Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Loghousemom]

We paid about 80k for our 15 acres in 2008. That was before the oil boom took over the west part of the state and people started moving this direction to find more affordable housing. We have recently had offers of 190- 208k for people to take it off our hands,

We did certify organic a couple years back (before the chickens were full grown) but we had a fire that fall started when a neighbor was baling hay. It took out all of our land and fence right up to the barn and coop. Luckily they saved the horses and our chickens were being brooded in the house. But the fire department sprayed flame retardant over several places to reduce flare ups. We lost all of the remaining crops in the gardens and are not eligible for re-certifying for 3 years.

I sell my eggs for 4$ a dozen to most folks in a couple of different towns. I never really had lots of extra eggs to sell since we only had 10 hens and a family of 5. This year we expanded the flock and will have more to sell. The birds make enough to pay for their feed at this point, and all my hatchlings from this spring should begin laying by the end of September so we should be making a small profit from that. I also sell a few veggies from the garden to friends, but no where along the scale we did before the fire.

I didn't grow up on a farm, and don't really have anyone nearby to teach me, so I research and teach myself. So far, all I have been brave enough to try is chickens. Hahaha!

 

[Robert M]

Inflation has eaten up that 20-25K. Keep it, you won't find another deal like that for 15 acres, trust me.

 

[Robert M]

Try buying 50 acres in Maryland, even unimproved.

$1.5M, if you're lucky.

 

[AVintageLife]

Well, I have officially read every post here, and I do not remember reading anything about my following question so I apologize if I missed it.

What do you all do if you need to leave town? Do you have someone trained in FF to care for your birds? Do you switch back to bagged feed?

I am trying to plan ahead since I know I will be going out of state soon when my dad has surgery. He will be in the hospital for 10-15 days. I will probably only be gone for 4 or 5, but am worried as to what might happen with the FF and feeding the birds. I do have a couple of helpful friends who always watch my birds, and my inlaws are here, but they could not lift a 5 gallon bucket full of feed.

.

I am sort of thinking of switching to fermenting on a larger scale where they can just scoop out of a huge trash can and that should be enough for a week.... And then still fill up my big barrel feeder with the unfermented grains as filler.

Anybody have systems for FF while out of town?

I always have dry feed available in the coop, water available at several locations in the run and coop. I feed FF in the mornings and they free range a little each day when I get home from work and all day on the weekends. When I'm away, my neighbor watches them for me. They don't get to free range at all, just run access. I leave extra dry feed for refills in the coop if needed. I load up the run with greens & treats (hanging, hidden and otherwise). They get a big serving of FF on the morning I am leaving and I leave a bucket of FF near the coop with instructions to scoop out some over the next few days until gone. It's the best I can do and it works. If by the end of the week all they have is fresh water and some dry feed, they'll be able to handle it until I'm back.

 

[Zootopia]

I have a 55 gal plastic (food grade, soda syrup) barrel cut in half both with FF mixed to an oatmeal consistency. I feed out about 1/3 of a tub a day. Some times I refill when there is still a third left, sometimes I'll nearly empty the tub. I use a square short handle shovel to stir and scoop out. I ferment my grains in 2 5gal buckets and stir them with the shovel too. Then when I fill the tub, I dump the fermented grains in to start the batch. I keep water about an inch or two over the grains mainly to keep the hens who "supervise" in the grain room from eating out of the bucket but also when I dump one bucket of grain I stir the other one and scoop a couple pans of the back slop liquid into the empty bucket to start it. Then I fill the water back up over both buckets. It is a simple rotation that works well for me. It is 90 to 100 in the grain room right now and pretty Ripe. (I have a box fan to cool me off). Over the winter I have an oil radiator type heater to keep it about 70+ on the few cold days we had.
I feed in 3" pvc in 2' long sections screwed to scrap pieces of 2x4 and yes the crew try to fly up into the bucket as I walk into the breeding pens. It is usually very dry here so not much grazing. Tho we free range most of the flock and feed them every other day in good weather.
Finding This thread has been a great. I save a lot on my feed bill and my flock is healthy.

