Chickens eating all the food within first two hours

[littlecoopnextdoor]

I feed my two chickens 1.5 cups of 18% moistened crumble first thing in the morning when they come out. I also have a small container of extra crumble to munch on in the run as well, about a cup. The girls have about 1/2 hr supervised free range time but otherwise are in their run while I'm at work. I also give them a hefty handful of dandelions, greens etcI get home in the afternoon for them to scratch through, and about a tbsp of mealworm/seeds mix. They eat the crumble so fast, usually within two hours, even the extra dry free choice. Should I give them even more? I read that chickens don't overeat but I feel like they'll just keep eating if I bring them more, ha! They also get a ton of worms in their free range adventures. Thanks!

 

[Shadrach]

I feed my two chickens 1.5 cups of 18% moistened crumble first thing in the morning when they come out. I also have a small container of extra crumble to munch on in the run as well, about a cup. The girls have about 1/2 hr supervised free range time but otherwise are in their run while I'm at work. I also give them a hefty handful of dandelions, greens etcI get home in the afternoon for them to scratch through, and about a tbsp of mealworm/seeds mix. They eat the crumble so fast, usually within two hours, even the extra dry free choice. Should I give them even more? I read that chickens don't overeat but I feel like they'll just keep eating if I bring them more, ha! They also get a ton of worms in their free range adventures. Thanks!

If we could deal with a weighed quantity it would help.
However, taking a cup as 200 grams (7 ounces. Is your cup 7 ounces?) and you give one and a half cups, then you are giving 11.5 ounces (300 grams)

Next, the weight/size of your chickens has a bearing on how much they will eat.
What breed are your chickens?
How much is a ton of worms? A ton is a weight and if your chickens are eating a ton of worms then there is something definitely wrong here.

A large breed can eat 150 grams per day, plus forage if they have access to some. You could be 150 grams short of commercial feed if you have large breed/s.

Bored chickens may overeat.
Weigh what you feed them and then make another assessment of their consumption.
Many people who keep confined chickens leave feed available at all times.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

@Shadrach thanks for the generous reply. I just weighed the 1.5 cups of food and it is 200grams of this new crumble for the morning feed as well as the approx 80g additional free choice. And now I see that perhaps this food weighs less than the first bag of layer I had (this is starter 18% as I have chicks coming next week) so I think they need more food! I have only noticed it since I switched food last week so I will make sure to get it up to 400g and see if they leave any and adjust as needed. I'll monitor this week.

I have one cuckoo marans and one blue star. I hope they aren't bored! I try and give them lots to do when I can't hang out with them (I spend a lot of time with them when I'm home ) and I gave them a big bucket of fresh mulch to dig through.

I don't want to leave food out at all times as they neighbours have had rats in the past and I do not want to ever encourage visits again, it was very stressful.

Thank you Shadrach, I will up the food and hopefully all is well

and re the worms, hyperbolic me they get about 5 worms

 

[Shadrach]

@Shadrach thanks for the generous reply. I just weighed the 1.5 cups of food and it is 200grams of this new crumble for the morning feed as well as the approx 80g additional free choice. And now I see that perhaps this food weighs less than the first bag of layer I had (this is starter 18% as I have chicks coming next week) so I think they need more food! I have only noticed it since I switched food last week so I will make sure to get it up to 400g and see if they leave any and adjust as needed. I'll monitor this week.

I have one cuckoo marans and one blue star. I hope they aren't bored! I try and give them lots to do when I can't hang out with them (I spend a lot of time with them when I'm home ) and I gave them a big bucket of fresh mulch to dig through.

I don't want to leave food out at all times as they neighbours have had rats in the past and I do not want to ever encourage visits again, it was very stressful.

Thank you Shadrach, I will up the food and hopefully all is well

and re the worms, hyperbolic me they get about 5 worms

I appreciate the rat problem.
Once you've got accurate measurements I would suggest you split the feed into two and give half in the morning and half an hour or so before they go to roost if that's practical for you.
Going to roost with a full crop is more important than feeling full up during the day as the chickens digestive system doesn't slow down over night so they need the nutrition while they roost.
Both those are quite large breeds so 150 grams a day might not be far off what they need.
You do mention forage but you also mention it may only be half an hour. They won't get a great deal of nutrition during half an hours forage unless you have particulalry rich pickings for them. The excercise they get through being out and about is far more important.

 

[SueT]

You also may have wild birds and rodents stealing feed? The mice will be stealthy, you may not see them, but the birds would be obvious. If you set some mousetraps at night, that might tell you something.
We have a flock of 11, and I put out 4-5 cups a day of 20% feed. They don’t free range, ever. I try to put out enuf that there is a little left when I go to lock them in at night. I clean up the bowls and save any leftover for the next day. If there’s no leftovers, i give more the next day.
btw, By accident, I recently bought pellets instead of crumbles. I am thinking it’s harder for the little wild birds to steal, and there is more leftover. The hens appear to be eating it just fine. It hasn’t been long enuf to come to a definitive conclusion on the pellets.
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edited to add, I weighed my ‘cup’ of feed 150 grams

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

You also may have wild birds and rodents stealing feed? The mice will be stealthy, you may not see them, but the birds would be obvious. If you set some mousetraps at night, that might tell you something.
We have a flock of 11, and I put out 4-5 cups a day of 20% feed. They don’t free range, ever. I try to put out enuf that there is a little left when I go to lock them in at night. I clean up the bowls and save any leftover for the next day. If there’s no leftovers, i give more the next day.
btw, By accident, I recently bought pellets instead of crumbles. I am thinking it’s harder for the little wild birds to steal, and there is more leftover. The hens appear to be eating it just fine. It hasn’t been long enuf to come to a definitive conclusion on the pellets.
~~~~
edited to add, I weighed my ‘cup’ of feed 150 grams

Definitely no wild birds or mice stealing food - it's in their predator proof run. If a mouse did get in there, I'm sure they'd have a ball chasing! No food is left at night.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

I appreciate the rat problem.
Once you've got accurate measurements I would suggest you split the feed into two and give half in the morning and half an hour or so before they go to roost if that's practical for you.
Going to roost with a full crop is more important than feeling full up during the day as the chickens digestive system doesn't slow down over night so they need the nutrition while they roost.
Both those are quite large breeds so 150 grams a day might not be far off what they need.
You do mention forage but you also mention it may only be half an hour. They won't get a great deal of nutrition during half an hours forage unless you have particulalry rich pickings for them. The excercise they get through being out and about is far more important.

I used to feed them a bit before bed overnight but fell out of the habit but I did it last night and they definitely didn't wolf down their feed this morning - so I think that's the key. an early evening snack seems to keep them regulated. I also am weighing the food and seeing if 300g a day works for them over the next few days and will adjust as needed. thanks again!