FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[enola]

Last time I mentioned dunking a chicken in a bucket of water, all hell broke loose. I had members jumping all over me! I did it to a rooster that wouldn't stop flogging me. It worked too!

You and I are alike in many ways!

 

[Beekissed]

Last time I mentioned dunking a chicken in a bucket of water, all hell broke loose. I had members jumping all over me! I did it to a rooster that wouldn't stop flogging me. It worked too!

You and I are alike in many ways!

Yeah...me too. Folks who don't know diddly squat about chickens can get their panties in a wad over such things but I don't really listen to that sort. Same folks will let a chicken suffer and die without once helping them out of their pain, all with the excuse of "not having the heart to kill my chicken". Doesn't hurt a chicken one little bit to get a dunking but it can change their mind real quick and in a hurry.

 

[enola]

Yes, a good sloshing three tears ago, no flogging since then! I put him in a wire cage right where all the hens could see him in all his soaked glory. Absolute mortification!!

 

[aart]

Nothing so planned as that...most often I just held them by the feet and dunked them in the dog bucket a couple of times and tossed them brusquely out of the coop. It works pretty well for all but the incredibly determined broody...those I'll just pen with the rooster and don't offer a nest. He will usually take the broody right out of them.

Oh, that gave me a much needed guffaw this morning ......
.....the visuals it inspired

...Thanks!

 

[monkcat]

Nothing so planned as that...most often I just held them by the feet and dunked them in the dog bucket a couple of times and tossed them brusquely out of the coop. It works pretty well for all but the incredibly determined broody...those I'll just pen with the rooster and don't offer a nest. He will usually take the broody right out of them.

Well, Beekissed I have to thank you for something I have never had to thank a forum member for in the past, cleaning out my sinuses. As I just shot hot coffee out of my nose, those pesky allergies are, at least temporarily, on the run. It's a good thing I don't live near you. I'd have to track you down and shake your hand! LOL

 

[hennible]

 

[MandalaMaMa]

I'm about ready to introduce my 8 wks old pullets to my flock of 4. I've got a Ameraucans that can be a ***** but I'm ready. I have a holding pen all ready for her if needed. My 8 pullets have been in the new coop in a holding pen since the first of the month. Already the Ameraucan has been pecking at them through the hardware cloth. Any suggestions? I realize this is off topic. But I have been feeding everyone fermented food and I love it and so do they.

 

[Rhinoman]

A cautionary tale:

Before I begin I want to start by saying I am not condemning fermented feed or anyone's feeding practices, I'm just relaying my experience.

I want to breed Heritage chickens and I want feed my chickens the best food possible. I came across the thread on fermented feed. I figured the most natural food possible was also best so I bought grains and fish meal and we mixed our own food and fermented it. Here's the mix we were using recipe: 32oz ea: cracked corn, rolled oats, steamed barley, wheat germ, alfalfa pellets; 6oz ea boss, fish meal. We adjust the amount but use the same ratio.

Egg production was very poor this winter from our mixed flock (horrible predation ended our plans to breed Heritage chickens for the year and I’m not going to attempt to breed again until we have large protected enclosures built, [we had free ranged the year before with only two losses, but not last year, there was one day we lost six chickens!). Weeks that went by this winter were we didn’t get any eggs, I couldn’t figure out what the problem might be. Still as of the beginning of April no eggs (imagine if I had been trying to breed).

The other day this toothless old man (Pop) came by the house to thank my wife for the cookies we sent to him and his injured wife. Pop told my son the story about the time when his son wanted some chickens: He went to a local guy he knew had some chickens and bought some, the guy he got the chickens from explained to him that he wasn’t going to get any eggs from the chickens; they’re free loaders. The guy showed him how he fed the chickens: this grain mix in a bucket with some water that sits for a while. He said it was the best thing for them even though they’re free loaders and don’t even deserve it! Well, Pop got the chickens anyway cause his boy really wanted some chickens. Not one to fuss with anything and being a practical man, all this fancy food was too much for Pop. Pop wasn’t about to do anything more than he had to for free loading chickens. So he just fed um some chicken food and don’t you know: they started laying eggs like little egg laying machines!

When my son told me the story a 5000w light went off in my head. So I bought some Poulin grain chicken food and guess what? Four days later our chickens started laying again! And now they're laying like little egg laying machines.

The thing is most breeders, even those that breed prize-winning heritage-birds, just use commercial feed.

I don't know what went wrong, too many variables. Maybe my fifteen year old screwed the feed up. I do know that when our breeding program is in full swing there was no way we were going to feed hundreds of chickens fermented feed and to be honest most people that raise chicks are going to use a commercial chicken feed as their primary nutrition.al source.

Again I’m not bashing fermented feed, I’m not bashing whole grains. I’m just saying if you get it wrong…

 

[monkcat]

I'm brand spanking new to all this and I'm reading all opinions and absorbing whatever is out there to be used with discretion and common sense. I don't think relaying your experience is bashing. What I am wondering is with the feed, what would have been the protein percentage? I'm NOT calling into question your mix. I don't know enough about it to even attempt to mix my own. I don't know what is in grower, layer, whatever. Strictly for my own learning standpoint. I don't even have a chicken yet! Just curious. Oh, and were they getting other stuff too? What I would consider compost type stuff? I'm hoping when I do get chickens, they'll be thrilled for my leftover apple cores and pruny grape leavings. LOL I think a lot of people are fermenting their commercial feed and maybe adding some stuff into it. Have no clue what all they are putting in though. Maybe someone else can chime in that has actual experience rather than my inexperienced self.

So sorry you had such a bad experience. And glad your chickens are laying.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree. Didn't seem like a balanced ration, then you switched to a balanced ration and you got eggs. No mystery there.

I had just the opposite happen at my place....chickens that were being fed hog feed and kept confined to an awful place, were infested with lice, mites and who knows what else. This was an old flock of mine that were proven layers but the old farmer that was keeping them said they had stopped laying and that the rooster was "shooting blanks".

Brought them home, put them on free range and fermented layer ration and the eggs started flowing out of those old birds, as per normal, and, lo and behold, they were fertilized as well.

Feed bad rations(not balanced for a laying chicken's needs) you get bad performance, feed a balanced ration and you get good performance~fermented or not fermented.