Oh ya, don't forget to leave about 4" for your FF to rise and fall. I sometimes get over ambitious (like last night) and come out to FF on the floor.

 

[AVintageLife]

It's just the results of hot temps accelerating the growth of organisms, be they beneficial or not. I find stirring them into the mix eliminates the issue and I've not seen any ill results of it.

As to the kind or helpful remark..maybe not to you. But to someone who is learning this method for the first time, all the different preferences can be mind boggling as one claims theirs is best and makes claims about another method as being wrong. When one is teaching math, one does not jump right into getting a total of 4 through complicated formulas when teaching the new concept of math...one generally starts with addition, subtraction and works their way up to more complex versions of how to get a total of 4.

If the most simple method of teaching how to ferment feed is a simple add feed to water, stir and wait, then it's the most efficacious method for teaching a new person on the method. The plea for that level of simplicity is just that...a plea for the most simple method of all to be explained in an article about the process. If you aren't the one answering the questions on this method of feeding, you don't get to realize how confused most people become after reading about how the feed must be submersed at all times (FALSE) and that one has to add LABs(FALSE) to the mix to get good fermentation, or how one has to strain the mix before feeding (FALSE) in order to feed and so they then must worry about getting a way to strain it that isn't using metals that will corrode from the fermented feed, etc. They also express worry over how to grow LABs to add to the mix, complicated feed formulas so as to get the "best" fermentation, how to get glass or ceramic crocks or jars to ferment in when a plastic bucket is sufficient, etc.

All of these false claims cloud the issue of learning a very simple process and so many would just rather not bother if it's going to be that complicated...and then they miss out on a great thing for their flocks. It matters not to me how one eventually gets their fermented feeds to their liking, but it does matter to me how it is taught to those wanting the information.

You can call that unkind or unhelpful all you wish...but I think I've been nothing but kind and helpful to those wanting to learn about FF. If I want a basic, true method explained on the teaching of it,it is purely out of kindness and helpfulness to those who are learning.

I'm sorry if the nature of the free advice is not to your liking, but it is all I have available. They sell a dressed up, but not entirely accurate, version on other blog sites if you are interested in that type of thing.

X2 Bee. I'd almost given up on the FF, couldn't get it going right, afraid I would poison my flock with a bad batch. But instead I read through the entire thread from start to finish (plus you came back with your OT wisdom on this) and your simple method is working for me. I do add ACV because I want my flock to have it, not because I think the FF needs it to be correct. I think someone should put together a short article to be permanent on BYC with the most simple method. Could include a foot note on other ways I guess. My experience with blogs is I always feel like they got most of their info from BYC to begin with, lol.

 

[RoseMarie1]

I'm curious...anyone hatch chicks out this year from eggs of hens on FF? Was curious about those heavy, larger yolks and if the nutrition seemed higher for the chicks, yielding a stronger chick with better growth? Also was wondering about anyone hatching FF eggs that had too thick and strong of shells for the chicks to open?

me to has ANYBODY answered this question for you yet?

 

[RoseMarie1]

That's something you'd have to try and see...I've never went that long without adding fresh feed but I bet it would be alright. I know you can go pretty long without feeding a sourdough mix before it starts to go bad...maybe you could try a small batch and see?

I posted a vid the other day that showed about how low my feed gets before I add fresh feed...you can see the bottom of my bucket. Since I rely more on the scoby in the bottom reservoir as my inoculate for the batch, I don't have to worry much about saving a lot of feed back to do it.

It should be converting the nutrients to a desired level at 8-15 hrs in temps of 70 +...at least that's what the study done on the method stated (one listed at the beginning of the thread). I'm not up on all the science of that process and exactly when those nutrients have been converted in a certain mass of feed...I just feed it out and have faith. And that seems to work!

