Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[RoseMarie1]

TW, Bee and others, See what I mean, posting pix of their poor naked backs. I do know the roo is tearing out some mating them because I saw it one time but I do think they are eating their feathers and both of us have even see them eating their own feathers. You can litterly see the quills on this ones wings.

NO way it's lack of protein.....22% protein layer feed, BOSS and the suet feeders Bee told me how to make. Thawed out some ground meat to give them tomorrow as well.





Look at this ones poor head.

 

[Beekissed]

That is pure old rooster wear on top of poor feather quality. Then, when the quills try to regrow and they have blood in them, the other birds are plucking them for the taste of the blood. One, you can try some salt in their water...someone once said that satisfied their longing for the salty taste of blood...could be they are just lacking sodium, of all things. Two, you can place some Nustock or Castor oil..THICK..on these spots to promote feather regrowth and to protect that bare skin.

In the end? I think you just have birds with poor feather quality, a too aggressive rooster and who knows what else? RIRs from the hatchery or hatchery stock can be dicey things...they can either be sweet and moochy birds that never give you problems or aggressive bullies that pick on one another and always look like a 10 yr old feather duster. I think you may have the latter.

I'd cull any birds with bare backs, right off the bat. Laying or no, they will never get over having poor feather quality and chronic bare backs as long as you have a rooster. If not wanting to cull, then I'd keep the rooster penned, because those girls are destined for a nudist colony flock if this keeps up.

Rosemarie, I think it's time to step up to a new grade of stock since you have experience in incubation. Why not contact someone breeding good reds on the heritage thread and see if they will sell you some hatching eggs? Ask Fred...he has some wonderful reds from a great line! Even Bruce has contacts for getting some better, heirloom lines on RIR.

 

[Bethel3330]

Edited due to inaccuracies

 

[Beekissed]

The meat chick with the gimpy leg is doing wonderful since the castor oil on his leg and also I cut total rations of grain feeds. For all the flock. Now there is no more being mean to the meaties at the feeder~the hens are too busy trying to get some food to peck at young birds~ and the meaties are not growing too fast to prevent good mobility for foraging. Easy fix to the problems I've been having and don't know why I ever got away from my usual feeding methods....free range first, feed later..and not too much feed. Took down the creep feeder...I don't need it anymore.

I guess I've never dealt with 2 wk old chicks, 4 wk old meaties, an adult layer flock, etc. all at once. I've never put myself in this kind of a confused flock structure before and so was just throwing feed at everyone and hoping it stuck. Got my head on straight now.

All birds going on a FF diet~as in LESS grain feeds, forage is getting high and feed can be cut down. The 2 wk old chicks and the duckling are not even eating ANY FF now...just forage. The meaties are coming to the feeder with full crops from foraging. The rooster is out with the hens and is keeping them on the go with breeding, so no time to chase little birds and be mean to them...first time I've ever seen that in one of my flocks and I was so shocked! Now I know why I've never seen it...all my hens were too busy hunting grub to pay any attention to the smaller birds. They have to hunt further afield than the coops for food and this leaves the area around the coop for the young birds, which is the way it's always been.

Peace and good health has been restored. Bliss!

Will be getting some ducklings on May 5th and am thinking of starting them right out on forage instead of chick/chicken feed. Want to see if they can hit the ground running with this other duck to show them the way. Will monitor their intake for adequacy.

 

[debp]

I'm sure this is in your descriptions somewhere, but when you have 2 week old chicks on forage, are you using a chicken tractor, electric netting, or do they have a broody hen?

 

[beverly evans]

Someone posted this recipe on our states fb page and I am wondering if this is all the chickens would need in vitamins and such? Except for calcium of course.

Also have another question....I have upped my protein amount in my feed to help get some feathers on my RIR girls and don't think it's helping one bit. So the only conclusion I can come up with now is they are pulling and eating the feathers. I saw one tonight after the roo mated her and pulled out a feather her or one of the others got the feather and ate it. That's the first time I have actually seen that in awhile so now I am thinking that is what's going on because their feathers just aren't growing back in. They're getting blistered from the sun now. I have applied castor oil until I am blue in the face.

Someone said Dollar general sells some fermicidal spray stuff that is nasty tasting so am thinking about getting some of that and spraying on their feathers and backs. Any other ideas to break this nasty habit? Also thinking it might be the roo but there is 15 hens and 1 roo. Thought about separating him from them for awhile to see IF that would help them grow back on?????? am at wits end here.

ALSO have no clue where to find some of these ingredients below since I have asked and asked at the feed stores I go to for different kinds of grains. Don't know WHY they wont carry this stuff. ???? The last few things I can find except on the kelp. ??

