FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[Faerie]

My four new girls got FF this morning and just went nuts for it! Gobbled it all right up. So glad they took to it so fast!

Yay! My chicks adore it!

 

[pegm]

I have a question. We are leaving for the weekend, can I put enough ff in feeders to last the 3 days, or should I have someone put it in every day? My neighbor who is taking care of them is a late riser, probably doesn't get over here till about 10am and there is nothing for them to eat early in the morning (the girls get up when it is still dark which right now is about 0615) , Before they were on dry feed in a drop feeder so they had food 24/7. With ff they get fed once a day and it lasts till about 2 pm. then they get their greens and scraps. I thought I could put enough ff out to last, but wondered if anyone else has done this with success. I would have to make another bigger feeder, but that is no problem.

 

[Beekissed]

I have a question. We are leaving for the weekend, can I put enough ff in feeders to last the 3 days, or should I have someone put it in every day? My neighbor who is taking care of them is a late riser, probably doesn't get over here till about 10am and there is nothing for them to eat early in the morning (the girls get up when it is still dark which right now is about 0615) , Before they were on dry feed in a drop feeder so they had food 24/7. With ff they get fed once a day and it lasts till about 2 pm. then they get their greens and scraps. I thought I could put enough ff out to last, but wondered if anyone else has done this with success. I would have to make another bigger feeder, but that is no problem.

Yep...I do it every month for a three day supply. I just dip out what they would eat in three day's time and leave it. Yeah, I'm aware they probably eat it all in the first two days but it's still the exact same amount of feed, so they are not starving, they are just eating all their food at once instead of spacing it out. The food will store in their crops and move through at a normal pace and sustain them as per usual.

When I come home everyone looks fat and sassy as ever.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Oh so you can use milk grains too?


I have some milk kefir sitting in the fridge that's not the tastiest I've made and was wondering what to do with it. I can culture from them since they are active too maybe I can actually do something useful with them. Could you PM me specifics on the best method to make this feed?

I just pour a little kefir into the feed and add water to get it to the consistency I want. The bacteria in the kefir will multiply in the feed.

I have a question. We are leaving for the weekend, can I put enough ff in feeders to last the 3 days, or should I have someone put it in every day? My neighbor who is taking care of them is a late riser, probably doesn't get over here till about 10am and there is nothing for them to eat early in the morning (the girls get up when it is still dark which right now is about 0615) , Before they were on dry feed in a drop feeder so they had food 24/7. With ff they get fed once a day and it lasts till about 2 pm. then they get their greens and scraps. I thought I could put enough ff out to last, but wondered if anyone else has done this with success. I would have to make another bigger feeder, but that is no problem.

A few hours without feed in the morning won't hurt them. If they get 3 day's supply the first day, they may end up going a day or more without feed which IMO is much worse than going 4 hours each day without.
I vote for the neighbor IF they are reliable.
Or go back to the bulk feeder for the weekend.
They don't need feed at night since they can't find it.
How do your chickens get up before it gets light? I've never seen chickens come off the roost in the dark unless there are predators afoot.

Yep...I do it every month for a three day supply. I just dip out what they would eat in three day's time and leave it. Yeah, I'm aware they probably eat it all in the first two days but it's still the exact same amount of feed, so they are not starving, they are just eating all their food at once instead of spacing it out. The food will store in their crops and move through at a normal pace and sustain them as per usual.

When I come home everyone looks fat and sassy as ever.

That's my point. Restricting feed doesn't hurt them but I'd rather they be restricted a few hours each day than for a day or more.

 

[Ariel188]

How do you know how much ff per bird you should leave out? do you weigh it when it's still dry?

 

[Beekissed]

How do you know how much ff per bird you should leave out? do you weigh it when it's still dry?

Right now it usually works out to 1/2 c. per bird, so if you are using a 2 c. scoop to measure out your feed you can calculate how much to feed. If you free range and use it for most of their nutrition, the amounts you feed will most likely be reduced in high foraging months. It's a constant adjustment according to food abundance and seasons, so just watch your bird's condition and feed accordingly.

 

[Ariel188]

Ok ty. So that is 1/2 cup 2 cup each?ry before ff? what is they don't really free range? Do they need more than 1/2

 

[Beekissed]

I just pour a little kefir into the feed and add water to get it to the consistency I want. The bacteria in the kefir will multiply in the feed.

A few hours without feed in the morning won't hurt them. If they get 3 day's supply the first day, they may end up going a day or more without feed which IMO is much worse than going 4 hours each day without.
I vote for the neighbor IF they are reliable.
Or go back to the bulk feeder for the weekend.
They don't need feed at night since they can't find it.
How do your chickens get up before it gets light? I've never seen chickens come off the roost in the dark unless there are predators afoot.


That's my point. Restricting feed doesn't hurt them but I'd rather they be restricted a few hours each day than for a day or more.

Mine come off the roost while it's still dark. Dark for us is not dark for them...they can manage to see adequately in dim lighting. I've seen mine out of the coop and foraging while I still have to use a flashlight to see.

Dishing out their normal allotment of food and feeding it to them all at once is not restricting feed.....it's the exact and same amount of feed they normally eat in that time, so they are having no restrictions at all. I've done this for up to 5 days at a time and the birds were still in the same condition as per normal and as if they had been fed their usual amounts daily. Been doing it that way for years and it's all six of one, half dozen of the other. Same thing with the dog and cat...they all get X amount of days rations to hold them over until we return and all fat and sassy when we get home.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote: This is wonderful Bee because I have been hesitating about getting back into chickens at all or even using FF.... because I will be gone three days at a time if I move myself back to the house. It would be interesting to do a time lapsed record of how the feed is consumed in this manner and find out at what point they run out....

deb

 

[pegm]

Thank you Bee

I do seem to remember you posted about this many pages back, just wasn't sure when. Better got hot and make another feeder. My neighbor is super reliable, just think in a basically barren run, that something to keep them occupied is a good thing so they don't mob the poor guy when he gets over here. Also I can suggest he throw out their small amount of scratch after dark so it is there in the am, I think a couple of times won't attract rodents, which (knock wood) I have seen no evidence of. My coop and run are pretty tight. Thanks again all....