Everyone, post your best homemade chicken feed recipes!

[MeepBeep]

I Have Another Question About Grit and/Oyster Shell. Could you use Seashells as Calcium or Grit Or Both?

You can crush seashells for calcium, it should not be used as a general purpose grit as it dissolves very quickly and dumps the calcium into the bird and it's so soft it just crumbles apart and is passed... For normal grit you want an insoluble rock with sharp edges like granite, quartz or flint, of the appropriate size that gets stuck in the gizzard an crushes, grinds, cuts, and mashes the food...

 

[MultipleAnimals]

You can crush seashells for calcium, it should not be used as a general purpose grit as it dissolves very quickly and dumps the calcium into the bird and it's so soft it just crumbles apart and is passed... For normal grit you want an insoluble rock with sharp edges like granite, quartz or flint, of the appropriate size that gets stuck in the gizzard an crushes, grinds, cuts, and mashes the food...

Ok, Thanks.

 

[MultipleAnimals]

If I Was To Crush My Own Oyster Shell, How Would I Prep It Before Crushing? I Get Fresh Organic Oyster Shell From A Neighbor. They Eat What's Inside And Then They Through The Shells Outside In A Pile.

 

[KuroKitsune]

i have thought of getting mix and the local mill only does 500lbs...in that 500lbs theres 2 50lb bags of 28% grower crumble, 50lb soy meal, and 175lb each of corn and milo and the place said this mix would be between 16.5 and 17% protein....i was thinking og haveing them do 3 bags of the grower, same amount of soy and then 150 each of the corn milo but what would it make the protein if i did that? before the soy the original mix was only 11% but the soy got it to 16.5-17% and i would like like it 18% or 19% would the 3rd bag of crumbles do that or would it be over?

 

[MeepBeep]

If I Was To Crush My Own Oyster Shell, How Would I Prep It Before Crushing? I Get Fresh Organic Oyster Shell From A Neighbor. They Eat What's Inside And Then They Through The Shells Outside In A Pile.

I would probably just rinse them off with fresh water and bake then at say 300° for an hour to kill off anything that might be on them and cook down any left over 'meat' that might be on them and cause them to stink...

 

[MeepBeep]

i have thought of getting mix and the local mill only does 500lbs...in that 500lbs theres 2 50lb bags of 28% grower crumble, 50lb soy meal, and 175lb each of corn and milo and the place said this mix would be between 16.5 and 17% protein....i was thinking og haveing them do 3 bags of the grower, same amount of soy and then 150 each of the corn milo but what would it make the protein if i did that? before the soy the original mix was only 11% but the soy got it to 16.5-17% and i would like like it 18% or 19% would the 3rd bag of crumbles do that or would it be over?

FYI, that is not a balanced diet unless they dump in some additional supplements, vitamins and minerals to the mix... There is more to chicken feed then 'raw' protein content, they need the proper balance of amino acids in that protein (primarily the lysine and methionine) without the proper balance of amino acids the 'percent' of protein is essentially a poor reference point as a single amino acid shortage in the mix will come into play as the limiting factor... It's also hard to get that proper balance poultry need with a vegetarian diet alone, that is why most commercial vegetarian feeds supplement with synthetic lysine and methionine... What that means in simple terms is that a 16% balanced amino acid protein feed for poultry can actually be superior to a 19% unbalanced amino acid protein feed...

Now for the math...

100 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
175 lbs @ 9% (corn)
175 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total that is a 16.8%

For your proposed mix

150 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
150 lbs @ 9% (corn)
150 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total for the above is 18.7

But, as I stated above it's likely not a balanced protein feed on it's own and probably lacks either the proper amount of methionine (this is the most common limiter and one of the primary causes of feather picking and eating) or lysine...

 

[KuroKitsune]

FYI, that is not a balanced diet unless they dump in some additional supplements, vitamins and minerals to the mix... There is more to chicken feed then 'raw' protein content, they need the proper balance of amino acids in that protein (primarily the lysine and methionine) without the proper balance of amino acids the 'percent' of protein is essentially a poor reference point as a single amino acid shortage in the mix will come into play as the limiting factor... It's also hard to get that proper balance poultry need with a vegetarian diet alone, that is why most commercial vegetarian feeds supplement with synthetic lysine and methionine... What that means in simple terms is that a 16% balanced amino acid protein feed for poultry can actually be superior to a 19% unbalanced amino acid protein feed...

Now for the math...

100 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
175 lbs @ 9% (corn)
175 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total that is a 16.8%

For your proposed mix

150 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
150 lbs @ 9% (corn)
150 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total for the above is 18.7

But, as I stated above it's likely not a balanced protein feed on it's own and probably lacks either the proper amount of methionine (this is the most common limiter and one of the primary causes of feather picking and eating) or lysine...

ok thanks for telling me such things....i had no i dea really....a friend geting feed this way buy with layer crumbles instead of grower and less layer. was just wanting a cheaper feed option while i had extra mouths to feed and once i had no extra mouths(extra mouths are chicks i'm raising for a friend till their 3 or 4 months old) i'd go back to what i normally feed which is nurtrena naturewise all flock

should i ask the place if they have a pre mix or whatever the name is to balance out the feed?