HOMEMADE CHICKEN FEED




12 cups organic feeder oats .34 lb.
8 cups organic soft white wheat .38 lb.
8 cups organic hard red wheat .26 lb.
6 cups organic corn .42 lb.
4 cups organic lentils .54 lb.
4 cups organic split peas .47 lb.
2 cups organic flaxseed 1.68 lb.
1 cup sesame seeds 2.27 lb.
3/4 cup kelp granuals 3.25 lb.
2 tlb. olive oil, coconut oil or molasses

Rosemarie, if the place is on their backs could you use those saddle things they sell for over-mated hens? There is something called "bitter apple" I think, or something like that, that they sell in pet stores to put on things to keep dogs from eating things. It tastes really bad. Maybe you could spray it on their feathers??? Just thinkin'.......

 

[Beekissed]

I'm sure this is in your descriptions somewhere, but when you have 2 week old chicks on forage, are you using a chicken tractor, electric netting, or do they have a broody hen?

Nope...just out in the big world all by themselves. I have a great dog, a large pack of crows and plenty of good cover. It's working. I kill stray dogs and Jake keeps the rest of the preds at bay.

 

[beverly evans]

The meat chick with the gimpy leg is doing wonderful since the castor oil on his leg and also I cut total rations of grain feeds. For all the flock. Now there is no more being mean to the meaties at the feeder~the hens are too busy trying to get some food to peck at young birds~ and the meaties are not growing too fast to prevent good mobility for foraging. Easy fix to the problems I've been having and don't know why I ever got away from my usual feeding methods....free range first, feed later..and not too much feed. Took down the creep feeder...I don't need it anymore.

I guess I've never dealt with 2 wk old chicks, 4 wk old meaties, an adult layer flock, etc. all at once. I've never put myself in this kind of a confused flock structure before and so was just throwing feed at everyone and hoping it stuck. Got my head on straight now.

All birds going on a FF diet~as in LESS grain feeds, forage is getting high and feed can be cut down. The 2 wk old chicks and the duckling are not even eating ANY FF now...just forage. The meaties are coming to the feeder with full crops from foraging. The rooster is out with the hens and is keeping them on the go with breeding, so no time to chase little birds and be mean to them...first time I've ever seen that in one of my flocks and I was so shocked! Now I know why I've never seen it...all my hens were too busy hunting grub to pay any attention to the smaller birds. They have to hunt further afield than the coops for food and this leaves the area around the coop for the young birds, which is the way it's always been.

Peace and good health has been restored. Bliss!

Will be getting some ducklings on May 5th and am thinking of starting them right out on forage instead of chick/chicken feed. Want to see if they can hit the ground running with this other duck to show them the way. Will monitor their intake for adequacy.

Bee, when I read in the first comment about your "one duckling" I thought, "But she said she was getting "ducklings", plural??? I was glad to see that for some reason he came alone but will soon have company. How does he get along with the chickens? Do they notice he's not one of them? And you're right of course, Rosemarie has one bad rooster! I guess he overworks his favorites, because he has 15 or 17, I forget how many she said, but enough to normally keep a rooster busy where that won't happen. I have a "jail" where I put my randiest rooster to give the girls a break..I have too many roos but they are all for sale, so here's hoping they leave soon. : )

 

[Beekissed]

Bee, when I read in the first comment about your "one duckling" I thought, "But she said she was getting "ducklings", plural??? I was glad to see that for some reason he came alone but will soon have company. How does he get along with the chickens? Do they notice he's not one of them? And you're right of course, Rosemarie has one bad rooster! I guess he overworks his favorites, because he has 15 or 17, I forget how many she said, but enough to normally keep a rooster busy where that won't happen. I have a "jail" where I put my randiest rooster to give the girls a break..I have too many roos but they are all for sale, so here's hoping they leave soon. : )

I bought a pair and one got crushed by a meat chick one night. So I ordered 5 more of the same. He gets along fine with the chickens and they treat him/her like one of the flock...they really don't have the reasoning or capacity to discriminate one species from another. I've seen roosters breed ducks and ducks breed hens, ducks roosting in the trees with chickens and all living and flocking together. This little guy is some mega forager...I'm going to try to maintain a small flock of ducks and a small flock of laying chickens, as this breed is supposed to lay better than chickens and I have a feeling they will eat far less feed, forage more vigorously and provide the same or better level of entertainment!

Where ya been, girl?

 

[aatx]

Two gallon container fit perfectly in my spot. Started it last night and this was after one stirring this morning.