of grains for your 6 birds (you do have 6 right) . That should cut down on feed and complete the diet.

 

[Judy]

It's normal to see runny poops from time to time. You will most likely see them in hot weather, simply from drinking extra water to cool off.

They should stop eating at night soon, or when they are a little older. Do you have any sort of light in the coop? They do better without one once they are that age as they sleep more soundly. My mature flock never eats after dark.

Mine are confined to a large yard with some vegetation, and eat a lot less feed in the summer, but they do eat some. Really, the answer to your question depends on the quality of their forage, which of course would be very difficult for you to assess, taking into account the various vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. Most people find they prefer to forage and will eat feed only if they can't find enough good forage. It's probably optimum to continue to provide feed, just in case.

In the "old days" in my area, chickens were fed table scraps and maybe a little cracked corn, only. Some locals still consider cracked corn to be "chicken feed." Experiments have been done that show they may survive on this diet but may not grow as large, live as long, or be as healthy as those that have feed available. So, in the end, I wouldn't stop providing feed unless they completely stopped eating it. But then, that's just one person's opinion.

 

[VirtueChick]

I'm me to the community & appreciate the thoroughness of the answers provided. .. thank you!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Like Flockwatcher said, it depends on the quality of the forage. Different grasses and weeds, grass and weed seeds, rotting vegetation, all sorts of creepy crawlies, maybe fresh cow and horse manure. It depends on the season too. Winter can be rough in some climates, though someone on here that I really trust had chickens survive totally free range in winter up near the Canadian border.

What you are talking about is how a whole lot of farmers raised chickens for thousands of years. Those chickens were not pets and were not taken to county fairs to compete in being pretty. They were not obese things waddling around but stayed in shape chasing grasshoppers. Their feathers were not always sleek and shiny but could look a bit rough. They may not lay a Grade A Large egg every day, but they provided enough eggs and meat to really help feed the family. And during most of the season they cost absolutely nothing to feed. How efficient can you get, even if every hen is not laying a large egg every day?

Most of us don’t have that quality of forage or even have the ability to free range at all. We have to buy feed to supplement what they eat. But if yours can forage and the quality of forage is decent, you can reduce your feed bill a bunch.