FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[ak rain]

. Happy holidays everyone

 

[Beekissed]

Oooooo, preeeeetttttyyyy!!!!

Back at ya! I hope everyone stays warm, safe and joyful for the rest of this year and beyond.

 

[LindaB220]

Oooooo, preeeeetttttyyyy!!!!

Back at ya! I hope everyone stays warm, safe and joyful for the rest of this year and beyond.

Back at ya!!!!

Edited: Sorry, Bee, didn't see the back at ya in your quote. So I'll say "You too"

 

[pegm]

I have been feeding my 4 hens FF for probably 6 weeks now. They are still less than enthusiastic about it. I give them fresh in the morning and they hardly touch it until sometime after noon, even after a really cold night. They will pick around the run for hours before finally eating some of the ff. I do throw a minimum (probably around 1/3 cup) scratch down for them so they have something to scratch around and find in the am, but that is just as a boredom breaker more than anything. I don't give them any scraps until I see they have eaten at least half of the ff. They rarely finish what I have put out, which is probably about 1/4 cup per bird now as they were wasting so much. All 4 are now laying, but I don't know if it is worth doing the ff as they really don't seem to like it and eat it as a last resort. A couple still have runny poops, smell seems to be down, but it is after all, winter. I am also giving them ACV in their water because they are so reluctant to eat the feed and I want them to have the benefit of the ACV. I'm glad so many of you have girls that love it, just wish mine did also as it is so healthy for them.

 

[Beekissed]

You might try not giving scratch and scraps and just the FF and see what happens. Chickens can be like children...give them candy and snacks and then give them a healthy meal somewhere in the middle, they are always going to eat the junk food first. When it comes down to it, the FF is the best nutrition and the best for them out of those three choices.

You could try making them clean up their real food before they have dessert or you can just ferment their scratch right into the FF so they have a variety. They will pick it out of the layer feed before eating the rest but at least the scratch will have been boosted in nutrients, making it less of a dessert and more of a healthy portion of a healthy meal.

 

[Sally_O]

We are going to start fermenting our chicken feed. This thread started in 2012 and goes for 150 pages. I'm not sure I can read all that and be sane at the end. Any chance you could link to an instructional blog post that picks up the best of this thread for us newbies? I'm going to dive in anyway... if I write the post myself, I'll let you know!

Thank you.

 

[pegm]

I do add scratch to the ff, mine is crumbles, scratch (maybe 15%), boss and rolled barley. I only give them the tiny bit of scratch because they are confined in a run most of the time on sand, so there is little for them to do. I give them greens like kale and occasionally a cabbage head because I think greens are important on most days. Actually, the cabbage is more for play and a hoot to watch. I hang it up and it's like tether ball. They get so offended when it swings right back at them. I will stop throwing the scratch out and withhold treats for awhile and see what happens. Thanks for the advice Bee, your posts are always filled with good advice.

 

[Beekissed]

We are going to start fermenting our chicken feed. This thread started in 2012 and goes for 150 pages. I'm not sure I can read all that and be sane at the end. Any chance you could link to an instructional blog post that picks up the best of this thread for us newbies? I'm going to dive in anyway... if I write the post myself, I'll let you know!

Thank you.

Not one that I would recommend to anyone...all the ones I've seen make it complicated and take extra steps that are unnecessary to get the same end result.

It's fairly simple...you take a bucket, place equal parts feed and water in it~ allowing for the swelling of the feed~stir it well and place it somewhere at room temps, or warmer, and then wait. You can stir it each day to encourage release of gas formation within the mix. You do not have to maintain water over the feed at all times, despite what many claim and you don't have to stir it all the time, you don't have to keep a lid on it and it's advisable to not keep a lid down tightly on it as the build up of gases can cause a minor explosion.

You'll be waiting for that gas formation and a slight sour smell and the time it takes to reach that varies a little due to type of feed, available yeast spores in the air, ambient temps, etc. If you see a film of white, grey or beige forming on top of the feed, don't throw it out as that is just the scoby~a grouping of microorganisms colonized to feed off the sugars in the feed...they are doing the work of fermenting your feed for you.

You can feed it out as soon as you smell that souring smell and it will continue to deepen in that smell until it smells pickled...some feeds with fish meal in them can smell like rotten fish, so be aware that some FF doesn't smell too pleasant. It will ferment well in temps of 50* and above but may go dormant a little in temps any lower than that.

As long as you refresh with feed when your bucket gets low and add fresh water, the mix cannot spoil or go bad, so no worries. You don't have to stir it every day to keep it good. Usually it is stirred before feeding to moisten the top. As long as the top is moist, it doesn't have to stay submersed under the water. Save some of each batch to inoculate the next and you won't have to wait so long to get a good ferment...should be able to feed it out the next day after a rebatch. Most just keep a rolling mix in this way.

You'll have to play with your water amounts to get the consistency you like to use but most find it easier to feed it at a mashed potatoes or mortar consistency. You don't have to strain it when you keep it at that thickness. It works best if you have some drainage holes in your feeder to drain any excess moisture and it's advisable to feed it in meals, whatever they can clean up before it freezes in your climate.

I feed once a day in the morning and the food is consumed within an hour or so, quicker in the warmer months as I feed less then. In the summer months I feed in the evenings as my flock free ranges all day...those in pens and runs can be fed any time that is convenient but it will not spoil if left in the feeder for extended periods and even for a number of days.

Most are feeding in troughs but try not to use metal as the acetic acid in the feed can corrode and cause leaching of the metals into the feed. Those in colder climates are using heated dog bowls for feeding the FF.

Any questions you may have about the process can be answered pretty quickly here or at the larger, more active FF thread in the meat bird section.

Good luck and let us know how it's going! It helps if you take before pics of your flock or problem birds and note any positive changes with pics of after...we love those and they speak a thousand words!

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Here's a situation, with a question at the end ...

I've recently-ish begun fermenting poultry feed in my kitchen. I have one of those big glass barrels ... 5 gallons I think ... and have the feed percolating away in there. Meanwhile, my smoke alarm started going off a lot. I presumed it was the battery, so replaced it. The alarm is still going off. Coincidence?

(I'm thinking maybe a CO2 detector in the smoke alarm?)

 

[Beekissed]

Wow...could be! I'd move that jar away from your detector area and see what happens. Never heard that one before!