Confused on what to feed.

[Aunt Angus]

Just finishing my layer crumble bag, going to attempt to transition to the all flock/flock raiser with oyster shell and grit. Not sure on whether to go to crumble or pellet and what I should put the shell and grit in. I’m thinking just smaller hanging feeders but if anyone has any other suggestions I’m open. Here’s the girls now, I’m thinking the two barred rocks are very close.

Honestly, where I live, the stores are always out of one or the other, pellets or crumble. I grab whichever is available. It's the same stuff, just in different form. Either is fine, honestly.

I put oyster shell in a bowl I clip onto the wall. It really doesn't matter. As long as they can get their faces on there. I don't offer grit because they can get it from the dirt/yard.

 

[Aunt Angus]

And I'll add that it's easy to get overwhelmed and overthink things. They're adults (or close to it). You've navigated through the hardest part (chicks), so you're doing fine. Pick a feed and go with it. They'll eat whichever you put in front of them.

 

[Alagirl]

Just finishing my layer crumble bag, going to attempt to transition to the all flock/flock raiser with oyster shell and grit. Not sure on whether to go to crumble or pellet and what I should put the shell and grit in. I’m thinking just smaller hanging feeders but if anyone has any other suggestions I’m open. Here’s the girls now, I’m thinking the two barred rocks are very close.

Just find a container that works for you.
As somebody above said, they use a feeder for the oyster shell.
I put grit in a small bowl now and then but I am not overly consistent with it, my chickens live 'outside' and my soil contains a lot of small stones.
If you don't want to use a commercial type feeder, you can build one from PVC pipe.
I might be looking into that, as my silly hens keep knocking their small feeder down all the time.

I am new to chickens myself, but not other animals.
I find it helps when they are used to a broader spectrum of feed, in case availability changes. SO I might get some pellets to go with the crumble, in case the crumble is out of stock.
Also, animals have not read the book: They might prefer one over the other.
Like one of my cats would not neat the canned food everybody keeps insisting is better for felines. She ate dry only, unless real meat was involved.
She also destroyed bread, stole doughnuts, and broke into the marshmallows.

 

[Pampered chicken girl]

Do you use pellets or crumble?

When I posted this I was using the purina flock raiser crumble but I now use nutrena all flock pellets. I like them better because the crumble was ¼ dust and they didn't like that. I do have bantams and they eat the pellets fine.

 

[Thomaswgordon]

Here’s a question for the grit… can I just pour a good amount into the run floor and let them scratch as needed? It’s dirt/mulch

 

[Alagirl]

Here’s a question for the grit… can I just pour a good amount into the run floor and let them scratch as needed? It’s dirt/mulch

it would probably work, I just use a small bowl that does not tip over as easily.
Maybe a dog bowl or so.
My run is dirt as well, and I threw some sand in a corner for dust baths, so I am confident they are getting plenty of pebbles to play with, but the offered grit is usually gone fast as well.
And then they do manage ti turn the bowl over, then they have to hunt and peck

 

[Thomaswgordon]

I put them in these 1qt chick feeders and sprinkled grit in the run floor. They’re already going after it on the floor.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Here’s a question for the grit… can I just pour a good amount into the run floor and let them scratch as needed? It’s dirt/mulch

That should work fine, just make sure some is always available for them, including winter, when snow can get in the way or the ground might freeze over.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I'm too lazy too fill small bowls with oyster shell and/or grit and too careless to notice when they run low, so here's what works great for me, they are actually cat feeders and hold so much I don't have to worry about them running out of either product for months at a time:

 

[Aunt Angus]

I'm too lazy too fill small bowls with oyster shell and/or grit and too careless to notice when they run low, so here's what works great for me, they are actually cat feeders and hold so much I don't have to worry about them running out of either product for months at a time:

View attachment 3239689

That's AWESOME. I may have to steal that idea...