Can they do good with just free ranging and snacks

[coledabomb]

Ps. He Was correct telling you to feed them an unlimited amount. (Except for maybe the cornishX). But he was wrong about mixing the scratch and all-flock together. I do understand its confusing right now, & you may not be sure who to listen to. You can research more info on byc if you arent sure. Thats the very best way to learn!

Thank you I trust the byc more than some guy at a feed store

 

[Painted Calls]

As almost everyone else has said... Do not mix. Scratch grains are a treat and should make up no more than 10% of their diet. Offer free choice crumbles and oyster shell.

 

[Chicalina]

I kno i jumped your ass on the other post but that’s exactly what i do; i have a trough available 24/7, that i blend 50 lb all flock & 50 lb scratch grain.. i have 12 laying hens & 2 roos.

the 6 ducks get a 50 lb all flock & 25 lb scratch grain in there trough

the 5 pullets get 50 lb chick feed & the other 25 lb scratch in theres

100 lbs lasts me right at 5 wks for the chickens
75 lbs lasts right at a month for the ducks
75 lb for pullet lasts 2- 2.5 months, they dont eat as much as the adults

that equivalates very close to the 1/4 lb per day per bird formula on chickens, and the almost 1/2 lb per day per duck

@jus10inla I know everyone has their opinion and way of doing things, but you do realise that you are just upping the carbs and reducing the protein with this feed mixture? Your birds health, laying ability, feather growing, immunity, etc will be affected. They are likely to get both overweight and be undernourished in the long term.

Just my opinion.

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

I kno i jumped your ass on the other post but that’s exactly what i do; i have a trough available 24/7, that i blend 50 lb all flock & 50 lb scratch grain.. i have 12 laying hens & 2 roos.

the 6 ducks get a 50 lb all flock & 25 lb scratch grain in there trough

the 5 pullets get 50 lb chick feed & the other 25 lb scratch in theres

100 lbs lasts me right at 5 wks for the chickens
75 lbs lasts right at a month for the ducks
75 lb for pullet lasts 2- 2.5 months, they dont eat as much as the adults

that equivalates very close to the 1/4 lb per day per bird formula on chickens, and the almost 1/2 lb per day per duck

@jus10inla I know everyone has their opinion and way of doing things, but you do realise that you are just upping the carbs and reducing the protein with this feed mixture? Your birds health, laying ability, feather growing, immunity, etc will be affected. They are likely to get both overweight and be undernourished in the long term.

Just my opinion.

And plus, @coledabomb s flock has eaten nothing but things like "watermelon and oatmeal", plus whatever they found "while free-ranging in the yard" since they were wee chicks. They are likely undernourished & small for their ages and breeds, even for bantams.

 

[Chicalina]

And plus, @coledabomb s flock has eaten nothing but things like "watermelon and oatmeal", plus whatever they found "while free-ranging in the yard" since they were wee chicks. They are likely undernourished & small for their ages and breeds, even for bantams.

That is a very good point.

At the risk of complicating things, while we seem to have the long term diet advice sorted, they may benefit from a short term protein boost to get them into good health and appropriate growth catchup quicker.

You can do this by feeding small amounts of scrambled egg, fish, meat, soy, legumes etc once a day as a short term protein booster.

OP, perhaps if you post some pics then people can advise better on how their condition looks.

 

[coledabomb]

That is a very good point.

At the risk of complicating things, while we seem to have the long term diet advice sorted, they may benefit from a short term protein boost to get them into good health and appropriate growth catchup quicker.

You can do this by feeding small amounts of scrambled egg, fish, meat, soy, legumes etc once a day as a short term protein booster.

OP, perhaps if you post some pics then people can advise better on how their condition looks.

I already did that I feed them eggs every once and a while I just wanted them to have as many food experiences as possible

 

[coledabomb]

I already did that I feed them eggs every once and a while I just wanted them to have as many food experiences as possible

This was them a few days ago

 

[Painted Calls]

You are the one with the oriental gamey looking CX. Now hearing your story and seeing the rest of your flock makes sense. They are quite malnourished and have been quite stunted by it.

Love them all. Thank you for taking the advice and getting them what they need. I'm glad you came here and signed up. Your birds will be too.

As a side note - If you get rid of one of those cockerels, you probably wouldn't need the hen saddles.

 

[coledabomb]

You are the one with the oriental gamey looking CX. Now hearing your story and seeing the rest of your flock makes sense. They are quite malnourished and have been quite stunted by it.

Love them all. Thank you for taking the advice and getting them what they need. I'm glad you came here and signed up. Your birds will be too.

As a side note - If you get rid of one of those cockerels, you probably wouldn't need the hen saddles.

The Cochins were the first chicks I got my attachment to these chickens are unreal the hens don’t mind it and it also discourages the guys from mating because I don’t see it very often anymore

 

[Chicalina]

Thanks for the pics, very helpful. To me, the pullets/hens especially look very scrawny, underweight and in poor body condition. The roosters less so.

I'm sure you'll fix that now you've got all the right information and you'll really see the difference in a couple of months.