Everyone, post your best homemade chicken feed recipes!

[Shanejlll]

What is DE? I am new to the world of chickens and am trying to learn as much as possible before we get started. Thanks!

 

[Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay]

What is DE? I am new to the world of chickens and am trying to learn as much as possible before we get started. Thanks!

DE, or Diatomaceous Earth, is a compound which has mystical properties to cure everything from parasites to cancer, if you believe the proponents. It is basically gound up sand and many of us question the radical claims made of it's magical properties.

 

[NanaRose]

I am not exactly certain what DE is, other than Diatomaceous Earth, but I can tell you what it has done in connection with keeping my chickens. Like you, I'm new to raising chickens, and yes, I've heard all manner of stuff that DE is supposed to do. What it does in my chicken house is keep things dry. I use a jar with holes in the lid, made with a nail, and shake the DE anywhere the poop is prone to plop, as well as scatter it on the floor, then cover it with grassy hay. The DE causes the chicken droppings to dry instantly, thus eliminating odor and sticking. Clean up is easy. Keeping feces dry aids in eliminating smell, bugs, and disease. I imagine one could use talcum powder to the same effect, but I'm told that DE is safe for the animal to eat-- provided you purchase edible grade.

 

[seabreeze]

We use DE (food grade) as natural bug/insect/flea-a-cides, wormer for our livestock (cloven and single hoofed) and dogs as well. We use it in the chicken coop, on the chickens (dust in their feathers/to skin), dog coats/beds for fleas/ticks/eggs, on the horses if mites are a problem, etc.,

Its not mystical, its practical and it does work.

 

[seabreeze]

I used to buy a great chicken feed from a local guy before he moved away. It had fish meal in it. Does anyone have a laying mash recipe that uses fish meal? The birds looked fantastic on it, and they loved it.

 

[Chris09]

We use DE (food grade) as natural bug/insect/flea-a-cides, wormer for our livestock (cloven and single hoofed) and dogs as well. We use it in the chicken coop, on the chickens (dust in their feathers/to skin), dog coats/beds for fleas/ticks/eggs, on the horses if mites are a problem, etc.,

Its not mystical, its practical and it does work.

As a dust to kill external parasites it works ok, as for killing anything internal it junk. [that's been proven time and time again]

Here is a quote from a seller of DE;

​

Quote:
Now answer me this, If DE has "razor sharp edges" and the " sharp edges lacerate the bugs" what keeps the "razor sharp edges" from lacerating the inside of the chicken.



Quote from Dr. Christine King

diatomite. Diatomaceous earth is a naturally occurring, soft, chalky rock that, when crushed,

yields a fine, light-grey powder. It consists of fossilized remains of tiny hard-shelled algae called
diatoms. Owing to their high content of crystalline silica, diatomite is mildly abrasive.
In fact, that is the mechanism by which diatomite is purported to kill intestinal parasites. It is
believed that the abrasive micro-surfaces of the diatomite cut the outer membranes of the
parasites like thousands of tiny blades. But I question that premise. Industrial-grade diatomite
has a high silica content and is used as a mild abrasive. However, food-grade diatomite has a
much lower content of crystalline silica, so it is minimally abrasive.
And even if the abrasion theory is valid, then what does this stuff do to the delicate lining of
the digestive tract? While I could not find even one scientific study which validates the use of
diatomite against internal parasites in horses or other livestock, my search did turn up several
articles documenting the health risks of chronic exposure to diatomite. When inhaled, it causes
inflammation of the airways and, with chronic exposure, even some fibrosis (scarring).
Even more concerning was a study which showed that chronic oral intake of diatomite can
damage the intestinal lining, altering its absorptive properties and making it more permeable to
potentially harmful substances. So, it seems to me that the practice of using diatomaceous earth
as a daily dewormer for horses is either useless but harmless or useful but harmful, depending on
the grade of diatomite used.''

Chris

 

[Member 151789]

this is a very simple feed that i feed to my chicks when they were growing their feathers.

1 cup uncooked rice
2-3 cups of weeds or greens
1/4 cup of ground eggshell

i'm not too sure about the nutritional facts on that one, but they sure do love it! my hens don't like it anymore though. so its more like a starter/growing feed

hope you try it!
Caohorse

 

[NC ChickenKate]

We live in the southeastern corner of North Carolina and can have a large year-round garden. More than half is planted just for our 8 banty hens, We feed them three meals a day of this mix. This time of the year they get carrots (tops and all), cabbage, collards, beets (again tops and all), kale and any veggie that starts to bolt due to the heat. I add a pinch of granulated seeweed and any fruit skins we might have (be careful, too much fruit will loosen their droppings considerably.).
I purchase 16% layer crumbles at the local feed store. Using the ol' Cuisenard we mix three or more veggies (chopped up a bit ) along with enough crumbles to fill a medium size yogurt container, and pulse the mixture until it's all the same tiny size. The crumbles keep the mixture from being too wet and muddy and it stores nicely in the fridge for the 24 hours it takes for our flock to eat it all up. My gals eat every single bite.
I have added an occassional small handfull of organic dried cat food (sans wheat type) to up the protein level and they like that too.
I figure, by weight, their mix is one quarter crumbles, three quarters veggies...which has cut my purchased feed costs drastically.
Like so much of the nation, temps around here have been in the high 90s and up with 80% + humidity. I get 3 or more eggs a day from our little flock (Silkies, EEs and Welsummers) so I figure their nutritional needs are being met.
Hope all is well in everyone's hen house

 

[Clay Mudd]

I used to buy a great chicken feed from a local guy before he moved away. It had fish meal in it. Does anyone have a laying mash recipe that uses fish meal? The birds looked fantastic on it, and they loved it.

This article give one:

http://www.backyardpoultrymag.com/issues/1/1-4/Harvey_Ussery.html

The article itself gives you a good start on understanding how to formulate your own feeds.

The same author presents a spreadsheet for calculating protein levels with different ingredients:

http://www.backyardpoultrymag.com/issues/2/2-3/Harvey_Ussery1.html

I use a modified version of his spreadsheet myself.

 

[supaflyz]

I'm glad I found this thread. It's very informative. I'm going to try some of these recipes to feed my flock.