Can I use pigeon mix to feed my chickens?

[Garden Betty]

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I have a Barred Rock, Cochin, and Easter Egger. Do you suggest 70% mash, crumble or pellet because of the nutrient content in these feeds?

The whole grains won't be my birds' only diet. They free-range in my yard most afternoons and I give them garden greens, kitchen scraps, and yogurt as well. Not every day, but a few times a week in addition to the crumbles they're eating now.

 

[Chris09]

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It is the ability to possess all nutrition from a whole grain compared to a ground grain. Feeding too much whole grains to soft feather fowl tends to "harden" the feathers and making them more brittle and fray easily. Where the feather structure of a hard feather breed are stronger and the feathers tend not to get brittle or fray as easily, also the hard feather breeds tend to have a better ability to possess whole grains.

Chris

 

[kidcody]

I've been feeding a pigeon mix feed for many years as a treat, never as a complete feed. They love it!

 

[Garden Betty]

Quote:
It is the ability to possess all nutrition from a whole grain compared to a ground grain. Feeding too much whole grains to soft feather fowl tends to "harden" the feathers and making them more brittle and fray easily. Where the feather structure of a hard feather breed are stronger and the feathers tend not to get brittle or fray as easily, also the hard feather breeds tend to have a better ability to possess whole grains.

Chris

Hmm, interesting. Never heard of that before...

 

[justafeedboy]

I fed pigeon feed and a 20 % Layer crumb feed, I balanced it using Pearson's square. I found in my own experience it gave my birds more choices, and for me it led to a mess. They picked their favorites, threw what they didn't want everywhere. Overall my egg production lagged for the 6 weeks. The time frame I fed it was summer time. I only fed it to use up the pigeon feed I had. Before chickens I had anywhere between 14-80 pigeons depending on what was going on. I would much rather feed a pellet or a crumble and know it is balanced and complete rather than trying to re invent the wheel. I now have peas, wheat, milo, corn and other grains growing in my compost. I am hoping winter and complete composting kills the plants. I think it is something one must try to see if it works for you. I know every one wants the best for their birds and what works for someone may not be the best for everyone.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

I would much rather feed a pellet or a crumble and know it is balanced and complete rather than trying to re invent the wheel.

That makes the most sense.
Pigeon feed tends to be a LOT more expensive than layer pellets​

 

[Garden Betty]

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I hear ya. I'm gonna give it a try and see how the ladies like 'em. They get plenty of other food besides crumbles at the moment (forage finds, kitchen scraps) so I think the whole grains will balance it all out. Not too much or too little of one or the other.

Interesting that you say:

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Aren't pellets and crumbles reinventing the wheel? Reinvention is how we figure out new and improved ways of doing things.

 

[TN_BIRD]

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I hear ya. I'm gonna give it a try and see how the ladies like 'em. They get plenty of other food besides crumbles at the moment (forage finds, kitchen scraps) so I think the whole grains will balance it all out. Not too much or too little of one or the other.

Interesting that you say:

Quote:
Aren't pellets and crumbles reinventing the wheel? Reinvention is how we figure out new and improved ways of doing things.

I (can't speak for everybody, but something tells me almost everybody else is in the same club as me) didn't invent or reinvent anything.

I'm taking the comment justafeedboy made to mean that he was like me and wasn't an inventor either. So rather than work through a whole bunch of recipes trying to find a well-balanced diet, he could rely on the folks and the products that are already on the market. And for the record, I think they do adjust their recipes every once in a while (didn't the folks at Purina just roll out some new feed and how long ago was it that they made the no animal protein shift?

 

[elmo]

Pigeons don't pump out eggs the way (hopefully) laying hens do, so it doesn't seem to me that the same diet would do well for both. Certainly, laying hens need more calcium so you would need to supplement for that.

 

[Chris09]

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They would have to use a Vit./Min. mix to supplement the lack of Vitamins and minerals.

Too many people forget or don't know that by feeding a all grain or high grin diet they increase a higher risk of vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) deficiency since most grains are deficient in vitamin B2.


Chris