Chickens not using feeder/waterer

[Kubotabear]

That is A LOT of treats for 4 pullets and a cockerel. They do not need it at all and, as has already been mentioned, it should be stopped so they will start eating their proper diet.

What type of feed are you giving them that they were eating but aren't any longer?

I was giving them organic layer crumble. I tried the layer pellets but they didn't touch those. I thought throwing the scratch and crumble mix around would be like self-feeding from the feeder bin. They'd just scratch around for it instead of eating out of the feeder. No?

 

[Kubotabear]

That's enough Scratch Grains as a daily treat for 16 fully grown chickens. 32 Bantams.
My hens get a 1/4 cup per 2 chickens, Max. So 5 chickens, 5 ounces on measure cup, Max.

I would dump out the feeder and wash and dry thoroughly.
If you've had the feed a month stored outside or a couple of months in your house, toss it. Otherwise
Check the feed in the bag. If it smells medicine like or a moldy smell or you see mold, toss it.
If it's powder and used to be crumbles or pellets, it's got grain mites, toss it and buy fresh. GC

The feed smells okay, but I think I'll dump everything and start from scratch (not chicken scratch ) I thought they'd just self feed on the mix I was tossing to them. But there is a lot on the ground that they don't eat. Back to basics I guess.

 

[rosemarythyme]

The scoop is probably about 2 cups. I have 4 hens and one rooster.

That is quite a lot for the number of birds (if I have scratch to dole out, my flock of 7 get about 2 Tbsp total, once a day, and I just use it to lure them back into the run).

I thought throwing the scratch and crumble mix around would be like self-feeding from the feeder bin. They'd just scratch around for it instead of eating out of the feeder. No?

While that would encourage them to search for their food, that also would lead to a bit of waste and that waste could possibly attract rodents and wild birds.

 

[DobieLover]

I was giving them organic layer crumble. I tried the layer pellets but they didn't touch those. I thought throwing the scratch and crumble mix around would be like self-feeding from the feeder bin. They'd just scratch around for it instead of eating out of the feeder. No?

I would not toss the scratch out. And just a half handful of their normal feed. That's what I do with my Flock Raiser and oyster shell. They think it's a treat and go running to find it. I just don't feed treats.

 

[ChickenWaterer]

As others have mentioned, scratch is not a balanced food source and is not a substitute for their normal pellets or crumbles. Think of scratch as "candy" for chickens. The rule of thumb on treats is that they should comprise no more than 10% of your chickens diet ( I include scratch and table scraps in this figure)