Critique my diet?

[SavageDestiny]

I want to feed my chickens a home made diet of fresh, whole foods. I don't believe in premade pelletized foods for any animal, and especially for animals that are producing food I eat. Right now I have 4 pullets almost a year old, I just got them 2 weeks ago. Love them!

I've done a lot of research on chicken diets, but wanted to get some feedback. The girls really enjoy food time! Aside from some lice issues and one girl who appears to have tweaked a leg (no bumblefoot, I checked), they're doing good. Not laying well yet (4 eggs so far) but only 2 of them were laying at their old home and I've been told to expect a delay due to moving and new food.

Anyway, this is their diet. The dry mix of grain I feed is:

2 cups white wheat
2 cups barley
2 cups lentils
2 cups black oil sunflower seeds
1 cup alfalfa pellets
1 cup split peas
1 cup soft red wheat
1 cup bird seed (red and white millet plus sunflower hearts)
1 cup flax
1 cup chia

I ferment that and feed it to them fermented. I also give 1 tsp of kelp, 1/2 tsp brewer's yeast, and 1/8 tsp cayenne and turmeric per hen every day. They also get a clove of garlic chopped up and mixed in with their dinner.

So every day they get:

Breakfast: 6" diameter round fodder/sprout biscuit to split. Heaping 1/2 cup fermented feed to split.

Lunch/Snack: Fresh meat and organs, greens, herbs, fruits, vegetables (not all at once, this rotates daily).

Dinner: 1/4 cup fermented feed per hen.

 

[Trefoil]

Are they free ranging as well? Do they have access to grit and a Ca supplement? Have you figured out what % protein this adds up to? If they are a year old it might be a good idea to have a fecal done to check for parasites (you can almost figure if one has them so do the others). At first glance, it doesn't seem like they are getting enough, but if it satisfies them and they keep in good shape it must be. It looks like a good mix. Please let us know how it works out for you.

 

[SavageDestiny]

Are they free ranging as well? Do they have access to grit and a Ca supplement? Have you figured out what % protein this adds up to? If they are a year old it might be a good idea to have a fecal done to check for parasites (you can almost figure if one has them so do the others). At first glance, it doesn't seem like they are getting enough, but if it satisfies them and they keep in good shape it must be. It looks like a good mix. Please let us know how it works out for you.

They are not free ranging. I wish they could, but they are true backyard chickens- I live smack in the middle of town. They have over half my small yard- 14' x 24' plus a 3' x 26' strip behind the house- but that's all the space I have. I forgot to add that I supply oyster shell and grit free choice to the girls.

I have not figured out the protein %, partially because I seriously cannot wrap my head around the formula and partially because I don't know how accurate that it would be for the overall diet. Yes, I could use the formula (if I could figure it out) to get the protein for the dry mix I ferment, but since they are also getting fodder and so much fresh food, I don't know how I'd figure all that out.

Why would you say they aren't getting enough? From what I can tell the recommended amount to feed is 1/2 cup fermented feed per hen per day. My girls each get 1/4 cup at night (so 1 cup total to split), split 1/2 cup in the morning as well as the sprouts, and have a pretty good sized "snack" in the late morning or early afternoon. "Snacktime" is when I provide fresh foods. So far they've had, on various days, meal worms, venison heart and liver, pork, kale, cress, strawberries, bananas, napa cabbage, bell pepper, brussels sprouts, and parsley. They've had thyme, basil, mint, and oregano for herbs too.

I kind of feel like my head is going to explode with trying to figure this out, haha!

 

[Trefoil]

I'm used to feeding more birds and giving a cup of food just seems like so little. The formula is easy. You multiply the % protein x lbs of the ingredient for all the different ingredients. Add up the numbers you get from doing that and then divide that number by the total pounds of ingredients. That will give you an approximation of the % protein of the mix.
Fermenting is supposed to make the protein 12% more digestible. I'm not sure about that, but I feed fermented food and my birds are doing well on it. I have a lot of fowl and no access to split peas,barley, kelp, or red wheat. I have geese and ducks and free range my birds when its decent outside. I free feed wheat, and Ferment scratch (oats & cracked corn) oil sunflower seeds & alfalfa pellets adding brewers yeast before I feed and once a week vionate. They get cranberries,nuts, assorted greens, and cat food as treats. My peas also get multi flock 22 free fed. When the peaches are starting to get ripe, they gorge themselves on peaches, they also like mulberries & grapes.

