Crumbles?

[iHeartMyHens523]

Hello! I just recently (last fall) got new hens! I started with 6 and now have 4. I have been using pellets for the whole time I had them and I am pretty sure that they used pellets also at the place I bought them at. Should I switch to crumbles? I do lose quite a lot of the pellets on the ground which get buried in their sand floor, and I was wondering if crumbles would be worth a try!

 

[HEChicken]

I prefer pellets because it seems like they make more mess with crumbles and there is greater waste due to them billing them out. My solution for right now is that I placed my feeder in a wide, shallow planter tray, so that most of what is billed out of the feeder lands in it rather than directly on the coop floor. Ultimately I plan to build a treadle feeder that I'm hoping will reduce waste even further.

 

[Marthab1953]

They waste the crumbles a lot more that the Pellets.

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

Either way they waist food if they have a food dish that allows it. I took a bucket with a lid and cut holes in the side big enough they can fit their heads in but not their bodies. The holes are only 3 to 4 inches high on it so they can reach down to the bottom. I fill it to the bottom of the hole. They have to stick their heads in to eat so they do not waist any of their food, it also makes it harder for wild animals to get at their food.

 

[Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay]

We use crumbles for all of our birds. The key to reducing waste with any type of feed is properly adjusting the feeder. If you simply pour feed n a bowl and lay it on the floor you will have waste regardless of the form of feed. If you have a hanging feeder and just have it open as wide as it will go, you will have waste. To limit waste you must adjust the opening on hanging feeders to allow enough feed in the trough for the birds to eat appropriately but not too open that they play with the feed.

Jim

 

[iHeartMyHens523]

Thanks! That sounds like a really good idea...I'll try it!

Thank you, @sweetlilbaby!

 

[iHeartMyHens523]

Thanks for the info, @Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay! Does the crumbles have any nutritional difference? Do crumbles make the eggs stronger than pellets? Do hens tend to enjoy either for any reason? Do you think that they would prefer pellets because that is what they are accustomed to eating?

 

[HEChicken]

Thanks for the info, @Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay! Does the crumbles have any nutritional difference? Do crumbles make the eggs stronger than pellets? Do hens tend to enjoy either for any reason? Do you think that they would prefer pellets because that is what they are accustomed to eating?

There is no nutritional difference between crumbles and pellets made by the same manufacturer - the crumbles are just pellets ground up more finely. Mine will eat whatever I put in front of them. I think they overall prefer crumbles but due to the mess they make with them I prefer the pellets so most of the time, that is what they get. Only when I have young chicks in my flock do I get the crumbles since they can't always handle the larger pellets.

 

[Red Barn Farms]

If you want to keep them on the pellets you might consider a different type of feeder. A trough feeder works wonders to reduce the amount of wasted food. I had this same problem with my flock who eat crumbles. So I made this.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/our-diy-homemade-trough-chicken-feeder

You can always purchase a trough feeder at your local feed store.