Cracked corn - how much to feed?

[Chick_a_dee]

It's awfully chilly out here, and we're on a hill so we get hit worse with the cold wind, I want to go as long as I can without putting a heat lamp in there on especially cold days. I'm thinking on feeding some cracked corn with their regular feed, just something to give them a boost, how much should I feed? I use one of the big hanging feeders, and I usually fill it half way up, should I go half and half? so one quarter cracked corn, one quarter feed? (fyi, they're eating grower right now as they haven't started laying yet).

 

[Pumpkinpup]

I'd only feed 25% as much corn as regular feed.

 

[Chick_a_dee]

Quote:
Sounds good, I'll see how many scoops of feed I put in to get it halfway and I'll be able to tell how much corn to put in

Thanks.

 

[gritsar]

I would suggest that you feed the corn in a seperate feeder if possible.
The reason being, they will love the corn so much that they'll be billing the regular feed out of the feeder to get to the corn. You'll have alot of waste.

 

[mistylady]

I sprinkle corn around in the coop for them to scratch at. It keeps them busy and they haven't been attacking the young pullets as badly! A bored chicken is a destructive chicken!

For their food (we have a 3 1/2ft long pvc feeder I made from a photo here on the forum) the end on one side is oystershell, the middle is regular feed and the other end is corn. They just pick what they want. And I have a cat bowl of grit for them also. Right now they have a smashed pumpkin in the run and I put a big chunk of it in the coop since the pullets won't go outside (smart chicks).

 

[cmom]

I agree with the other posts. I sprinkle mine in the coop and let them scratch it.

 

[bearz]

I do about 1/4 cracked corn also, but I don't have any problem with them pulling it out of the feeder. I mix it with the other food sometimes and other times I scatter it out in the run for them to pick at. This is great for added grit.

 

[Chick_a_dee]

Quote:
I ended up putting a 1/4 in the feeder, mixed evenly, and scattered it around as well so they had something to do as it was so cold today and windy that I didn't let them out for long.

 

[lovemychix]

I give mine corn in the colder months. They say it keeps them warmer on the inside!

 

[Chick_a_dee]

Quote:
Haha, that's my exact reason for feeding, it's very chilly outside now.