 

[Ariel188]

I want to feed my chickens a home made diet of fresh, whole foods. I don't believe in premade pelletized foods for any animal, and especially for animals that are producing food I eat. Right now I have 4 pullets almost a year old, I just got them 2 weeks ago. Love them!

I've done a lot of research on chicken diets, but wanted to get some feedback. The girls really enjoy food time! Aside from some lice issues and one girl who appears to have tweaked a leg (no bumblefoot, I checked), they're doing good. Not laying well yet (4 eggs so far) but only 2 of them were laying at their old home and I've been told to expect a delay due to moving and new food.

Anyway, this is their diet. The dry mix of grain I feed is:

2 cups white wheat
2 cups barley
2 cups lentils
2 cups black oil sunflower seeds
1 cup alfalfa pellets
1 cup split peas
1 cup soft red wheat
1 cup bird seed (red and white millet plus sunflower hearts)
1 cup flax
1 cup chia

I ferment that and feed it to them fermented. I also give 1 tsp of kelp, 1/2 tsp brewer's yeast, and 1/8 tsp cayenne and turmeric per hen every day. They also get a clove of garlic chopped up and mixed in with their dinner.

So every day they get:

Breakfast: 6" diameter round fodder/sprout biscuit to split. Heaping 1/2 cup fermented feed to split.

Lunch/Snack: Fresh meat and organs, greens, herbs, fruits, vegetables (not all at once, this rotates daily).

Dinner: 1/4 cup fermented feed per hen.

I think you are doing WONDERFUL! Do you feed all that organic? I listed my recipe below I use, its all organic. I also give the girls organic fruits, veggies, and greens everyday along with homegrown wheatgrass. Everything is organic. I also supply grit and oyster shells. Sometimes I get Organic scratch and peck and ferment it. I have not fermented my homemade organic mix yet. But I would say WONDERFUL job to you for not feeding crappy pellets!!! I also feed my girls raw organic grassed meat left over from what my dog doesn't eat.

3 Cups soft white wheat
3 Cups hard red wheat
1 Cup kumut
1 Cup quinoa
1 Cup barley
1 Cup millet
1 Cup oat groats
2 Cups sunflower seeds or BOSS
1 Cup split peas
1 Cup lentils (alternate colors of lentils)
1 Cup sesame seeds
1/2 Cup flax seed
1 Cup ground seaweed (Kelp)

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Without doing an analysis on everything, it sounds like a very well rounded diet. Between the grains, seeds, legumes and animal protein you should be getting the full complement of amino acids. Energy level sounds good too.

If you want to verify if you're missing anything, you can check page 327 on the following link for vitamins, macro minerals and trace minerals chickens are known to need in their diet. I agree with your mix being more natural but the advantage of the prepared feed is that all the things are there without any excesses.
http://www.ag.auburn.edu/~chibale/an12poultryfeeding.pdf

Another thing you might want to consider is protein percentage striving for around 16% while laying and 18% or higher when molting. Excessive protein needs to be processed by the liver.
The other thing is ratio of calcium/phosphorus and vitamin D. All three are inextricably associated. Insufficient calcium when actively laying will tax the medullary bone. Excessive calcium can cause kidney stones and gout.

All that said, it sounds like a lot of work for 2-4 eventual eggs a day. I go overboard on lots of things so I feel you.
I'm doing about the same amount of work but I'm currently feeding 70 birds in 9 flocks.
I'm fermenting a 16% organic grower for all the birds. It gets some kelp and flax added and I add fishmeal for young birds and molters using the pearson square to calculate protein. I also rotate their pastures but that's a moot point from the end of November to mid March.

 

[SavageDestiny]

I think you are doing WONDERFUL! Do you feed all that organic? I listed my recipe below I use, its all organic. I also give the girls organic fruits, veggies, and greens everyday along with homegrown wheatgrass. Everything is organic. I also supply grit and oyster shells. Sometimes I get Organic scratch and peck and ferment it. I have not fermented my homemade organic mix yet. But I would say WONDERFUL job to you for not feeding crappy pellets!!! I also feed my girls raw organic grassed meat left over from what my dog doesn't eat.

