Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[galanie]

So far as the alfalfa cubes, I don't see why one wouldn't just put them in a mesh bag like an old onion bag and hang them in the barn or garage.

 

[7L Farm]

Yeah mine aren't as fancy as yours, they are easily made happy with just beer. "Redneck" chickens I guess.

I have one chicken I call Moochie. Everyday she jumps in my golf cart & drinks beer with me. She will only drink the beer from the can. This means the can has to be just opened so she can dip her beak in the can & swill some beer. I have a question. I made some FF but how long will it last & how do I store it. Do you keep it watered down while storing it. In other words keep the FF liquefied through out the bucket while storing it?

 

[Island Roo]

Quote: By the smells you describe, it sounds like a good ferment.
Sometimes chickens just need some time to get used the new food. Try to sprinkle some scratch or other foods that they enjoy on top of it. I've had some groups of chickens that dive right into fermented food as if they've been starving for weeks and others who take several weeks before they are willing to get their beaks wet.

Mother for sale.......offers.

That still cracks me up.

Edit - you could also remove other feed sources so they are forced to sample the FF but I would not want to "shock" my layers like that.

 

[knjinnm]

After reading through the last few posts on adding alfalfa to the FF, I am wondering how some of you OT supplement green foods in the winter? I haven't been worried about feeding anything green on purpose because I can see my flock chowing down on lots of grass, clover, ect everyday in the yard. I don't really have enough birds to be buying hay, at least that is my thinking?

Just curious what everyone does. I do plan on bringing my Ferment bucket inside to my utlility closet for the winter. I just haven't decided if I need or should add something green to it?

Thanks.

Hi,
Have you considered sprouts?
There is a BYC thread, with pictures, about sprouting oats in a laundry basket.
Joe

 

[pichuris]

Quote:
So just out of curiousity I put a cup of dry layer feed out for my layers two days ago. Its still there. Huh, no going back to dry feed for us.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Today is the first day I noticed my goose trying the ff, yay!! now maybe she'll convince my gander it's not going to eat him. My chickens love it. I'm hoping the ducks will begin to eat it too. Would it okay to just offer the ff for a day and see if they may take to it if there isn't any dry to eat?

 

[knjinnm]

Nope it's a plastic bucket, no metal at all. I usually keep a lid cracked open. Guess I'll just dump this batch and start over.

Hi,
Before dumping the batch try tasting a spoonful, you don't have to swallow it to get the taste.

 

[Missa Chickabee]

BK, I am learning from you that I don't have to cling to my OCD ways and "know" everything before jumping in. Having said that....I haven't 'jumped in' quite yet with FF. Not being near town for the things I need to get started can take some of the blame,but perfectionism is a curse and I think I just need to get going on this...with what we have on hand.

Have been reading from the beginning but have a ways to go, so maybe this was already addressed:

Just wondering if there is a warning in the thread against using chlorinated city water (could kill the culture?)

Also wondering if those (BigBoxStore 'H.....er' Buckets (orangy-red) would do or do we need to get some food-grade plastic buckets?

Thnx.

 

[Beekissed]

Don't know much about that one, MC. I have a well...but I think some folks on here are on city water and it works out fine for them. I am using buckets from Lowes but some are concerned about plastic leaching and choose to use food grade buckets.

Now, I'm not a trusting soul about the government and what they consider "food grade", so I just use whatever plastic is available....I feel that they are pretty much all the same and the government labels some "food grade" to avoid the hassles of having to admit they are all the same and have the same effect on the things stored in them.

Just my jaded nature, I suppose.....

Anything that lasts that long in a land fill can't really be safe, no matter what label you put on it. It is what it is and so I just go with it.

 

[knjinnm]

Also, the turn over in the FF bucket should be fast enough to eliminate food sitting for weeks leaching out any hazardous material.
I would be more worried about microwaving food in Tupperware or Rubbermaid containers.
And then there is the unknown hazard from GMO corn, soybean and rice with arsenic.

Joe