Experiment: Fermenting Feed by Refreshing Daily

[FeatherSmith]

I've been feeding my bird fermented feed and I think I've found the easiest way to handle it especially if you just have a household flock. I saw a video on youtube about sourdough bakeries that gave me the idea. Basically every morning they take part of the culture they have for the daily baking, then feed the rest and put it away for tomorrow. Some bakeries have cultures that are fifty or more years old!

So what I started doing is this: I have a pitcher and each day I take out 3/4 the feed inside. I smell and sometimes taste (the things we for birds!) to make sure it isn't "off". Then I add two cups of feed, fresh water, and mix briefly. So far I've had a fermented feed daily that the birds really like. Because I'm not starting from scratch every time there's less of a chance something goes wrong. I'm interested in seeing how long this works for. I will mention that I started the original batch with a tiny pinch of "rooster booster" with probiotics. I'll update in a week or so to chime in. Wanted to share since examples on youtube seem more complicated then this.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I smell and sometimes taste (the things we for birds!) to make sure it isn't "off". Then I add two cups of feed, fresh water, and mix briefly. So far I've had a fermented feed daily that the birds really like. Because I'm not starting from scratch every time there's less of a chance something goes wrong.

Fun experiment. I did it for a flock of 82 for 2 years before determining not a single cent was saved nor was my birds health increased above using a formulated ration. I even did it with dog food, lol! Highly over rated IMO, but again still a fun adventure and no harm caused, possibly even considered enrichment. Maybe you can check out some of the extensive threads on here.. lots of folks there to chat with on the ins and outs.. Sounds like you already discovered that you don't need to keep it fully submerged in water to keep it viable.. stirring however is key still.

What you describe is simply called back slopping, by most folks here on BYC.

How would you know if it was "off".. what are you tasting for? Could you taste say botulism IF it were present.. I think NOT.. for informational purposes. I truly wasn't worried about botulism with FF after all the research.. but using it is an example just as food for thought.

Are you using chlorinated water?

Have you seen the SCOBY yet?

Happy adventures!

 

[FeatherSmith]

Fun experiment. I did it for a flock of 82 for 2 years before determining not a single cent was saved nor was my birds health increased above using a formulated ration. I even did it with dog food, lol! Highly over rated IMO, but again still a fun adventure and no harm caused, possibly even considered enrichment. Maybe you can check out some of the extensive threads on here.. lots of folks there to chat with on the ins and outs.. Sounds like you already discovered that you don't need to keep it fully submerged in water to keep it viable.. stirring however is key still.

What you describe is simply called back slopping, by most folks here on BYC.

How would you know if it was "off".. what are you tasting for? Could you taste say botulism IF it were present.. I think NOT.. for informational purposes. I truly wasn't worried about botulism with FF after all the research.. but using it is an example just as food for thought.

Are you using chlorinated water?

Have you seen the SCOBY yet?

Happy adventures!

Well if there's no benefit I might end up stopping.
I wasn't aware that lacto-fermentation could create botulism, I realize now I was thinking of vegetables pickled in brine. I know what properly fermented feed looks like and smells like, so anything else. However botulism isn't the kind of rot you associate with food going bad. I was more worried about rot when it comes to the feed! Now I am worried.

Oh wow SCOBY lol been a long time since I've heard of that. No haven't seen that. My water is well water.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I wasn't aware that lacto-fermentation could create botulism,

Sorry, I don't know if it can or not.. I was using it as an example only of possibly not being able to taste a toxin when something has gone off. I decided the risk was minimal and did NOT worry about it when I was using FF under normal conditions. I did NOT mean to worry you.. but definitely use YOUR best discretion always please.

I'm also not saying that no one sees benefit in their flock or that it isn't worth trying, your mileage *MAY* vary.. say if they had more waste than my flock, maybe fermenting corrected that. Just wetting into mash could do the same thing. And I do find value in enrichment/variety for the flock and even myself.. it was fun to see the bubbles rising and stirring the feed when it was fluffy.

But no, it didn't make my birds lay more or sooner, or feather in quicker, or any of the other things more related to genetics but also influenced by nutrition.. Will it have more impact on someone who uses "layer" feed (16% protein) or a non formulated ration (whole grains, etc) than it did on my flock using "flock raiser" (20% protein)?

I don't think I said thank you for sharing your tip.. but I didn't mean to be dismissive, sorry if it came across like that.

Please do spend some time looking through other fermenting threads before dismissing it on my word alone.

 

[GinRin7]

Hi, I was wondering how your experiment turned out? I'm attempting something similar with mine and I've noticed that fermented feed seems to greatly minimize the poop smell for me.