Feeding warm food in the mornings

[downrangechick]

In the winter I always make sure they have food all day since there is no grass or bugs to eat. They get bored and sometimes start picking on each other so if you have some cabbage or apples that helps them pass the time also.

 

[Mtn Laurel]

So I should be feeding all day long.They should have something in their house or in the pen at all times? Somes say yes some say no being a newbie sure is confusing.Are they suppose to eat all day.Been told if they are to full they want lay.But I dont want them to be empty either.Again sorry sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.Lol!!

I feed differently in winter than I do in summer. In summer they have access to grass, worms, and bugs so they're not needing as much food from me. I still offer them layer pellets or crumbles 24/7 but they don't eat as much of it in the summer.

The winter is different as there's no grass and most bugs are gone. In extreme cold temperatures - like what many of us are experiencing now - it's good to offer them extra feed. Throwing scratch grains on the floor and the birds moving about and scratching for them helps to warm them. The act of digestion helps keep them warm, too, and they need the extra calories in the bitter cold.

Keep an eye on what they eat and how much they eat during the different seasons and weather and you'll soon get a feeling for what they need.

 

[Spanishchick]

Oatmeal! Great idea, I think I'll add the fresh apple I give them every morning and afternoon for the sugar in the cold cold!
Ok........I give it to them almost every day but in reality it helps them energy levels in the cold.

I love this idea of Oatmeal! I am sure they will love it thanks.

To newbee......not so old myself but ground is frozen so worm and bugs aren't around, hawks are out so they're penned unless we're outside for now, animals are really hungry. I suppose you have to be creative.
Right now I'm more concerned with thier water than their food.

ps. I also give them 'some' wet feed. Also wild bird food. They love it.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

So I should be feeding all day long.They should have something in their house or in the pen at all times? Somes say yes some say no being a newbie sure is confusing.Are they suppose to eat all day.Been told if they are to full they want lay.But I dont want them to be empty either.Again sorry sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.Lol!!

Yes, depending on the feed. You don't want to feed cracked corn all day. Having a balanced age appropriate chicken ration available all the time is the way to go.
Understanding evolution and commercial livestock production is important to understanding how one should feed.
A wild chicken will be searching, finding and eating feed from dawn to dusk so they are eating all day.
Correspondingly, humans, dogs and cats evolved eating when they found food. Dogs and cats would possibly miss a day between a kill. Humans may go a week between kills but would also forage so would probably eat a few times a day. Hence the '3 squares a day' idea.
Prior to the early 1900s, chickens ate similarly to their wild cousins. Most were barnyard scavengers looking for grain in the horse stalls/livestock feeding areas and for bugs and greens in the garden. They were also fed table scraps. Hence, they ate all day. Since then, much more productive breeds have been developed and now make up the majority of the global chicken population. Commercial layers for super egg production over a short period and fast growth for broilers. Commercial feeds were developed based on exhaustive research to meet the demands of the market.
Commercial layer feeds are designed for today’s productive hens. The feed has the right proportion of protein, minerals and energy for the chickens. This feed should make up the bulk of your flock’s diet and should be available all day.
A chicken won't move in the dark since they can't see. They should go to bed with full crops. It takes over 25 hours to create one egg with about 18 hours in the shell gland. During the night, as the hen is sleeping, she is still building that egg and gets the nutrients (primarily calcium if the egg is already in the shell gland). If her digestive tract is empty she can’t make the egg. So, let your hen eat all she wants from sunup to sundown.
Still that does not mean all she wants of cracked corn which is primarily energy and little protein or vitamins.
If the entire flock is not actively laying, they shouldn't be getting the layer formulated for a commercial layer flock but a balanced feed without the 4 % calcium for layers.

I feed differently in winter than I do in summer. In summer they have access to grass, worms, and bugs so they're not needing as much food from me. I still offer them layer pellets or crumbles 24/7 but they don't eat as much of it in the summer.

The winter is different as there's no grass and most bugs are gone. In extreme cold temperatures - like what many of us are experiencing now - it's good to offer them extra feed. Throwing scratch grains on the floor and the birds moving about and scratching for them helps to warm them. The act of digestion helps keep them warm, too, and they need the extra calories in the bitter cold.

Keep an eye on what they eat and how much they eat during the different seasons and weather and you'll soon get a feeling for what they need.

That's right.
I find my birds foraging in good weather when things are growing rarely go back to the house to feed.

I suppose you have to be creative.
Right now I'm more concerned with thier water than their food.

ps. I also give them 'some' wet feed. Also wild bird food. They love it.

Same here.
A chicken should have thawed water available all day. If no way to keep it thawed then at least provided morning, midday and late afternoon.

The wild bird food as a scratch is more like what they would find foraging.

 

[Spanishchick]

Some of my chickens would be happy with worms all day long that they forage. My Rhode island reds could care less for them. I feel I should begin to harvest earth worms!
Are my chickens weird?