Cracked Corn or Scratch

[hooligan]

I was wondering what you guys opinions on cracked corn and scratch were. I usually give scratch but is cracked corn better for them? Of course this is just an add on, they always get their all purpose crumbles.

 

[silkiechicken]

Most scratch is mostly cracked corn, so both will be treats. Scratch probably has more "other" stuff in it so thus more variety.

 

[Farmer Kitty]

You can always buy both and mix them or mix your own scratch. I mix my own-half cracked corn and half black oil sunflower seeds.

 

[MissPrissy]

Here where I am there is a big variety to choose from. There is cracked corn. There is basic scratch. There is scratch grains. There is also mixed grains. As you move up from the plain cracked corn each one has less corn and more of other grains in it.

I give cracked corn each evening to help keep them warm on cold nights. I do not give them the plain corn in the summer as it really adds to heat stress in the hot of summer.

I skip over the other choices in scratch and also have a feeder box filled with the higher end mixed grains available to them 24/7. It does have some corn in it but it is a majority of oats, millet, wheat, rye, flax and other good grains for the chickens. I take this mix and often add the black oil sunflower seeds to it.

Cracked corn is like candy and should be given in moderation. It creates fat in the birds. Too much of it can create unhealthy fat that can cause blockages in the vent.

 

[Churkenduse]

My scratch has cracked corn, whole wheat kernals and oats.
I think a mix is healthier as an addition to their diet the way you give it.

I feed it to them before they go in for the night, since it helps them heat up.

 

[CovenantCreek]

I give my girls scratch out in the yard, but have cracked corn in the supplement bin in the coop. They tend to ignore both quite a bit, though the corn definitely disappears faster when the nights are cold.

 

[hooligan]

Well it looks like I will be sticking with scratch grains then! Today is feed buying day so I thought I'd post before I went shopping to see what you guys thought

 

[valmom]

How do you know how much cracked corn is too much? They are so fluffed up for the winter I can't tell if they are getting fat, but we give them a good bit of cracked corn to keep them warm (we don't heat the henhouse and it can be single digits to sub-zero for days).

I think we probably feed 6 hens and 2 roos about a cup of corn a day along with their regular pellets, sunflower seeds, flax, crimped oats and, of course, spaghetti in the morning!

 

[silkiechicken]

Since they are probably eating more regular food too, it may be fine. The general rule is to keep treats at about 10% of their total feed intake.

 

[Standard Hen]

In the winter months I just mix it in with their layer pellets in a big aluminum barrel where all my grains are kept. Valmom I also do not heat my little coops and that is the reason I do cracked corn in the winter. Snowing today and got maybe a couple of fresh inches on the ground.