Commercial feed and vitamin deficiencies

[Kiki]

Well now... that was a little loud. Do you think what I describe is too much?

Sorry...I hit the cap lock on accident and didn't feel like erasing. I think anything besides a complete balanced feed is too much.
I feed zero treats. My birds are 4.5 and still lay well.

 

[claudiabostic]

Well now... that was a little loud. Do you think what I describe is too much?

No, I don't think so. Some people are afraid that varying from the commercial feed will harm their chickens. I disagree. There have been a number of studies done (though not with chickens as far as I know) that show that livestock in general are able to pick out a more nutritious feed regimen when given free choice than even the best "scientific" feed. Even though my chickens are confined in a run, I try to give them as close as I can to what they would get if free ranging. I feed them kale and cabbage daily and give them access when possible to a wide range of plants including weeds and herbs. None of them have ever had a cold.

 

[K0k0shka]

I think anything besides a complete balanced feed is too much.
I feed zero treats. My birds are 4.5 and still lay well.

Wow, that sounds extreme. Mine are pet chickens, and the entertainment and interaction the kids and I get from giving them treats is more important to us than egg count. I wouldn't want them to be unhealthy, of course, so I limit the treats, but I'm not aiming for optimal egg production, so as long as they're healthy, I'm okay with some treats here and there.

 

[claudiabostic]

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.

If the trash can was sitting in direct sun, then it got too hot.

 

[K0k0shka]

If the trash can was sitting in direct sun, then it got too hot.

No, it's under the back porch in shade. I always meant to store it in the basement, I just need to declutter it first to make room I'll have to bring it in before winter though, because I don't want to deal with a cold trash can frozen shut anyway.

 

[claudiabostic]

I just looked up which foods are rich in vitamin E, and one of them is sunflower seeds. You could get some black oil sunflower seeds that are sold as wild bird food and feed them as treats. The unopened seed cases help keep the vitamin E good, although again it's best to keep them cool.
In the winter I sprout them and feed them to my flock.

 

[K0k0shka]

I just looked up which foods are rich in vitamin E, and one of them is sunflower seeds. You could get some black oil sunflower seeds that are sold as wild bird food and feed them as treats. The unopened seed cases help keep the vitamin E good, although again it's best to keep them cool.
In the winter I sprout them and feed them to my flock.

Ooh, good idea, thanks! I do have sunflower seeds I got for wild birds, and I store those in the basement, so they haven't gotten too hot or too cold. I'll try that as well.

 

[Folly's place]

Do you check the mill date on each bag of feed before you buy it? Some vitamins are lost over time after milling, definitely. I buy feed that's within one month of milling, and use it up within another month. The feed store folks say the feed is good for six months to a year, but IMO that's just too long.
There are individuals who need more than the 'normal' amount of a particular vitamin, and there are individuals who just want to eat too many goodies, rather than their regular balanced feed. Either way, this could be your bird, and adding a vitamin supplement may help her. And she can't do it on sunflower seeds!
I hope she's able to recover.
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

Years ago, we used to dump the feed into our metal garbage cans, rather than keeping it in it's original bags, and I didn't know to check the mill date on each bag.
That year we raised about fifty chicks, and ONE of them developed neurological signs, gradually getting worse. I had her necropsied (fearing Marek's disease!) and she was vitamin E deficient, causing severe brain lesions, unfixable. And not Marek's disease. I had no idea how old the feed was, or from which feed store hers came from, and she was the only bird who had a problem. Genetics? probably. Since then, all mill dates are checked, and feed stays in it's bag in the garbage can.
Mary

 

[K0k0shka]

Do you check the mill date on each bag of feed before you buy it? Some vitamins are lost over time after milling, definitely. I buy feed that's within one month of milling, and use it up within another month. The feed store folks say the feed is good for six months to a year, but IMO that's just too long.
There are individuals who need more than the 'normal' amount of a particular vitamin, and there are individuals who just want to eat too many goodies, rather than their regular balanced feed. Either way, this could be your bird, and adding a vitamin supplement may help her. And she can't do it on sunflower seeds!
I hope she's able to recover.
Mary

Good point to check mill dates. I do keep my feed in the bag, in the metal trash bin. I just checked this bag and it says July 9, 2020, so that's not too old, right? There's no way I can use up a whole 50lbs bag in a month - I only have 5 chickens.

I'll keep going with the NutriDrench treatment for a while - both in their water and in their feed mash. For the mash, I measured out the amount of NutriDrench that would've been needed to treat each chicken individually, per body weight, and mixed the whole amount in enough mash for them to eat within an hour or so. They didn't seem to mind and ate it over the course of an hour or two. I also gave them scrambled eggs and sunflower seeds. Will add oatmeal tomorrow, too. I sat with the chickens three times today to observe, and my girl seems to be doing better. She only did the star gazing once in all the time I watched her, and even that was very brief and only straight up, without arching the neck over her back. She might even have been looking at something in the tree above, who knows.