Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Beekissed]

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That's what so few people in the private sector seem to realize...those double blind studies to support the superiority of using medicated feeds for keeping chicks healthy were funded by the very pharmaceutical companies that sell the medicine in the feeds. It's like the proverbial fox guarding the hen house...literally. And the same for most of the USDA scientific studies and information out there....look for the money trail. These studies are not conducted out of altruism and the betterment of mankind..they are done for the purpose of making money and they are conducted by universities and independent labs that are funded by grants from Monsanto, Merck, etc.

It's not hard to avoid all that claptrap in your own food production and, in the long run, it's more effective, cheaper and more sustainable. I think a lot more attention will be focused on all natural means to keep livestock healthy when this new law by the FDA comes out about needing a vet RX to obtain meds from the feed store. There will be a lot of those "HELP!" kind of posts on these forums from people who are used to self diagnosing their flocks, and using whatever high powered antibiotic or antiprotozoal meds they can get their hands on over the counter at the feed store, but can no longer obtain those meds quite so easily.

Maybe then they will see a glimmer of light in the distance as to how they could have been doing this all along and saved themselves a lot of heartache and expense along the way.

 

[Triple Willow]

Do y'all believe this statement? I don't.
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"If you like him so much, you could try free ranging him, chances are that he will be just fine. Mine almost always were. I freeranged hundreds of chickens in a forested area filled with massive packs of perpetually reproducing feral dogs, goannas, pythons, venomous snakes, feral domestic pigs and razorbacks, hawks and eagles, you name it. I freeranged them unsupervised from their first week of age onwards (and even younger sometimes), and I lost a grand total of one hen in all that time, to a feral dog, and one cockerel to a hawk. I caught and removed hundreds of pythons from their cages and almost lost one cockerel to a python, but he recovered. Not a bad total after all those hundreds of birds over the years! Hardly a massacre."

 

[WalkingWolf1]

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WOW -- I concur -- I don't believe it either.

 

[Beekissed]

Do y'all believe this statement? I don't.
............................

"If you like him so much, you could try free ranging him, chances are that he will be just fine. Mine almost always were. I freeranged hundreds of chickens in a forested area filled with massive packs of perpetually reproducing feral dogs, goannas, pythons, venomous snakes, feral domestic pigs and razorbacks, hawks and eagles, you name it. I freeranged them unsupervised from their first week of age onwards (and even younger sometimes), and I lost a grand total of one hen in all that time, to a feral dog, and one cockerel to a hawk. I caught and removed hundreds of pythons from their cages and almost lost one cockerel to a python, but he recovered. Not a bad total after all those hundreds of birds over the years! Hardly a massacre."

With no livestock guardian animal? Not sure I believe it in entirety. Either the preds are not that heavy in the area or the birds have some kind of deterrent to predation but I'm doubting anyone is free ranging hundreds of chickens without any kind of protection in forests filled with all these lethal preds and even having predatory snakes in the coop with those low of losses. I'm not saying low predation numbers cannot be achieved for free ranging flocks but I've only been able to achieve it with the use of LGDs and helping them with being vigilant and having a gun handy.

 

[WalkingWolf1]

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Last one and I'll get off the "box". My favorite is when a new product is promoted and you are inundated with multi-color brochures, slide presentations and all manner of material and after a 45 minute spill the final results are "NON-INFERIORITY TRIAL". It has gotten so bad that big pharma doesn't even bother trying to prove superiority any more but simply settle for non-inferior. When questions are raised on why this method was not included, etc. the standard answer is, "it was not geared/powered that way". I've gotten to where I won't even listen to these presentations any more -- I work with pharmaceuticals every day. Same goes for agri-trade shows, all "powered" by $$$. Stepping down now .

 

[Beekissed]

I like it when you get on your box!

Tonight is supposed to be the big mamma jamma on low temps here with minus 5 predicted but supposedly -10 with the wind chill factored in. There are many around the country right now with much lower temps than that right now, so a tough time for all those keeping livestock this winter. My hat is off to those who live in those kinds of temps each winter and I would love to hear from some of them here and see how they manage such things year after year.

I moved my old Coke thermometer(very accurate) from the back porch to the coop today so I can measure the temps in my open air hoop coop situation vs. outside temps tomorrow and see if it is providing adequate shelter to the chooks in this cold weather. So far, they seem to be completely unimpressed with the temps we've had in the low teens and are currently out foraging like mad in the mild temps(45) we are having today.

I think these wild swings between warm temps and arctic temps are harder on livestock than anything, so it will be interesting to see how it all pans out. I'm just glad we are not getting extended subzero temps like some regions. If I lived where extreme temps were the norm, I'd be building an underground coop system that was resistant to extreme cold and extreme heat, but well ventilated to combat the humidity of underground structures.

How's everyone dealing with these temps out there? Are these changes in weather causing any rethinking of coops, watering and feeding methods, breeds, etc.?