 

[KuroKitsune]

FYI, that is not a balanced diet unless they dump in some additional supplements, vitamins and minerals to the mix... There is more to chicken feed then 'raw' protein content, they need the proper balance of amino acids in that protein (primarily the lysine and methionine) without the proper balance of amino acids the 'percent' of protein is essentially a poor reference point as a single amino acid shortage in the mix will come into play as the limiting factor... It's also hard to get that proper balance poultry need with a vegetarian diet alone, that is why most commercial vegetarian feeds supplement with synthetic lysine and methionine... What that means in simple terms is that a 16% balanced amino acid protein feed for poultry can actually be superior to a 19% unbalanced amino acid protein feed...

Now for the math...

100 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
175 lbs @ 9% (corn)
175 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total that is a 16.8%

For your proposed mix

150 lbs @ 28% (crumbles)
50 lbs @ 49% (soy meal)
150 lbs @ 9% (corn)
150 lbs @ 9% (milo)

Total for the above is 18.7

But, as I stated above it's likely not a balanced protein feed on it's own and probably lacks either the proper amount of methionine (this is the most common limiter and one of the primary causes of feather picking and eating) or lysine...

Just called the co-op that I was looking at for the feed and they said they have a hog mix mineral thing that has lysine, selenium, vitamins A,D and E and something else I don't remember he said he could add 10 lb of this stuff to the mix to make it more balanced would it be better if the stuff was added?

 

[MeepBeep]

Just called the co-op that I was looking at for the feed and they said they have a hog mix mineral thing that has lysine, selenium, vitamins A,D and E and something else I don't remember he said he could add 10 lb of this stuff to the mix to make it more balanced would it be better if the stuff was added?

They should have access to a 'poultry' mix additive as well... The difference between 'chicken feed' and 'hog feed' is mostly just what supplement mix they dump into their base mix...

It's really hard to say if adding the hog minerals will balance it out without a lab analysis, but it certainly won't hurt...

Also chickens will 'sustain' on a slightly inferior feed, they will just eat more to compensate so you feed conversion lessens, bumping up the protein as you suggest also helps as chances are greater they will get the proper balance...

You can try getting 500 lbs and see how the birds do on it, I have no idea what their 'hog' mix is so I would recommend you pick up a bag of Diamond V and either have them mix the appropriate amount (or just dump in 10 lbs and call it a day) in or simply mix some into the feed your self... When I supplement for my peafowl and ducks I use the Original XP version and just sprinkle a handful into their feed each day, no precise measurement needed...

There are several different Diamond V mixes,I use the 'XP Original' version personally as that is what my feed store carries you could use that and have them dump a few pounds into your 500 lb mix and you will be well on your way towards a balanced diet, or as I do just mix some in yourself...

http://www.diamondv.com/products/original/

I have considered having my feed store order me in a bag of the newer 'XPC Ultra' version if it's not that much more costly and giving that a whirl as it's super concentrated...

http://www.diamondv.com/wp-content/uploads/productprofile_xpc-ultra.pdf

 

[KuroKitsune]

They should have access to a 'poultry' mix additive as well... The difference between 'chicken feed' and 'hog feed' is mostly just what supplement mix they dump into their base mix...

It's really hard to say if adding the hog minerals will balance it out without a lab analysis, but it certainly won't hurt...

Also chickens will 'sustain' on a slightly inferior feed, they will just eat more to compensate so you feed conversion lessens, bumping up the protein as you suggest also helps as chances are greater they will get the proper balance...

You can try getting 500 lbs and see how the birds do on it, I have no idea what their 'hog' mix is so I would recommend you pick up a bag of Diamond V and either have them mix the appropriate amount (or just dump in 10 lbs and call it a day) in or simply mix some into the feed your self... When I supplement for my peafowl and ducks I use the Original XP version and just sprinkle a handful into their feed each day, no precise measurement needed...

There are several different Diamond V mixes,I use the 'XP Original' version personally as that is what my feed store carries you could use that and have them dump a few pounds into your 500 lb mix and you will be well on your way towards a balanced diet, or as I do just mix some in yourself...

http://www.diamondv.com/products/original/

I have considered having my feed store order me in a bag of the newer 'XPC Ultra' version if it's not that much more costly and giving that a whirl as it's super concentrated...

http://www.diamondv.com/wp-content/uploads/productprofile_xpc-ultra.pdf

i sent my sate rep an email asking about getting a bag of the diamond v so will see what happens