FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[galanie]

If your getting your feed/grain from a mill you get Whole Roasted Soybean (WRSB) instead of the Meal. 
The WRSB is a little lower in Protein but is much higher in Fat. (I believe it's right around 38% protein and 17% fat). My birds dont eat the meal so well but go nuts over the WRSB.
If you do get some it will have a 'Peanut Butter' smell to dot to the roasting.

Chris

Not getting it from a mill. I think what I'm getting is the crap left over after extruding the oil. With only a dozen birds, getting a lot from a mill is out of the question. Some day!

 

[Chris09]

Quote:

Mill's will sell most anything by the pound, so if you only need a pound of Soybean Meal (SBM) or 4 lbs of chicken feed that's all you have to get.
The mill I use SBM is around .21 cents a pound and I beleve Whole Roasted Soybean is .31 cents a pound.

Chris

 

[galanie]

The only mill I know of around here is more than an hour's drive away. That would make that one pound of soybeans cost quite a bit with our gas prices. Eventually though I will be selling and moving to some acreage closer to one. At least that's the plan.

 

[binders]

I was wondering what other mixes of grain people are using to ferment for their layers? I have read the thread on fermented feed in the meet chicken forum but was wondering what people do differently for the layers. I have 6 1-year olds and 4 2.5-months old. I have a little bit of 22% pellets left that I have been feeding the older ones. The little ones are eating a grower crumble (don't remember what % protein) Before I buy any more am looking for other options. I don't want to be buying 100's of pounds of feed at a time and unfortunate do not have any mills near me. What do you do about the needed calcium? Oyster shell or crushed egg shell I presume. My chickens seem to ignore them now and I was thinking of adding them to the fermented mix. Anyone do this or just serve them on the side?

 

[Oakieridge]

We have the chance to buy some "4 Way" feed in bulk. It is corn, barley, oats and wheat mixed with molassas. Would this work to ferment? I bought some reclaimed oats and am fermenting those now for my birds to try but this 4 way is a mix that they might like. I just don't want to feed them anything they shouldn't have. Would love to get opinions on it one way or the other.

Thanks

 

[shadowmane]

It shouldn't be a problem. The feed I'm using now has molasses in it. You just put the UP ACV in it and let it brew a couple of days. Beekissed uses a double bucket method and uses whole grains. Up till now, I've used starter/grower for the meat birds, and starter/grower mixed with scratch with the layers. They should start laying pretty soon, after which I'll start throwing the layer pellets in with the scratch instead.

 

[Oakieridge]

It shouldn't be a problem. The feed I'm using now has molasses in it. You just put the UP ACV in it and let it brew a couple of days. Beekissed uses a double bucket method and uses whole grains. Up till now, I've used starter/grower for the meat birds, and starter/grower mixed with scratch with the layers. They should start laying pretty soon, after which I'll start throwing the layer pellets in with the scratch instead.

thanks, I will have to get some ACV, I just started and put some plain yogurt in with the oats we are fermenting. I am going to add some brown sugar to the mix tonight. How much oats vs. starter/grower do you ferment at one time to feed? I am not fermenting their starter feed but am the oats and figured giving 75% of their feed as the starter and 25% as the fermented oats. But if fermenting the starter will help I will toss it in there as well, lol. I am only doing a small trashcan right now just to test things out. I started it last night around 7pm and it was already starting to bubble at 6am this morning!

 

[shadowmane]

I usually go 50/50, but I got that ratio from someone else in the FF thread in the meat bird forum.

 

[ChixGaloreinTX]

This thread has really piqued my interest. I grew up on a small 10 acre homestead farm with my grandparents, Grandpa fed fermented feed to his hogs, & what I think was a fermented mash to our layers...I know it was a wet mash, containing ground corn, ground barley, and something else...maybe a commercial layer feed? I don't know. I just remember he had a huge plywood bin that all the dry feed was dumped in, mixed together and we had to put 5 gal buckets of it to "soak"....there was always one soaking, and one we were feeding out of...Now, I'd like to do something similar for our flock. We have a mixed flock of birds, probably numbering in the neighborhood of 160 birds of all breeds, ages & sizes...some are for egg production, others are purely for pleasure [I call them my living yard ornaments]. They free range on our two + acres, along with a couple dozen or so ducks, a half dozen geese and a double handful of Boer goats. We usually feed twice a day...in the morning when we open the coops, and again late evening before everybody goes in to roost.
My question(s) is what would you recommend for an initial start-up blend? A friend recommended feeding soaked oats to our birds. I was thinking maybe oats, scratch mix & layer feed, in equal parts.

 

[Jeanette56]

Upon request I am starting a thread about using fermentation to improve feed nutritive value and health benefits. 

1. Anyone doing it? 
   Ya, I am
   
2. How long have you been doing it?
   A few months.
   
3. Your methods?
   5 gallon bucket with water; occasionally add a little ACV or whey to the mix. I keep it at an oatmeal-type consistency.
   
4. Grains/feeds used in this manner? 
   I combine about 1 part Flockraiser to 2 parts Game Bird Conditioner which is mostly grains.
   
5. Your overall review of this method of feeding? 
   Right now I am mainly using it for a bunch of chicks that I ordered (layer-type). I've been feeding this exclusively since I got them (about 6-7 weeks). I think there is less wasted feed even though right now they are still in the walking/standing in it stage. They are growing well and they Love this feed! I will eventually be switching all of my birds over to it.