Feed Grinder question

[cwenbass]

Hello All,

My wife and I are debating getting some hens. We are in early planning phase right now. We want the healthiest eggs we can get. I see organic chicken feed can be a little expensive so i am not opposed to making my own. We are planning on 3-6 chickens. Do I need a feed grinder or can I just mix ingredients by hand (I plan on getting non-gmo supplies from amazon in 20-50 lbs sacks)?

 

[RJSorensen]

Yes, you can do it. With or without a hand grinder if you wish. With the few birds you have however I would reccomend that you buy the organic feed locally. There are many who try to build a better feed than the commercial producers, but I don't think I know of a single case of this happening. You will most likely spend more, both in time and money, and get less for your trouble. And end up feeding stale feed to boot.

Storage of those grains and the mixing/grinding are huge attractions for mice and varmints. A cool dry place, safe from infestations of grain mites and other little bugs is harder than most folks think. You will know a lot more for sure after you have done this for a month or two.

I like to feed all kinds of grains to my birds, I enjoy trying a little of this and a little of that, but I would never dream that I could make a feed with the trace elements and other additions that are not included with raw grains. My degree is not in animal food science. So I let the 'experts' formulate the main feed. I then add in what I want as scratch, and only as a small percentage of the total feed.

If you want to go natural, try free ranging. That is as natural as you can get. My birds eat little of the prepared feed, they mostly fill up on bugs and grass and such out free ranging. Your early interest in such thing bodes well for your birds when you decide to get them, that is always good.

Don't let me talk you out of your goal, work on it and do it. It is good however to know that there is an other 'shoe' that needs be looked at as well. Few things in life only have an up side…

Best to you and your future birds,

RJ