I have the same problem!! My bad clothes are pretty bad and my good clothes are fair, but I have not much in between. Same with my shoes...one pair bad enough to throw away that are my "mess" shoes. You know the kind that never really dry out inside any more but have that slime factor? And then I have my "good" shoes...but when does one convert perfectly good shoes into "mess" shoes? Too painful to watch, that's for sure, wearin' perfectly good shoes through the mud and muck! Wish they had my size at the Good Will but my size is too common and is usually pretty much snatched up upon arrival. Dadnabbit!

Some of them are hard for the chickens to get pieces off of and you'll find those dried up and lying in the yard much later, attracting flies. My dog, who eats nearly everything, seems to turn up his nose at the heads and my birds won't touch them either. Guess both parties feel that is a little too gruesome....

If you have a meat grinder and don't mind the "ick" factor, you could make some really good chicken or dog snacks by grinding them into more manageable pieces for the eating. Then they would gobble them right down, no bawks asked.

Me to Bee and pray God keeps my chicks safe. I had someone saying they wanted all the ones I wanted to sell and I was so excited because I wanted to get me a large roll of hardware cloth with the money from it for making my grazing frames with. Well guess what, they ONLY want to give me 5 bucks a piece of them. I KNOW for a fact they intend on re- selling them and I told my hubby that was just NOT right since I was the one that has spent the majority of the money getting them to this point and then THEY want me to sell them for 5 each so they can make a PROFIT off them! Makes me so mad because I can't stand injustice.

I have 6 RIR cockerels and then I also have about 14 BA cockerels. That's a lot of money to be made if they got them for only 5 each when they sell for 9-12 bucks around here they say. Just not right. Now I'm trying to decide where I need to go with them so I can make the most from them to get some of my money back at least.
Thank you for your time answering all our questions Bee.
Went looking for that video and am not seeing it now. I know it was before the 666 but not finding it. I'll keep looking. Sure WISH they would do sticky threads on the good info in this thread so people can refer back to it.

 

[RoseMarie1]

Me to Bee and pray God keeps my chicks safe. I had someone saying they wanted all the ones I wanted to sell and I was so excited because I wanted to get me a large roll of hardware cloth with the money from it for making my grazing frames with. Well guess what, they ONLY want to give me 5 bucks a piece of them. I KNOW for a fact they intend on re- selling them and I told my hubby that was just NOT right since I was the one that has spent the majority of the money getting them to this point and then THEY want me to sell them for 5 each so they can make a PROFIT off them! Makes me so mad because I can't stand injustice.

I have 6 RIR cockerels and then I also have about 14 BA cockerels. That's a lot of money to be made if they got them for only 5 each when they sell for 9-12 bucks around here they say. Just not right. Now I'm trying to decide where I need to go with them so I can make the most from them to get some of my money back at least.
Thank you for your time answering all our questions Bee.
Went looking for that video and am not seeing it now. I know it was before the 666 but not finding it. I'll keep looking. Sure WISH they would do sticky threads on the good info in this thread so people can refer back to it.

I FOUND IT! Here's the video! https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/644300/fermenting-feed-for-meat-birds/6600

 

[AletaG]

Originally Posted by Beekissed
I'm curious...anyone hatch chicks out this year from eggs of hens on FF? Was curious about those heavy, larger yolks and if the nutrition seemed higher for the chicks, yielding a stronger chick with better growth? Also was wondering about anyone hatching FF eggs that had too thick and strong of shells for the chicks to open?

me to has ANYBODY answered this question for you yet?

I'm thinking that due to the silence, no one really thought about it. And, to be fair, you'd have to have good records or a good memory of "Before FF"... It IS a really interesting question. If I had acreage, I might do a 'control' test flock or two in the back 40 that only get H20 and layer mix, no ranging, and compare to a FF only ranging flock and a FF only non-ranging flock... hatch maybe 4 batches of 2 dozen eggs each group over the course of the hatching season, then publish the findings (obviously, would need comparable populations, all Orps or something, similar ages, prefer all hatched from same parent sets)... <sigh> I love research. I miss it.