Commercial feed and vitamin deficiencies

K0k0shka

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Jul 24, 2019
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Can chickens develop a vitamin deficiency if they eat commercial feed, which is supposed to meet all their nutritional needs? My pullets are 24 weeks old (not laying yet). They eat DuMor grower/finisher crumbles. They don't free range, but when available I give them grass clippings or shrub trimmings to pick at. They also eat the occasional treat of mealworms, some scratch and kitchen scraps (produce only, no bread or other human food). Their favorite treat, which I try to make as often as I can, is their regular crumble mixed with water to form a mash. So the vast majority of what they eat is their crumble. Can they still get a deficiency with this kind of diet? I'm asking because one of my pullets has started throwing her head back and "star-gazing", and my searches on BYC and Google lead me to believe it might be wry neck, though I don't know why, and why at this age (supposedly it's usually a young chick problem). It's very infrequent and not severe (yet) - for example, the other day I sat with them for about an hour, and she did it only 2-3 times, briefly, like in the video below. I read that it's caused by a vitamin E deficiency, or a head/neck injury, or genetics. She's a bit old to be showing this for the first time now if it was genetics; she has no injuries; so I'm left with the vitamin E deficiency, and wondering how that could've happened given her diet...? Should I adjust anything in how/what I feed my chickens? Is DuMor not a good brand? Should I cut out the occasional treats? (they're really no more than a spoonful per chicken every couple of days). What should I do about this pullet now? I took away their food and water last night and waited until about 9am this morning, to get them hungry and thirsty, and then gave them a smaller container of water with NutriDrench in it, and their favorite crumble mash, also with NutriDrench in it, to make sure they all get a good dose. It's all they're gonna have for food and water until they've finished the mash, to make sure they each get some in their bodies. Any advice would be appreciated!

 
I give them grass clippings or shrub trimmings to pick at.
This is something I would not do as with the clippings and trimmings they will not be able to recognize and sort out poisonous herbs and leaves/berries.

And yes, even before expiration date there might occur nutrient deficiencies as the commercial feed has to be fresh and stored in a cool and dry place. Otherwise vitamins get lost, nutrients might alter chemically and the feed might even get mouldy.
 
Can chickens develop a vitamin deficiency if they eat commercial feed, which is supposed to meet all their nutritional needs? My pullets are 24 weeks old (not laying yet). They eat DuMor grower/finisher crumbles. They don't free range, but when available I give them grass clippings or shrub trimmings to pick at. They also eat the occasional treat of mealworms, some scratch and kitchen scraps (produce only, no bread or other human food). Their favorite treat, which I try to make as often as I can, is their regular crumble mixed with water to form a mash. So the vast majority of what they eat is their crumble. Can they still get a deficiency with this kind of diet? I'm asking because one of my pullets has started throwing her head back and "star-gazing", and my searches on BYC and Google lead me to believe it might be wry neck, though I don't know why, and why at this age (supposedly it's usually a young chick problem). It's very infrequent and not severe (yet) - for example, the other day I sat with them for about an hour, and she did it only 2-3 times, briefly, like in the video below. I read that it's caused by a vitamin E deficiency, or a head/neck injury, or genetics. She's a bit old to be showing this for the first time now if it was genetics; she has no injuries; so I'm left with the vitamin E deficiency, and wondering how that could've happened given her diet...? Should I adjust anything in how/what I feed my chickens? Is DuMor not a good brand? Should I cut out the occasional treats? (they're really no more than a spoonful per chicken every couple of days). What should I do about this pullet now? I took away their food and water last night and waited until about 9am this morning, to get them hungry and thirsty, and then gave them a smaller container of water with NutriDrench in it, and their favorite crumble mash, also with NutriDrench in it, to make sure they all get a good dose. It's all they're gonna have for food and water until they've finished the mash, to make sure they each get some in their bodies. Any advice would be appreciated!

They can have vitamin deficiencies from not getting a complete balanced diet BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE EXTRAS/TREATS you feed.
 
This is something I would not do as with the clippings and trimmings they will not be able to recognize and sort out poisonous herbs and leaves/berries.
I live in the suburbs and my yard is pretty standard - grass on the lawn, a few select bushes around the edge for decoration. Not a lot of mystery. So the grass they get is just grass from the lawn, and the trimmings are from my perpetually overgrown forsythias, which the chickens seem to love. My other bushes don't grow as fast as the forsythias and don't have extra foliage to spare, so I don't cut them for the chickens.
 
Any time the whole grain is crushed there's a chance of vitamin E particularly being lost. That's why I feed my chickens whole grains instead of pellets or crumbles. Even then the grain needs to be kept as cool as possible. If the grain smells rancid then it shouldn't be eaten. I'm not sure which grains are highest in vitamin E, but you should be able to look that up online.
 
Any time the whole grain is crushed there's a chance of vitamin E particularly being lost. That's why I feed my chickens whole grains instead of pellets or crumbles. Even then the grain needs to be kept as cool as possible. If the grain smells rancid then it shouldn't be eaten. I'm not sure which grains are highest in vitamin E, but you should be able to look that up online.
Good to know, thanks. My feed doesn't smell rancid, but I do store it outside (in a galvanized trash can). Maybe it got too hot in the summer... I'll bring it inside in the basement.
 

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