Chickens aren't eating their feed.

[HennaRose]

Sorry in advance that this is practically a novel.

Guys, my girls aren't eating their feed. Or not much of it, anyway. Since Bianca(Leghorn) died (longish story, will explain below) my remaining three girls seem to only be eating about a third of what I put out there every morning, which is approximately a cup and a half of food. When Bianca was out there, I was putting out two cups a day and it was always all gone by nightfall. Surely one hen wasn’t eating 14 ounces of feed a day by herself, in addition to all the greens, grass, weeds, and bugs I give them! (Before anyone asks, I’ve tried free-feeding from three different kinds of feeder, but the feed always rots in the container thanks to the humidity. I have to put food out daily for them.)

Rosie(RIR) and Matilda(Australorp) are laying every day to every other day. Sophie(EE)asn’t laid in two weeks (will also explain below). Bianca died one week ago. I’m still giving them the usual amount of everything they were getting before. Nobody appears to be ill or injured, their behavior appears normal. They rush me for produce and greens and will gobble them up in a second like they always did before, but their feed d

Right, dead chicken. Bianca was in confinement inside due to bullying. I was working on an outdoor confinement coop and one day while I was working on it my four-year-old went inside and figured out how to climb the baby gate in the hall and unlock my bedroom door, and she got into my bathroom and let the chicken out. I found the bird in the hallway paralyzed and panting when I went inside, and one of the dogs jumping back and forth over the gate. I put the bird back in the bathroom so she could have quiet to recover, but she didn't make it. I didn't see any injuries and she hadn't been ill before confinement, so I suspect the dog gave her a heart attack. That was last Friday.

Also non-laying hen. I suspect aftereffects from stress. Two weeks ago, or so, Bianca had pecked Sophie and Matilda both, and there was some playing musical chicken while I figured out how to simultaneously confine the bully, convalesce the injured birds away from the remaining non-injured one, and prep the brooder for the arrival of a new batch of babies just days after that incident. During all this, Sophie's foot developed bumblefoot and that required surgery and convalescence for a few more days. Now the flock is down a hen, and I'm sure that's just piling on the stress.

 

[City farm]

You would think a chicken had no stress, but they do.. Don't panic.. Give them their favorite treat's.. Meal worms, watermelon, cheese.. Bully's make everyone flee.. Just keep your dog close by you not the chicken's. Everyone likes chicken for dinner.. or your dog was just playing? Who knows.. Your chickens will be happier with more room.. We set up area's with wood pieces for crickets to live, then move them once a week or so.. Make sure you worm your chciken's at least 1-2 a year.. Bug's are a host for round worm.. We just lost a favorite hen to round worm's.. Keep us posted.

 

[centrarchid]

Discard current bag of feed and get a smaller fresh bag. Treats would mask something being wrong with current bag of feed.

 

[KayTee]

You could also try making up their feed into a mash - just add a bit of water to it.

I went through a similar situation a while back - feed consumption dropped dramatically and I started to worry a bit. I made it into mash, and they literally wolfed it down! I now make certain that they have a bowl of dry food available 24/7, but I make mash twice a day and put it out in bowls around the garden. It disappears pretty quickly!

 

[HennaRose]

I mix their feed myself once a month an store it inside in a bug-proof container. They get a seed and grain mix put together for proper protein, plus free-choice oyster shell, grit, and plants regularly and mealworms and sunflower seeds occasionally. (Sorry, should have put that in the first post.)

 

[centrarchid]

I mix their feed myself once a month an store it inside in a bug-proof container. They get a seed and grain mix put together for proper protein, plus free-choice oyster shell, grit, and plants regularly and mealworms and sunflower seeds occasionally. (Sorry, should have put that in the first post.)

Unless you can offer a sound formulation behind the feed you mix, I will not be confident in the nutritional quality of the feed applied. I am a nutritionist that specializes in animals. When feed intake drops off in the absence of obvious ailments, the first thing I look for is something wrong with the feed. It can either go bad or the formulation is not complete or rarely has too much of something in it. Your seed and grain mix might be a we shy on a vitamin or two. Are you also using a vitamin and / or mineral premix?


You might a also might have an ingredient that has gone bad.

 

[HennaRose]

At present their feed mix includes red wheat, oats, flax seed, sesame seed, buckwheat, millet, split peas, red and French lentils, barley, and amaranth. I put the mix together from varying recipes that others have successfully used for chickens and I was mostly concerned about protein amount - this feed has 17% protein, but I haven't been as thorough in researching other nutrients since they also forage for bugs and plants in addition to what I give them. Is there a vitamin/mineral premix you would suggest?

I buy and mix feed ingredients as they run out - at the moment that's about once a month, but once the babies are old enough to switch from starter/grower to this it'll be more often. (Those chicks hatched Aug 10, so they're 12 days old; I figure it'll be a few months at least before I start to transition them to this mix.) I wash the feed container between batches and I haven't noticed any mold or rancid smells from that. The feed mix is stored in the air-conditioned house to prevent rot and bugs; I used to keep it in a feeder in the run, but it kept going bad from the humidity and I didn't want to keep wasting time and money on new feed every week. They get fresh feed daily; whatever they spill or don't eat, I'll toss around the run and sometimes they eat it, sometimes they wait for it to sprout and then eat the sprouts.

 

[centrarchid]

At present their feed mix includes red wheat, oats, flax seed, sesame seed, buckwheat, millet, split peas, red and French lentils, barley, and amaranth. I put the mix together from varying recipes that others have successfully used for chickens and I was mostly concerned about protein amount - this feed has 17% protein, but I haven't been as thorough in researching other nutrients since they also forage for bugs and plants in addition to what I give them. Is there a vitamin/mineral premix you would suggest?

I buy and mix feed ingredients as they run out - at the moment that's about once a month, but once the babies are old enough to switch from starter/grower to this it'll be more often. (Those chicks hatched Aug 10, so they're 12 days old; I figure it'll be a few months at least before I start to transition them to this mix.) I wash the feed container between batches and I haven't noticed any mold or rancid smells from that. The feed mix is stored in the air-conditioned house to prevent rot and bugs; I used to keep it in a feeder in the run, but it kept going bad from the humidity and I didn't want to keep wasting time and money on new feed every week. They get fresh feed daily; whatever they spill or don't eat, I'll toss around the run and sometimes they eat it, sometimes they wait for it to sprout and then eat the sprouts.

Ask your local feed mill to see if they have vitamin and mineral premixes. I am not in loop for commercially available as make them myself or have them made custom by operations such as Purina. Cost going my route is prohibitive for single backyard needs. I will look around to see what is sold in smaller lots.

 

[HennaRose]

Well, of course they swarm the feeder and eat like they're starving this morning when I bring out the feed scoop. Freakin' chickens...