FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[Tikkijane]

I know that a lot of the people who feed FF just keep feeding it through the winter.  I decided to feed dry because it gets so cold here.  January through February the daily high is usully around 20 below.  I just didn't want to be thawing out blocks of FF a few times a day.

They should eat what they need in 10-30 minutes. That should not be long enough to freeze unless you get into the deep negatives and stay there. If that's how it was where I lived, I'd use heated dog bowls or figure out something else {like sock warmer type stuff or a microwave heating pack that they can't get to, etc.}

 

[Tikkijane]

They should eat what they need in 10-30 minutes. That should not be long enough to freeze unless you get into the deep negatives and stay there. If that's how it was where I lived, I'd use heated dog bowls or figure out something else {like sock warmer type stuff or a microwave heating pack that they can't get to, etc.}

If it does freeze, bring it in to thaw and mix it back in. Mine is never out long enough to not get eaten quickly or freeze....

 

[Tikkijane]

That was one of the hard part for new people that wanted to try this.  So many pages.   Tikktoc has a fact page that she has made to answer any questions you may have on the best and easiest way to do it.  Sooooooo worth it.  

http://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/


For the chicks, I had to take away all dry food.  They are okay and won't starve.  Now they won't eat anything else.  

The FAQ link is in my siggy. Hard to find on mobile, though. :/

 

[Tikkijane]

I put out some pellets for them this afternoon and they ate those up.... and then went back to eating the FF. I swear they are so fickle. *laugh* Still love them though.

Chicks should have acess 24/7. I give small amounts and replace with fresh as eaten.

My only caution is depth of the dish/bowl. I had a keet get stuck in one overnight which wasn't very deep but somehow it didn't get out. Ultimately it died. I did not have that issue with my chicks, but now I use something flat for all the babies.

 

[kada6305]

It's better to wait until you have about a single serving left and then backslop and refresh. By constantly adding new, you can weaken the ferment.

Adults need 1/2-1 cup FF 1-2 x a day.

Sprinkle some dry on top to get the chicks started.

They chicks are all on the FF now. only one left is out 4 week check which he seems to like it, My chickens and ducks dont eat nearly that amount of food. In the winter I am sure they will though. They free range on 5 acres. I give 3 cups to the chickens and 1 cup to the ducks in the morning, that usually lasts them for a few hours. Give another cup to each mid day which lasts 30 minutes and then at night give same serving as morning feeding and they still have some left in morning.

I have 7 chickens and 4 ducks. so for chickens thats 6 cups for the chickens. divided by 7 chickens that is .8 cups per chicken once a day.

For the ducks that is 3 cups, which is .75 cup per duck once a day.

But if I divided it into 2 feedings that would be .37c per duck 2x a day for the ducks and .4 c per chicken twice a day.


I'm sure they will require about double that amount once the snow comes and there aren't as many bugs to eat. Besides the chickens refuse to step outside on that icky white stuff LOL Ducks on the other hand...Frozen water is the best thing to swim in LOL

Hubby finally made me move the FF down to the basement. I think we are on day 4 now since starting to yes started to smell a little strong. Started a bucket for the chicks using the same fermented "juice" as was already used in that bucket for the adult feed. But 2 buckets for the adults was too much so now have 1 bucket for the adults and 1 for the babies.

I am looking for other things to put into the FF for the adults..What can I add that is safe for both chickens and ducks? I've added corn which they all LOVE

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I have 3 different protein levels of FF now. I have a coarsely ground 16% organic grower for the adults and cockerels. The same feed mixed 10:1 with fishmeal = 20% for growing young pullets and a higher concentrate fishmeal mix to get 24% for chicks.
I'm probably done hatching this year so I'll be needing more of the 16% as they mature. I mixed up three 5 gallon buckets 3 days ago to do a test.
One is just feed and regular city water (chloramine).
The second one has some kefir with 17 live active cultures mixed in.
The third one has some Gro2Max probiotic powder mixed in.
The latter 2 had the water de-chlorinated with API tap water conditioner.
I'm testing to see which ones appear to ferment fastest.
The one with no starter was clearly behind yesterday but seems to be catching up.

