Daily diet

[ladyhand]

Everything I’ve read says that chickens should only have 10% of their diet on other things like snacks. How do you know how much they’re actually eating, especially if they’re free ranging.

 

[SpotTheCat]

Everything I’ve read says that chickens should only have 10% of their

Did you post this before you where done?

 

[ladyhand]

Did you post this before you where done?

Omg I started something then started looking for related threads. Clearly being awake at 3am isn’t when I should do anything lol. I’ve edited my thread.

 

[GC-Raptor]

Everything I’ve read says that chickens should only have 10% of their diet on other things like snacks. How do you know how much they’re actually eating, especially if they’re free ranging.

I wouldn't count free ranging as snacks.
Just stuff you give them like scratch grains, cracked corn, mealworms.
For large foul chickens 10% is about 2 Tbsps (a coffee scoop). Bantams about 1 Tbsp.
I use a coffee scoop to measure scratch grains for my two small flocks.

A half cup is 8 Tbsps.
If you give other things like watermelon or leafy greens occasionally I wouldn't count them as treats.
My newest chickens turned 10 weeks old yesterday and got their first treat of Scratch Grains.

A half Tbsp each daily till after they start to lay. GC

 

[3KillerBs]

The simplest thing is to give them free choice access to their appropriate commercial feed and to restrict treat foods -- scratch, BOSS, and the like -- to small quantities at infrequent intervals. They can be trusted to balance their own foraging if ranging in a rich, diverse environment.

As an example, for 5 hens I gave them a literal handful of scratch about twice a week -- tossing it into the run in an area where I wanted them to turn over the litter.

Now that I have 5 adults, 4 pullets approaching point-of-lay, and 12 older chicks (9 weeks), instead of a handful it's about half a cup.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Everything I’ve read says that chickens should only have 10% of their diet on other things like snacks. How do you know how much they’re actually eating, especially if they’re free ranging.

Measure your 10% snack maximum based on how much feed you are giving them, make no allowance for what they are getting free ranging. My flock is below, about 55 birds most of the time. (actually, I need to edit my sig, five hatched this AM) Anyhow, in theory, I should be feeding around 14# per day, based on flock size and the "thumb rule of 1/4# per bird per day" (which doesn't account for hatchlings well, but whatever). I actually feed 10# per day. So my treats, if any, would be 1# or less for the whole flock.

The other thing to keep in mind when free ranging is WHAT they are free ranging on. If their only choice of plant material is tall fescue, the free ranging itself will contribute to an imbalanced diet. Same if its a field of sunflowers, or a shady sput onder the grape arbors while they are dropping fruits, or next to the blueberry hedge...

 

[ladyhand]

Measure your 10% snack maximum based on how much feed you are giving them, make no allowance for what they are getting free ranging. My flock is below, about 55 birds most of the time. (actually, I need to edit my sig, five hatched this AM) Anyhow, in theory, I should be feeding around 14# per day, based on flock size and the "thumb rule of 1/4# per bird per day" (which doesn't account for hatchlings well, but whatever). I actually feed 10# per day. So my treats, if any, would be 1# or less for the whole flock.

The other thing to keep in mind when free ranging is WHAT they are free ranging on. If their only choice of plant material is tall fescue, the free ranging itself will contribute to an imbalanced diet. Same if its a field of sunflowers, or a shady sput onder the grape arbors while they are dropping fruits, or next to the blueberry hedge...

They seem to graze on grass, the grass that has sprouted from the scratch they won’t eat, various plants and flowers around my backyard, and they dig in the dirt all the time. They love going after my green bean and tomato plants even though I’ve fenced it off because I read they’re toxic.
I’m not quite sure how much feed they’re eating. It’s just put out for them to graze on as needed and I don’t fill it up everyday because it holds quite a bit.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Variety is best - and given the choice, Chickens won't graze on things harmful to them in quantities large enough to do harm - like your tomatoes, they will eat the fruit, but avoid the leaves. Its only the really really toxic stuff, and offering no choice, where you get into trouble.

I'm working on documenting my biodiverse polycultural pasture (my acres of weeds) where my birds free range, but its slow going.

 

[ladyhand]

Variety is best - and given the choice, Chickens won't graze on things harmful to them in quantities large enough to do harm - like your tomatoes, they will eat the fruit, but avoid the leaves. Its only the really really toxic stuff, and offering no choice, where you get into trouble.

I'm working on documenting my biodiverse polycultural pasture (my acres of weeds) where my birds free range, but its slow going.

I haven’t seen them go for the fruit (other than what I offer) just the leaves 🙄. I’m scared I’m going to find them all dead one day because they’ve indulged themselves on nightshade leaves.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I haven’t seen them go for the fruit (other than what I offer) just the leaves 🙄. I’m scared I’m going to find them all dead one day because they’ve indulged themselves on nightshade leaves.

I have American Nightshade in the pasture. Its VERY easy to pull out, but the local wildlife spread them quite effectively. Birds won't touch it. Constant fight to keep it under control (NOT as bad as the soda apple - that's toxic and thorny. Everywhere.)

On that score, at least, you can relax.

I have wild Muscadine grapes, and the birds will just about climb me like a cheerleader's pyramid trying to get at it when I bring them handfuls. Otherwise, they have to forage for them.