FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[vpatt]

Thank you everyone!

 

[Aphrael]

I use one bucket.......add more feed and water as needed. Sometimes it is drier sometimes more wet. I use a cat litter scoop to scoop out and drain it as I feed the chickens. I know the water does not have to be deep....but I guess I feel if it is too dry that it may not ferment. There is less residue if the food is drier....but like I said will it ferment properly? I mean it is the water that gets bubbly.

Sometimes less water drains out and for sure that leaves more sludge. I will try to drain better.

It will ferment just fine even without floating water. I do mine at, as someone earlier described it, a cookie dough consistency. I can scoop it out and form a ball in my hand, it doesn't just ooze out. The girls seem to like it best this way, and as I said it ferments very well.

Okay......I bought #50 of chick starter. It is 21% protein. After getting home and opening it I read the label which says it is for meat birds. Does that mean my chicks cannot eat it? Can it be fermented? It is great that it has the protein. It is nonGMO and soyfree, but it is not organic. But my main question is whether it can be fermented because it is more powdery. If it can be then my decision is do I want to pay $28 per #50 for organic or $19.75 per #50 for soyfree nonGMO. I already set out oyster shell for the girls.

I was asking about fermenting it for all the chickens.........but also can the new chicks eat fermented chick starter?

Yep, they sure can! That is all my current chicks have ever had and they are healthy and growing like weeds!

 

[vpatt]

Thnx Aphrael!

 

[vpatt]

Is it ok to add scratch to the ferment? I was thinking if I used the chick starter for the adults it is powdery and the scratch would add some crunch. Do the chickens care about that?

 

[ak rain]

Is it ok to add scratch to the ferment? I was thinking if I used the chick starter for the adults it is powdery and the scratch would add some crunch. Do the chickens care about that?

This is what got me started in ff. I now only add scratch occasionally bull most if not all grains well ferment. I don't add a lot I don't know what it does to ballance of nutrients and such.

 

[Aphrael]

I will occasionally add a bit of scratch or wild bird seed or wheat berries, but not much and not all the time. I, too, worry about throwing off the nutritional balance of the feed.

 

[vpatt]

Thank you.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I don't think it is a problem to add scratch grains as long as they don't make up more than about 5% and you don't also feed scratch in addition to the feed.

What I primarily ferment is an organic grower that is very coarsely ground so there are a lot of whole seeds in it and I like the consistency much more than when I ferment a starter or pelleted feed.

 

[vpatt]

I don't think it is a problem to add scratch grains as long as they don't make up more than about 5% and you don't also feed scratch in addition to the feed.

What I primarily ferment is an organic grower that is very coarsely ground so there are a lot of whole seeds in it and I like the consistency much more than when I ferment a starter or pelleted feed.

Yes...it is the consistancy I am thinking of and having a higher % of protein. Grower feed...hmmm

 

[Aphrael]

I don't think it is a problem to add scratch grains as long as they don't make up more than about 5% and you don't also feed scratch in addition to the feed.

What I primarily ferment is an organic grower that is very coarsely ground so there are a lot of whole seeds in it and I like the consistency much more than when I ferment a starter or pelleted feed.

The Bryant feed I use is also pretty coarsely ground and I like the consistency it gives much more than that of the Layena pelleted feed I use. But I mix them because I feel the 24% protein in the Bryant is too much for the layers to have all the time.