 

[NickyPick]

Of the higher protein feeds, field peas are probably the least expensive & easiest to deal with. In all fairness, I must add that soybeans are higher and may be cheaper; I, personally, choose not to use them for several reasons. Flax is good - but not in a fermented feed because the hulls are flat & very smooth - it sticks to *everything* ; I feed it dry free choice, and it isn't calculated into my mix because they aren't that crazy about it.
This link to a simple calculator has a sidebar listing the average protein percentages of various foods:

http://homesteadapps.com/app/free/feedcalc/pearsonsquare.php

my suggestion would be to go through the list and see what's available and affordable in your area, run some numbers and come up with a blend that works. While it's a PITA, remember that using a larger variety of feedstuffs in the mix also results in a larger variety of micronutrients; this calculator is not useful for multi-ingredient mixes - it's linked because it has the easiest-to-locate and most extensive list of feeds I've come across online.

I also 'top dress' my FF with Fertrell Nutri-balancer to make sure I have all the bases covered; NOT mixed into ferment stage because 1. The mineral granules all sink to the bottom and are not evenly distributed, 2. It results in massive mineral build-up on surfaces of the container. Sooo.... it's in a huge 'salt shaker' beside the feed station

I would love to add more items to my mix - but finding anything around her other than oats is difficult. I could only find one store that had barley. Why don't you like soybeans?

 

[Tikkijane]

They chicks are all on the FF now. only one left is out 4 week check which he seems to like it, My chickens and ducks dont eat nearly that amount of food. In the winter I am sure they will though. They free range on 5 acres. I give 3 cups to the chickens and 1 cup to the ducks in the morning, that usually lasts them for a few hours. Give another cup to each mid day which lasts 30 minutes and then at night give same serving as morning feeding and they still have some left in morning.

I have 7 chickens and 4 ducks. so for chickens thats 6 cups for the chickens. divided by 7 chickens that is .8 cups per chicken once a day.

For the ducks that is 3 cups, which is .75 cup per duck once a day.

But if I divided it into 2 feedings that would be .37c per duck 2x a day for the ducks and .4 c per chicken twice a day.


I'm sure they will require about double that amount once the snow comes and there aren't as many bugs to eat. Besides the chickens refuse to step outside on that icky white stuff LOL Ducks on the other hand...Frozen water is the best thing to swim in LOL

Hubby finally made me move the FF down to the basement. I think we are on day 4 now since starting to yes started to smell a little strong. Started a bucket for the chicks using the same fermented "juice" as was already used in that bucket for the adult feed. But 2 buckets for the adults was too much so now have 1 bucket for the adults and 1 for the babies.

I am looking for other things to put into the FF for the adults..What can I add that is safe for both chickens and ducks? I've added corn which they all LOVE

I'd stick with regular food. For boredom busters, think flock block, hanging cabbage, etc. Corn is pretty empty but gives a heat boost.

I see so many people worried about boring their chickens with the same food/taste all the time. Chickens do not taste like we do.

The average human has around 10,000 taste buds.

The average chicken has around 20-30.

 

[Tikkijane]

I would love to add more items to my mix - but finding anything around her other than oats is difficult.  I could only find one store that had barley.  Why don't you like soybeans?

Soybeans are predominately GMO {like most of the corn}. Soy also has very high phytoestrogens- the highest concentration found- which is the equivalent to human estrogen.

Studies are showing higher incidence of male infertility in males who were given soy formula as babies; there are links between certain cancers and soy.

I have no idea if there are studies on egg composition related to soy in feed or in meat composition. For me, it's just easier to try to steer clear entirely if I can.

 

[kada6305]

I'd stick with regular food. For boredom busters, think flock block, hanging cabbage, etc. Corn is pretty empty but gives a heat boost.

I see so many people worried about boring their chickens with the same food/taste all the time. Chickens do not taste like we do.

The average human has around 10,000 taste buds.

The average chicken has around 20-30.

It has nothign with boredom they have 5 acres to entertain themselves with. I'm going to see if we can get some sunflower seeds. going to add in some oats too. I know they go crazy for oats.