FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[ShanandGem]

WOW I added some alfalfa pellets to my seeds/grains fermenting mix yesterday and it seemed to speed the process even more! (For whatever reason my fermented feed reacts really quickly and I only ever soak it overnight, cleaning the bucket out daily). I'm about to go around and freshen up beds, so it will be interesting to see if they liked the addition of the green protein or not.

 

[Meadowchick]

I have only been raising chickens for 5 years so I am NOT an expert. I've used the ACV year round and have not had any problems at all. I use a glug of ACV when I fill their water containers. The only problem I have are VARMINTS!

Yeah, well me too...but Those "dad-blasted varmints"! Our safety zone is Sasquatch Proof! That's an inside joke, because about a month after we built our runs, I had a nightmare in which I was stalking Bigfoot with my "weapon of choice" and the thing kept running from me and hiding behind the big oak trees...LOL...We still lose a few occasionally during the day during free play time, but have never lost any to night time predators...thank God! Our main varmints are coyotes, raccoons, hawks, skunks & opossums...not so many big chicken snakes now.

 

[TexasLisa]

Yeah, well me too...but Those "dad-blasted varmints"! Our safety zone is Sasquatch Proof! That's an inside joke, because about a month after we built our runs, I had a nightmare in which I was stalking Bigfoot with my "weapon of choice" and the thing kept running from me and hiding behind the big oak trees...LOL...We still lose a few occasionally during the day during free play time, but have never lost any to night time predators...thank God! Our main varmints are coyotes, raccoons, hawks, skunks & opossums...not so many big chicken snakes now.

If I see Sasquatch, I will definitely let you know!! Nice to know a Big Foot hunter.

My varmints are usually THE neighbor's dogs. This year is the first year I have had a problem with snakes. I blame that on the flood. When we first got chickens, I was dealing with hawks and owls. Not so much anymore. I am learning......

 

[Intheswamp]

Oops...wrong thread, I think.

 

[Intheswamp]

Well, maybe it is ok here, afterall...

I started some ACV two weeks ago. I used three red delicious, two granny smiths, and a gala...all store bought. I peeled them due to them being stored and shipped and sprayed with who-knows-what?. I only used only the meat. Cut them up in 1" or slightly larger pieces (a few pieces "disappeared" while I was cutting them up

). I dumped the apples in a large mouth glass gallon jar...they were a bit over the half-way mark. I think mixed up a cup of honey from my bee hives to a bit of water and poured it over the apples and then added enough water to float the apples a couple of inches off the bottom of the jar and an inch or two below the top (about where the shoulder of the jug is).

Lastly, I added a slosh of some VOBACV (very old Bragg's ACV <grin> ). This ACV was in a bottle that was about half full. I had drank some a while back and the sediment was sort of stringy, not as I recalled it being...the taste was also a bit sharper than I recall. It's two or three (four?) years past the expiration date...It didn't kill me.

I'm hoping that the slosh I added to the apples and honey didn't hurt things...I probably should've let the wild yeasts do their thing. Anyhoooo....

My question is whether letting the apples stay fermenting an extra week or so will hurt anything? It has gone through several different smells, initially a alcohol smell, and now "kinda alcoholly". I may have started with too many apples as the jar was appreciably over half full of them (more should have disappeared as I chopped them?). When I stirred it I'd punch the apples down with my spoon and get a new layer up top. In the last couple of days the apples have finally "relaxed" a bit...they appear to be sinking *very* slowly and not popping to the top like a fishing cork anymore. There is about 1/4" of sediment that forms between stirs (stirring twice a day). Should I wait until the apples sink more or should I go ahead and strain them out now and move the filtered must on to mason jars for the 3-4 week ripening to acetic acid?

Thanks,
Ed

 

[Meadowchick]

TexasLisa, that was ONLY a dream! (I hope!)

LOL

 

[Meadowchick]

Well, maybe it is ok here, afterall...

I started some ACV two weeks ago. I used three red delicious, two granny smiths, and a gala...all store bought. I peeled them due to them being stored and shipped and sprayed with who-knows-what?. I only used only the meat. Cut them up in 1" or slightly larger pieces (a few pieces "disappeared" while I was cutting them up

). I dumped the apples in a large mouth glass gallon jar...they were a bit over the half-way mark. I think mixed up a cup of honey from my bee hives to a bit of water and poured it over the apples and then added enough water to float the apples a couple of inches off the bottom of the jar and an inch or two below the top (about where the shoulder of the jug is).

Lastly, I added a slosh of some VOBACV (very old Bragg's ACV <grin> ). This ACV was in a bottle that was about half full. I had drank some a while back and the sediment was sort of stringy, not as I recalled it being...the taste was also a bit sharper than I recall. It's two or three (four?) years past the expiration date...It didn't kill me.

I'm hoping that the slosh I added to the apples and honey didn't hurt things...I probably should've let the wild yeasts do their thing. Anyhoooo....

My question is whether letting the apples stay fermenting an extra week or so will hurt anything? It has gone through several different smells, initially a alcohol smell, and now "kinda alcoholly". I may have started with too many apples as the jar was appreciably over half full of them (more should have disappeared as I chopped them?). When I stirred it I'd punch the apples down with my spoon and get a new layer up top. In the last couple of days the apples have finally "relaxed" a bit...they appear to be sinking *very* slowly and not popping to the top like a fishing cork anymore. There is about 1/4" of sediment that forms between stirs (stirring twice a day). Should I wait until the apples sink more or should I go ahead and strain them out now and move the filtered must on to mason jars for the 3-4 week ripening to acetic acid?

