To the best of my knowledge, both mammals and birds can have both the liver and kidneys burdened by excess protein. The liver converts it to urea and other nitrogen components expelled by the kidneys....
Are chickens different than other animals in that excess protein is filtered by the liver? I know that in mammals at least the kidneys take care of protein, not the liver. Weird. The ratio of calcium to phosphorus is much different than in the animals I'm used to feeding (dogs and cats). The ideal there is a 1.1:1 ratio calhos but obviously chickens need a lot more calcium. I have been lead to believe that chickens will take what they need when oyster shell or dried egg shell is offered free choice, so that's what I've been doing. They don't get that much muscle meat so the phosphorus intake should be in check. I also supply some ground meat with bone in it. Calcium in raw bone is different than the calcium carbonate found in eggshells and oyster shells. Calcium carbonate can lower the acid level in the digestive system and make it harder for animals to digest things, but I don't know how much that plays into chickens' digestive systems. I figure it can't hurt to offer different types of calcium.
It's really not much at all. Fermenting takes about 30 seconds extra time and the fodder/sprouts only takes a few minutes per day to prepare. Then it's just plop it in bowls, mix in the supplements, and feed!
See once I start getting all those numbers down my head just feels like its going to explode! Math is not my strong point, it confuses the heck out of me!
People on dialysis and with liver damage are both prescribed low protein diets. Trouble is, they can waste away in the process.
I only spend about 15 minutes on fermenting but another 15-30 minutes during the day distributing it.
If you're bad at math, this site can make calculating protein sources simpler.
https://homesteadapps.com/app/free/feedcalc/pearsonsquare.php
excellent information on calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D3.
http://www.nutrecocanada.com/docs/s...-formation-and-eggshell-quality-in-layers.pdf
My girls are obviously spoiled too, I feel you there! I took no offense to the "so little feed" comment, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't starving my girls.All my ingredients I got locally with the exception of the kelp powder. Between feed stores and Cash and Carry I actually got really decent prices on everything except the chia seed. That is actually organic from Costco, it is $6 a pound! And that is the cheapest I could find it. Honestly I wouldn't feed it to the chickens except my dog requires it in his food (he has issues with his anal glands) and I eat them too, so I figure if I have it I should share it with the girls. After that all the grain and seed I got was less than $1 per pound. So really I'm not spending all that much on feed! The meats I have on hand always since I feed my dogs and cats a raw diet, and I usually have fresh fruit and veg on hand for our food so I just share with the girls or give them scraps. Actually I went to Whole Foods yesterday and they gave me a bunch of just expired parsley, blueberries, bell pepper cores, broccoli stems, and other assorted stuff FREE! They were just going to compost it so they told me I could take as much as I wanted and to ask whenever I wanted for some for my chickens.
All the stores around here give expired produce to the food pantries. The exception is cabbage, collards and kale. Last winter I would get a big box from a grocer once a week.