3 Cups soft white wheat
3 Cups hard red wheat
1 Cup kumut
1 Cup quinoa
1 Cup barley
1 Cup millet
1 Cup oat groats
2 Cups sunflower seeds or BOSS
1 Cup split peas
1 Cup lentils (alternate colors of lentils)
1 Cup sesame seeds
1/2 Cup flax seed
1 Cup ground seaweed (Kelp)

I wish it was all organic, but most stuff I can't find organic here let alone afford. Most of it is at least human food grade though and it's non GMO so that's a start! I feel pretty much anything is better than pre made food. I want my girls to have fresh foods at the very least, even if I can't go organic for them.

Without doing an analysis on everything, it sounds like a very well rounded diet. Between the grains, seeds, legumes and animal protein you should be getting the full complement of amino acids. Energy level sounds good too.

If you want to verify if you're missing anything, you can check page 327 on the following link for vitamins, macro minerals and trace minerals chickens are known to need in their diet. I agree with your mix being more natural but the advantage of the prepared feed is that all the things are there without any excesses.
http://www.ag.auburn.edu/~chibale/an12poultryfeeding.pdf

Another thing you might want to consider is protein percentage striving for around 16% while laying and 18% or higher when molting. Excessive protein needs to be processed by the liver.
The other thing is ratio of calcium/phosphorus and vitamin D. All three are inextricably associated. Insufficient calcium when actively laying will tax the medullary bone. Excessive calcium can cause kidney stones and gout.

All that said, it sounds like a lot of work for 2-4 eventual eggs a day. I go overboard on lots of things so I feel you.
I'm doing about the same amount of work but I'm currently feeding 70 birds in 9 flocks.
I'm fermenting a 16% organic grower for all the birds. It gets some kelp and flax added and I add fishmeal for young birds and molters using the pearson square to calculate protein. I also rotate their pastures but that's a moot point from the end of November to mid March.

I was also thinking about adding an occasional squirt of salmon oil for extra Omega 3 and same with coconut oil for the medium chain fatty acids. Do you think that would be overboard? Thanks for the link too!

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!

I'm used to feeding more birds and giving a cup of food just seems like so little. The formula is easy. You multiply the % protein x lbs of the ingredient for all the different ingredients. Add up the numbers you get from doing that and then divide that number by the total pounds of ingredients. That will give you an approximation of the % protein of the mix.
Fermenting is supposed to make the protein 12% more digestible. I'm not sure about that, but I feed fermented food and my birds are doing well on it. I have a lot of fowl and no access to split peas,barley, kelp, or red wheat. I have geese and ducks and free range my birds when its decent outside. I free feed wheat, and Ferment scratch (oats & cracked corn) oil sunflower seeds & alfalfa pellets adding brewers yeast before I feed and once a week vionate. They get cranberries,nuts, assorted greens, and cat food as treats. My peas also get multi flock 22 free fed. When the peaches are starting to get ripe, they gorge themselves on peaches, they also like mulberries & grapes.

I don't know why it insists on quoting you last.

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!

Sounds like your girls are pretty spoiled too.

 

[Trefoil]

My birds are pretty much pets. Why have them if you can't spoil them? I didn't mean anything by the "it just sounds like so little feed" comment, I was just in shock at the idea, its been a long time since I was feeding a few chickens. Are you able to get your ingredients locally? I tried to find fish meal and the closest I could come was at TSC, pond fish food that had fish meal as its main ingredient. My birds HATED it so I just got it the once. The problem with having too many is that I can't afford to feed expensive ingredients. The first year I fed the ff, I was fermenting layer and grower, but it was soooooo mushy that I gradually started adding whole grains until I got to where I am now. I have to catch myself every so often because I like to add goodies to my ferment (like calf manna) and end up with way too high protein.

 

[SavageDestiny]

My birds are pretty much pets. Why have them if you can't spoil them? I didn't mean anything by the "it just sounds like so little feed" comment, I was just in shock at the idea, its been a long time since I was feeding a few chickens. Are you able to get your ingredients locally? I tried to find fish meal and the closest I could come was at TSC, pond fish food that had fish meal as its main ingredient. My birds HATED it so I just got it the once. The problem with having too many is that I can't afford to feed expensive ingredients. The first year I fed the ff, I was fermenting layer and grower, but it was soooooo mushy that I gradually started adding whole grains until I got to where I am now. I have to catch myself every so often because I like to add goodies to my ferment (like calf manna) and end up with way too high protein.

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.

 

[Trefoil]

WOW Great deal.