Thanks,
Ed

You're doing it Just Right...Patience is the key...I do not add anything to my fruit except distilled water. Early on, I had one batch that didn't start to ferment quick enough for me so I added a tablespoon of raw cane sugar and it turned out fine. "They" say that low sugar content in fruit is the reason for adding sugar to a batch. Since then, I have been using the scoby from previous batches & haven't had a failure...so that's kinda what you did with the old Braggs. (Some batches are not as strong/acidic as others and that is to be expected from the differences in crops. I understand you can actually make vinegar from any fruit; haven't tried it yet. I am thinking now that I may try blueberry since we had a bumper crop this year. Starting with a small/qt. experimental amount would probably be wise to keep from wasting good berries.)

For me...it takes 2-3 weeks until the "fizz" or bubbles let you know you can remove the fruit. I have waited a 4-5-6 weeks during the Fall before removing fruit with success. It is a very forgiving process...I don't think an extra week would hurt at all, and might increase the acidity??
I have also forgotten a jug with fruit in it which pretty much disintegrated...but The CHICKENS didn't mind in the least! And it wasn't rotten. ;-)

I taste mine periodically to see if it is acidic like vinegar should be...at first it does have the alcohol taste which gradually turns to vinegar (like wine gone bad, I guess). Then, when it starts to taste and smell like vinegar. It takes longer in cool weather if you don't make it in a temperature controlled area. Mine is made in the house with central air conditioning; placed near my electric dryer or wood heater, so that it is a bit warmer there. If you have yours in a warmer area this summer it probably won't take 3 weeks for it to be ready to remove fruit. I know the heat definitely affects my Fermented Feed!!!

One more thing that helped me keep my fruit submerged is, I cut a plastic whipped topping lid to fit inside my gallon jug. It is flexible and can easily be removed & it's not airtight I just place a jigger glass or other such item on it and all is well. OR if using a full jug, the neck of the jug will hold it in place. I bend it & remove it when I strain the fruit and it doesn't interfere with the mother forming on top. I let mine finish up/age in the same gallon jugs & pour it up into jars when I get around to it. If I am living dangerously...somebody needs to speak up now!!:-0

I hope that helps you; as I am not an expert and just play around with making it. There are numerous sites you can use for researching the science within the process. Have fun!

 

[Intheswamp]

Thanks for the reply, Meadowchick. I'm glad I'm doing it about right. I won't worry now about letting it go for a while.

The bubbles... Since the apples have started to look like they're riding lower in the water I have been getting some bubbles and foam, not too much, but some. I feel like this evening when I stir it it will probably be even more bubbles. I have the jug inside the house so temperature hovers around 75F, so it may be slow. It is interesting, but mead and wine making likes to be at 70F and below for a lot of it. Vinegar, though likes warmer temperatures, apparently. I guess we're not worried about "ruining" the wine, but rather intentionally pushing it to acetic acid. Interesting. I made some traditional mead several years ago. It is still sitting in a carboy with a fine layer of lees at the bottom...crystal clear and red tinted. I hope when I finally decide to bottle it hasn't gone over to vinegar...if it has, well, we'll use it, too!

I'll keep stirring twice a day and see how the acv goes. I'm hoping it can acquire a good sharp taste. I'll hold off on taste-testing for a few more days as it doesn't really have a vinegar smell quiet yet. ....I thought about not tasting it for a moment and figure I actually do need to taste it so I can compare different tastes at different times. So I will taste test it soon!

Good idea on the plastic topping lid...I may try that for the next run!

Thanks for allaying my fears that I might be letting it ferment too long. I'll relax now!

Ed

 

[RubyNala97]

Hello. I was wondering if you guys could give me some advice on my FF practices and if I'm doing it correctly? I recently had 2 young girls come down with wry neck symptoms and I began wondering if my FF could have given them botulism? It might not even be related but it got me thinking that maybe I should make sure I'm feeding my flock something beneficial and not slowly killing them!

I have a small flock of about 25 silkie chickens I use for breeding. Mixed ages and I always have dry crumble grower, oyster shell and grit available to them. I feed them 2 big bowls of FF once a day and they love it.

Here's what I'm doing:
I have a 5 gallon glass jar with a metal lid that I leave on lightly. I fill it about half way with grower crumbles and add 2 cups of home made scratch (wheat, corn, pumpkin seeds, boss, peanuts, hazelnuts, and dried mealworms). I cover the dry food with bottled spring water and stir a few times a day. It has a nice smell, like dough rising. I scoop out my two big bowls, leaving about an inch in the bottom and then add more dry ingredients and more water for the next day. I never fully wash out the glass jar, I just keep it going. I've been doing this for about a year and it seems to be working well, as the chickens run to the bowls when I put them down. I appreciate any advice on if my method is ok to keep doing or if I should do it differently. Thanks in advance!

 

[lazy gardener]

If they had botulism, they'd be dead. Wry neck is a completely different issue. From my understanding, silkies are a bit more prone to it. Results from deficiency or possibly malabsorption (I lean more to thinking this to be the cause) of vitamins. Some say B vits, others state that vit E and Selenium are the cause. Try getting some Poultry Nutri-Drench into them ASAP. I treated one chick with wry neck who was comatose with combination of Vit E, Selenium, and later adding ND, the chick made good recovery, but by the time I found issue and treated, internal damage had been done. Chick had CHF, and severe scoliosis as he grew. Personally, I'd keep the meal worms out of the mix. Save them for treats. Fermenting the feed, if anything will help prevent wry neck, IMO.