Cutting the feed cost of chickens

[SurferchickinSB]

Welcome!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am envious! I wish I could have more!

 

[Awtdaniel05]

If you have chickens with unusual and beautiful feathers and roosters with their beautiful feathers, you can sell the feathers too. Crafters, jewelry makers and people that make fishing lures would be interested in buying them.

I a have a friend who wants some to ty flies

 

[SurferchickinSB]

I a have a friend who wants some to ty flies

That’s cool! I have heard a lot of people that make flies are willing to pay a lot for certain kinds of feathers.

 

[The Moonshiner]

I know a couple people that tie flies and they are only willing to work with complete cape and saddles from genetic hackle birds so not sure if there would be much money in trying to sell random feathers from random breeds. IDK.
I started out a lot like you probably are. I got some laying hens and sold eggs but soon discovered bantams and showing. When I was your age I had well over 100 birds, adult birds.
I focused really hard on showing and did really well. After a couple years I was hatching a lot of chicks and selling birds to others that were interested in showing.
I didn't get rich but I got rich for a teen. I covered all my expenses and bought my first car doing it.
That was a long time ago and that car was only $300 but I certainly covered me feed bill plus.
I won't lie it was a ton of work. If I had to do it all over again I would probably just sell hatching eggs instead of messing with hatching so much and raising chicks. I think that would of been a lot less work and almost as much $$$.

 

[PirateGirl]

Network. Talk about your chickens, meet local business owners, you never know what you will end up with. Some things I have been able to get for free (or I'm working on getting) for my flock that cut expenses...

I get my bedding (pine shavings) free from a local artisan with a sawmill. He has to find ways to dispose of the stuff otherwise, so if I show up with a shovel and a trash bag and fill it myself he's happy to see it go.

Spent grains from a local brewery or distillery can be cut in with your regular ration and stretch your feed. Again, this a free and something these businesses generally pay to dispose of, so if you have the means to pick up some on a regular schedule, they are happy to see the grains go. My friends told me to buy a 50 gallon drum and come over and fill it any time I want, now I cannot lift/load a 50 gallon drum of grain in/out of my vehicle, nor do I have a large flock, so I'm going with a few 5 gallon buckets with lids.

Food scraps. This can come from a local restaurant, hotel, school, etc. Anywhere that serves food has scraps. Provide them with a few buckets with lids and collect them on a regular basis. Make sure to check things over before tossing them to your flock to make sure it's nothing rotten/moldy, but you might be able to get some good stuff!

 

[Awtdaniel05]

Network. Talk about your chickens, meet local business owners, you never know what you will end up with. Some things I have been able to get for free (or I'm working on getting) for my flock that cut expenses...

I get my bedding (pine shavings) free from a local artisan with a sawmill. He has to find ways to dispose of the stuff otherwise, so if I show up with a shovel and a trash bag and fill it myself he's happy to see it go.

Spent grains from a local brewery or distillery can be cut in with your regular ration and stretch your feed. Again, this a free and something these businesses generally pay to dispose of, so if you have the means to pick up some on a regular schedule, they are happy to see the grains go. My friends told me to buy a 50 gallon drum and come over and fill it any time I want, now I cannot lift/load a 50 gallon drum of grain in/out of my vehicle, nor do I have a large flock, so I'm going with a few 5 gallon buckets with lids.

Food scraps. This can come from a local restaurant, hotel, school, etc. Anywhere that serves food has scraps. Provide them with a few buckets with lids and collect them on a regular basis. Make sure to check things over before tossing them to your flock to make sure it's nothing rotten/moldy, but you might be able to get some good stuff!

Thanks for the advice

 

[DebMoorechick]

Hello, I have 90 baby chicks and I was wondering how much I will have to feed them a week. Also how could I cut the feed cost of feeding the 90 birds. If you have any advice please let me know. Thanks!​

You MUST check out Justin Rhodes you tube site. He is the self proclaimed” apron wearing permaculture chicken warrior!”

 

[Neezers Farm]

I started moistening chick starter with kefir or yogurt to help a chick with scissor beak eat easier. I noticed that the chicks did not scratch out and waste the moistened feed, so now I use it for all the chicks. I also mix boiled eggs into their feed, when I have an abundance of eggs to use.

 

[15WildTurkey]

Fermented feed. It goes about twice as far in my experience. The chicks still seem to eat you out of house and home but once they are outside free ranging the fermented feed goes a looooong way. I use this method, if you google Tikk tok fermented feed you will have all questions answered.

 

[gtaus]

I live in northern Minnesota, and some people around here make barley (or other grains) fodder for the birds so they have fresh greens in the winter. From what I have seen on YouTube, 1 lb of barley grain soaked, sprouted, and grown in a fodder bin produces as much as 6 pounds of fodder feed. It does take about 7 days from start to finish per batch, and it is more labor intensive because you have to water the bins twice a day, but some people on YouTube swear by it to reduce their feed costs. Imagine a 50 lb bag of grain being turned into 300 lbs. of food.

Check out this link if interested: https://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2014/02/growing-sprouted-fodder-for-your.html