Chicken Nutrition- What Your Chicken Needs in Its Feed

[gander007]

Most people eat way too much salt, then wonder why they get high blood pressure or swollen feet and legs. But overworking in high heat can lead to sweating out too much salt, resulting in a chemistry imbalance and possible death. Salt is part of a chicken's body chemistry the same as it is for humans. Without it, they will die. Too much and they will also die. A little salt goes a long way. Don't add salt to your chicken feed because it's already in the crumbles or pellets. We make mash and some of our leftovers already have salt, but I sure don't add more. If it's hot, use vitamin and electrolyte water instead. Some brands even have probiotics. Agrilabs brand "Vitamins and Electrolytes Plus" is a real lifesaver is hot weather.

Also dangerous: Soy. After I read the tropical bird study regarding infertility, malaborption, and gut scarring on Dr. Mercola's website, I cut soy from our diet too. I still have TVP for emergencies but won't eat it unless we run out of everything else.

Next topic for debate: feed containing diatomaceous earth. I saw a post on the Ameraucana page of FB from a woman whose mother or mother in law died from eating it over an extended period of time. It shredded her stomach lining. So no more DE for our chickens until this is verified.

I so agree with you as I have lost more birds this summer then I have in the last 15 years here in Death Valley Ca.

 

[idealfriends]

I make my own feed I add all these grains in equal quantity (white corn,yellow corn,wheat grain,Millet grain,scratch) and these are with 10% ratio of major grains (seasame seed,flash seed,rice) and oats half ratio of major grains .
Is these ingredients are ok to feed or not

 

[lazy gardener]

You will need to do a nutritional analysis. I think your mix is very deficient in protein and also lacking other important nutrients.

 

[I Love Layers]

What would everyone recommend feeding a breeding flock of cochins. Currently they are confined to 3×3 areas for 2 birds.

 

[South OH Chicks]

I ration the feed out. I give about 1/2 a cup per bird a day and they lay fine.

 

[6littlegirls]

I feed my chicken steel oats oatmeal and brown rice as a treat. Which they love and because we live in the interior of northern B.C. I crush calcium and vitimin D pills two a day and mix it in. They have oyster shells but they need the D vitimin to retain the calcium.

 

[Rosekitty]

I would love to see that feeder.

 

[junkman56]

how much food should chickens eat in one day, They usually drain my feeders all over the ground is there a way to keep them from doing that ?

I had the same problem. I got a hang feeder so the cant get there feet in it to scratch. This helped

I had the same problem with them scattering feed everywhere, so I made a no waste feeder and let me tell you, it works great, no more feed on the ground.
here is a link to the feeder
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...te-5-gallon-25-feed-bucket-feeder-for-about-3

 

[buff goose guy]

My bantam cochin is having trouble gaining weight.

The vet said that she is perfectly healthy illness wise, but also said that she is very underweight.

I give her a cup 2 cups of food a day, 1/2 cup maintenance feed(pellets) , 1/2 maintenance (crumbles), 1/2 cracked corn, and 1/2 meal worms. She still has not gained any weight.

What should i do?

 

[HARRY47264]

A special treat on a cold Arkansas morning ( 30 degrees this morning) warm oatmeal with milk and little honey and some dried kelp meal. I try to add kelp meal to there food because they don't seem to like it very much, sort of like getting your kids to take there vitamins.
They are sure gobbling it up.
Here is a picture of the feeders I build, they can't spill it all over the place and I can go away for days and they will not run out of feed.They are made of thin wall PVC they can be taken apart for easy cleaning and you don't have to enter the pen to feed.
I also feed a variety of greens all winter they gobble it up like a duck on a Junebug.
I can sprout wheat, barley, kale ,turnip greens, spinach and peas I have a greenhouse
About water in the winter I use 5 Gal food grade buckets with drippers I place a aquarium heater
on the bottom of the bucket (suction cup) cheep at wal mart then you plug it into something called a thermo cube (Amazon) it kicks on at 35 degrees and kicks off at 45 degrees has worked good so far.
Have a wonderful all of you fellow chicken lovers God bless America
Harry