Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Baymule]

One other question, what is BOSS?

Black Oil Sunflower Seeds. Yep, I had to ask too!

 

[Lacy Blues]

Well McMurruy said my chicks would be here by Saturday, they were right . They arrived this morning. I started the feed soaking yesterday and it's not bubbling yet. I went ahead and started them on it anyway and they are eating it. I'm not sure if I have enough ACV in it. I am using the 5 gallon bucket system and I put about 1/4 on the quart bottle in the mix. How long should it take to start bubbling?

probably a couple days, depending on how warm it is.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Well, i figured i will give it a shot tonight, see how it reacts. I grow duckweed in my Oscar tank, they enjoy it, and nibble a little here and there. (My pleco is over a foot long and grazes it too.) I tried it over the summer and the girls liked it. heres what it looks like..




Aquarium lighting doesn't show the green, here it is in a white bucket in regular light.

I added a cup to 1 gallon of FF for my birds, and a second cup to my hog mash FF (2gal)
DD was kind enough to take the pics for me.
Will post the results tomorrow, but i bet it gets gobbled fast.

 

[armorfirelady]

Well I left for work at 6 am this morning and after working till 7 pm then class till 10 pm just walked in the door. My mom closed up the hens for the night for me but I went in to get the empty dish for feeding tomorrow. To my surprise its still half full......first time ever. Since its below 30 degrees tonight the heated bowls kicked on so I left the FF for them for tomorrow.

I wonder if they didnt like the FF for some reason or maybe they foraged more today (temps in 40s during day)? I know they were busy in their enclosed run there was hay pieces everywhere !!!! In the wood ash dust pan, the food, water, etc. Could have to do with the corn i threw in yesterday so they would do their chores of tossing the DL.......plus i threw some corn in their outside run as well so perhaps they spent the day digging thru the leafs piles looking for tidbits?

I didnt change the FF....its been in the bucket about 2 weeks(?) I need to start writing down on the calendar when I make a new batch & I think I need to go to smaller buckets since the 3 gallon bucket lasts a long time.........

Hopefully tomorrow in between running errands for work I will get to see what they are up to & if the eat the leftovers.

Hmmmmmmm

 

[aoxa]

They're eating it!!! e:

And they LOVE it!

Talking about the week old chicks in case I've lost you

Plan on putting the new chicks hatching this weekend in the same brooder. I think the older ones will show them where the good stuff is to eat

 

[Pozees]

They're eating it!!!

:
And they LOVE it!

Talking about the week old chicks in case I've lost you

Plan on putting the new chicks hatching this weekend in the same brooder. I think the older ones will show them where the good stuff is to eat

Woo hoo!!! Did you add the millet to get them to try it, or did they just do it spontaneously?

 

[aoxa]

Woo hoo!!!  Did you add the millet to get them to try it, or did they just do it spontaneously?

I gave them what all the older birds are eating, and that has scratch grain in it They were attracted to barley I believe, and that peaked their interest. Now they are walking around with big crops full of FF

 

[3 NH reds]

They're eating it!!!

:
And they LOVE it!

Talking about the week old chicks in case I've lost you

Plan on putting the new chicks hatching this weekend in the same brooder. I think the older ones will show them where the good stuff is to eat

And I was going to say putting live worms in it could help get them into it. Glad they like it now. Funny how birds can ignore it then they can't leave it alone.

 

[aoxa]

And I was going to say putting live worms in it could help get them into it. Glad they like it now. Funny how birds can ignore it then they can't leave it alone.

It took them a good 24 hours to even touch it. Now they are obsessed. Very happy about that!

 

[B J Hopkins]

You can. I gave chicks fermented barley and wheat along with their laying mash this past spring. You can ferment just about any grain, so you can pretty much choose those you would like. Here's a list of things by protein percentages:

FOOD SOURCE - PROTEIN BY WEIGHT
Dried fish flakes 76
Dried liver 76
Dried earthworms 76
Duckweed 50
Torula yeast 50
Brewers yeast 39
Soybeans (dry roasted) 37
Flaxseed 37
Alfalfa seed 35
Beef, lean 28
Earthworms 28
Fish 28
Wheat germ 25
Peas & Beans, dried 24.5
Sesame seed 19.3
Soybeans (boiled) 17
Sunflower seeds 17
Wheat bran 16.6
Oats, whole 14
Rice polish 12.8
Rye 12.5
Wheat 12.5
Barley 12.3
Oats 12
Corn 9
Millet 9
Milo 9
Rice, brown 7.5
Happy fermenting!

Thanks, I've saved this info for future reference!!