FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[KittieChick]

Mine smells sour, like sauerkraut.

I'm sure the drier FF will ferment new feed OK. See this: http://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/

She keeps hers on the dry side. I found these FAQs very useful.

I read through it, but in the heat of battle, I start to question myself. {shrug}

 

[subhanalah]

I read through it, but in the heat of battle, I start to question myself.  {shrug}  

mine just make a huge mess of it if it's wetter than I keep it, which is very crumbly.

 

[TwoCrows]

I too am learning that you can ferment feed in a drier state. I keep mine moist but still in the crumble form. Just shy of clumping. And even after 1 day, it will start to smell sour and yeasty. I am adding to my first starter and so far it is fermenting it all just fine, even in the drier state that it is in. Then when I feed it, it is still crumbly. I can add water during the day if it gets dry, but it seems to hold quite a bit of moisture throughout the day and still hold it's crumble state.

 

[EmeraldSkye]

I use this method with Scratch and Peck feed, which is a whole-grain based feed. The reason I started this is because Scratch and Peck feed has a lot of "powder" which is all of the added nutrients and supplements. Since they aren't grinding it all together and extruding it into pellets, the powdery part of the feed doesn't stick really well to the grain part of the feed and gets left behind in large part. Fermenting the feed makes it all stick together.

The reason I'm mentioning this here is because this whole-grain type food doesn't clump together to form a paste, nor does it get crumbly. It stays moist and separate. I do find it's easier to give it to them while it's more dry. If I get more water than usual in the feed then it's runny and the chickens don't like it so much. I do just feed it to them on the ground because they seem to like it better that way. They leave it behind in the bowl more easily but will eat all of it if it's on the ground. Plus, if it does happen to get too wet then being on the ground allows some of the extra water to drain away.

 

[nguyenkinhphuc2]

What do your feeders look like to feed 40-50 chickens with fermented feed?

 

[Beekissed]

What do your feeders look like to feed 40-50 chickens with fermented feed?

 

[nguyenkinhphuc2]

Do chickens scratch feed inside the feeder?

 

[birdlady79]

For those of you who keep ff outside/ in coop, do you put something over the top to keep flys, gnats out?

 

[dancingqueen]

I keep a lid on mine, I found a quart jar at the dollar store that I keep it in. I don't screw the lid on tight, I don't actually store it in the coop but I do keep out by the coop.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

I keep a lid on mine, I found a quart jar at the dollar store that I keep it in. I don't screw the lid on tight, I don't actually store it in the coop but I do keep out by the coop.

If I ever decide I need lids on my buckets of ff, I'm going to try these ...

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=24071&catid=685

They are strainers ... I wouldn't use them as strainers, I'd use them as lids. Keep pests out, let air circulate.