Crumbles question

[Country4ever]

My 4 hens are 10 and 1/2 years old. I just recently realized that I shouldn't be feeding them the Layena pellets because of the high calcium. The only thing I could find at our Tractor Supply Store was Dumor crumbles. I've never used crumbles, but the hens seem to like it. But.....it soon turns to very tiny crumbs.......like crushed breadcrumbs. Will they continue to eat that, even though its really fine?
Thanks.

 

[memphis]

Yep! I think mine like crumbles better than pellets.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Crumbles is merely a shape or texture. The companies crush pellets to make crumbles. Is the DuMor a Grower type feed or also a feed designed for Layers?

I assume you meant to type their ages as months, not years.

The "dust" of the crumbles can be mixed with a bit of water and stirred. This makes a porridge and the birds normally love that and they get some needed hydration along with the feed.

 

[Country4ever]

LOL........no, I mean YEARS! I believe its a grower feed. I picked the one with the least calcium in it, since I think I was over-dosing them on calcium, and they aren't laying anymore. I guess the high calcium can cause some problems. I have a hen with a really bad limp, and when I was trying to figure it out, that's when I discovered that alot of calcium in their feed isn't good for them.
Do you think I can just leave all that "crumble dust"........and they will eat that?

 

[kaybats]

everyone has their own opinion on this and i'll offer you mine. i have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that my chickies have no teeth and have to swallow their feed whole...also i have heard that pellets fill them up faster and they are left with much more 'free' time to get bored and get into 'trouble'.

i have always fed crumbles to my babies and they love it just fine. every last crumble...crumb....is always eaten...even the extra, extra fine stuff.

even with treats...sure, there are things i give them nearly whole or just cut up into pieces, like tomatoes and melons, but most everything gets sliced and diced for my girls. i have the time to do this for them, but my point is...i favor crumbles over pellets. again, this is just my opinion....you should give them what works best for you and them.

 

[Country4ever]

Thanks kaybats.....

I like to say that my hens are so old, they don't have teeth anymore.

I just didn't know if I left all that really fine stuff in their feeder, if they would rather go hungry? I suppose they would eat it, but it would just take longer?? I tend to think a little too deeply into things. haha

 

[memphis]

What breed are these senior citizens? I have an 8 year old speckled sussex who actually laid a few eggs a week till she was 7!

 

[Country4ever]

Hi Memphis.

3 of them are Easter Eggers, and one is a Black Australorp.
I actually got about a dozen eggs early this past summer.......which means someone was still laying eggs at 10!
I hope they don't lay anymore though........it's too dangerous. Their equipment is just too old and it can cause problems.
I started with 17 hens in 2003 and slowly lost them to various problems. I have loved having them all!

 

[Viollettt]

My 4 hens are 10 and 1/2 years old. I just recently realized that I shouldn't be feeding them the Layena pellets because of the high calcium. The only thing I could find at our Tractor Supply Store was Dumor crumbles. I've never used crumbles, but the hens seem to like it. But.....it soon turns to very tiny crumbs.......like crushed breadcrumbs. Will they continue to eat that, even though its really fine?
Thanks.

I give a "grower/finisher" type of feed that has between 18% and 22% protein my chickens can eat as much as they want to eat. That way my chicks, roosters, and hens get the proper protein without all that extra calcium they don't need. Plus I don't have to worry about a bunch of different feeds. Along with different scratch grains depending on the weather that I throw out once a day. I give them oyster shell free choice. The feed comes in different types... crumbles and pellets. I buy both at different times to change things so they're not always the same old thing. All sizes and types of chickens can eat the crumbles. Once they are out of the chick stage they can eat the pellets. I also wet both kinds with rainwater to make a porridge type for another difference. If I only have pellets I will sometimes wet it to make chick food. The pellets are just crumbles that have been shaped. This is just my way of doing it from trial and error.

 

[Country4ever]

Thanks Viollettt!