 

[IAFarmGirl]

Gotta tell ya Bee these temps are NOT fun. LOL Our current temp is 3 (Fahrenheit) and our high was at about 1 am, it was 9. Our low tonite is predicted to be -16 (Yes that is negative 16) with our high tomorrow at -7. Our windchills for tomorrow are predicted to be in the -35 to -60. Most of the churches cancelled services today and most of the schools are cancelling tomorrow. It is just crazy here.

I broke down and bought some straw for the birds. I filled all the nests and then just dropped the rest onto the floor of the coop. I figure they can snuggle down into that if the roost gets too cold. One of the turkey hens was helping me if you can imagine! After we got it all spread around she went and made a BIG pile then plopped right down in the middle of it. She just looked so happy and content and very, very smug.

Nothing is keeping the water from freezing up so I have just been going out a few times a day and giving them fresh warm water and picking up the eggs. It must be okay because the hens are laying more now than they have before when the temps were a little warmer.

 

[Triple Willow]

It has been raining a lot here today then like where you are, have a drastic drop in temps tonight. Right now it is about 40'F here and I believe it has been all night. By morning the wind chill factor is supposed to be -25. I can't keep all the water out of my coops/runs. If it doesn't run in it just soaks in. I hope this water first then the cold doesn't cause big problems. I guess I'll see in a day or two. I wish I knew what the ideal coop/run arrangement was! I'm thinking built up three feet higher than the ground around it! Then a tornado wound get it. LOL

 

[WalkingWolf1]

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Bee you're absolutely right -- it made me think of a couple of tidbits of info I'm sure some folks might get some use of. Here are two different irrigation solutions that can be made up with household ingredients. Use for basic first aid/animal husbandry -- not meant to be a substitute for proper veterinary care should the need arise but simply a helping hand for the DIY. HOW TO MAKE DAKIN’S SOLUTION Dakin’s solution is used to kill germs and prevent germ growth in wounds. This recipe for Dakin’s solution may save you money and allow you to fix only the amount you need. Another name for this is diluted sodium hypochlorite solution 0.5%. SUPPLIES: • Sodium hypochlorite solution 5.25% (Clorox or similar household bleach). • Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) • Clean tap water • Clean pan with lid • Measuring cup and spoons • Jar and lid MAKING THE SOLUTION: 1. Wash your hands well with soap and water 2. Gather your supplies. 3. Measure out 32 ounces (4 cups) of tap water. Pour into the clean pan. 4. Boil water for 15 minutes with the lid on the pan. Remove from heat. 5. Using a measuring spoon, add ½ teaspoon of baking soda to the boiled water. 6. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx one of several strengths. Measure bleach according to the chart and add to the water also: Full Strength; ½ strength; ¼ strength; 1/8 strength; Clorox 3 oz. or 95ml; 3TBSP + ½ tsp or 48ml; 1TBSP + 2tsp or 24ml; 2 ½ tsp or 12-14 ml Water 32 oz; 32 oz; 32 oz; 32 oz -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOW TO MAKE BUNNEL’S (modified) SOLUTION Bunnel’s Solution has been used as a surgical dressing, in urological procedures, and other applications where a slightly acidic irrigating solution is required. No preservative has been added to this solution so it should not be kept for future use. It should be mixed fresh each time it is needed. SUPPLIES: • Household Vinegar (~5% acetic acid) 100mls • Glycerin (available at local pharmacy) 200mls • Clean tap water • Clean pan with lid • Measuring cup and spoons • Jar and lid MAKING THE SOLUTION: 1. Wash your hands well with soap and water 2. Gather your supplies. 3. Measure out 32 ounces (4 cups) of tap water. Pour into the clean pan. 4. Boil water for 15 minutes with the lid on the pan. Remove from heat. 5. Add vinegar and glycerin and stir then let cool. 6. It can be placed in a previously sterilized glass quart jar and kept for up to 3 days.

 

[Beekissed]

Excellent info! Thank you for the detailed recipe on that, WW!

I've used Dakin's on long term wounds and have seen remarkable results on debridement, disinfecting and the consequent healing of the wounds. It's a funny thing, but many doctors will not prescribe Dakin's any longer....some excuse about better things being out there and not liking that there is bleach in the contents. I love this solution! I won't go into details but for wounds that have a very foul odor, this is the solution of choice to control that odor while healing is taking place.

Another simple wound treatment is raw honey. For the longest while I kept telling my co-workers about it and asking if we could use it on some of our long standing wounds that were not responding to anything else, but they wouldn't let me try it. I've used it on wounds and burns with wonderful results! Then along come the pharmaceutical companies wanting to make some moola on a cheap and natural wound treatment and came out with the very expensive Medi-Honey dressings, charging tons of money for them by claiming they are made from a very special kind of honey that is the only one consistently good for wound dressings. What a load of hooey....