Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Triple Willow]

I actually want to get some de-scented ones for pets, but I don't know how good of an idea it would be with our "indoor" flock. 

They are really cute. I almost picked up a baby one that was about to get hit on the road. It was in the edge of town and it about had all the traffic stopped because nobody wanted to run over it. I was about to go get it out of the road and some guy beat me to it. He set it off to the side and it went on its way. I would have brought it home with me! lol It was sooo cute!

 

[Triple Willow]

Well I guess I will have to join the 'odor' group.  Skunks don't bother me either.  What seems to make people think I am crazy is when I tell them I love the smell of cow manure and old barns.  They tend to keep their distance after that! 

I also love the posts on rabbits.  Very interesting!

Lisa

I really like the posts on rabbits too. I think they would be a very good addition to a "chicken business" - might help cover feed costs AND fill the freezer which I like!

I don't think the smell of cow manure is bad, or horse manure. But I think skunks STANK, especially when you get "the taste of that smell" in your mouth like you licked it! LOL Barf!

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I'm not saying anything you wrote was false or that I won't experience it, but I'm doing my best to keep it all under control. I have people that adamantly tried to keep me from free-ranging my chickens, but that's worked out beautifully. You can say "I told you so!" later if things don't work out, though! And I appreciate the warnings. Knowledge is the best form of power and the more I know, the better chances I have of preventing it.

It sounds like you're on the right track. Up here it's just not possible; too wet. I cut and feed lots of greens every day instead... I know all my local weeds so I know which ones are "rabbit safe". I know of some people who do free-range rabbits... But at this point even among humane natural enthusiasts free-ranged rabbits are very rare because of all the problems. One person I was talking to ended up processing a litter of rabbits at 10 weeks that were only about 2lbs and had TONS of liver flukes and worms. Bleh. Instead I "tractor" mine in nice weather, just like you can tractor a chicken. They'll nibble down all the weeds first then the grass. They are really happy like this but the minute the ground is wet they get miserable in minutes. There was one person I read about with a very successful outdoor rabbit colony pen. They built tunnels and nest boxes for the rabbits into the ground with PVC so they'd be able to find the babies and maybe the rabbits wouldn't make new tunnels. The nest boxes could be accessed from ground level with a hinged top. They had a concrete barrier around the bottom of the pen like yours, and had about two bucks and six does in a huge pen. They also put in hides and toys for them... Rolling jingle balls and like a little playhouse that they could hide in and climb on. They were pretty successful! I hope yours end up being as good for you!

I love the smell of barns. :O I nearly puke up when I smell skunk but I LOVE barns. <3

 

[Triple Willow]

Evidentally I have a different type of skunk here and buy a different kind of coffee.

Ain't that the truth! I'll pass on that brew! LOL It might smell kinda like coffee that a cat has peed in. lol

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Oh, you know what is actually a great free-ranging small animal? Guinea pigs. I've heard they're tasty. They do way better than rabbits outdoors on the ground.

Anyone have any experience eating these?

 

[Triple Willow]

You're right!  I never thought about it, but it does smell a little like coffee brewing and I love that smell too...but I don't like coffee.  I also like pipe smoke, the smell of gasoline, spray paint, rubbing alcohol, fingernail polish, and magic markers.  When I was pregnant for my last two boys my mouth would actually water when I pumped gas...I actually CRAVED the smell of fumes.  Did some reading up on it and found I was not alone and many crave smells instead of certain foods. 

I also like the smell of pipe smoke, but not cigarette smoke. Spray paint isn't bad. Glue and markers, yep like those. (I'm a glue sniffer! LOL) Polish remover and rubbing alcohol is good. And I like all those rubs like Icey Hot, love those! Gas no and skunk pee definitely no! lol Do you remember years ago when some young boys died from sniffing Pam? Well it was bad that the boys died and all but I have a family member by the name of Pam so you can imagine... LOL

 

[Demosthine]

It sounds like you're on the right track. Up here it's just not possible; too wet. I cut and feed lots of greens every day instead... I know all my local weeds so I know which ones are "rabbit safe". I know of some people who do free-range rabbits... But at this point even among humane natural enthusiasts free-ranged rabbits are very rare because of all the problems. One person I was talking to ended up processing a litter of rabbits at 10 weeks that were only about 2lbs and had TONS of liver flukes and worms. Bleh. Instead I "tractor" mine in nice weather, just like you can tractor a chicken. They'll nibble down all the weeds first then the grass. They are really happy like this but the minute the ground is wet they get miserable in minutes. There was one person I read about with a very successful outdoor rabbit colony pen. They built tunnels and nest boxes for the rabbits into the ground with PVC so they'd be able to find the babies and maybe the rabbits wouldn't make new tunnels. The nest boxes could be accessed from ground level with a hinged top. They had a concrete barrier around the bottom of the pen like yours, and had about two bucks and six does in a huge pen. They also put in hides and toys for them... Rolling jingle balls and like a little playhouse that they could hide in and climb on. They were pretty successful! I hope yours end up being as good for you!

I love the smell of barns. :O I nearly puke up when I smell skunk but I LOVE barns. <3

Anyone ever notice their chickens' combs and wattles seem to become a more colourful, deeper red after feeding FF. I have a few 12 week olds and a couple on particular had pale combs before feeding FF; now that I have had them on FF for a couple of weeks their combs appear to be getting more colourful and red. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this ?

I also like the smell of pipe smoke, but not cigarette smoke. Spray paint isn't bad. Glue and markers, yep like those. (I'm a glue sniffer! LOL) Polish remover and rubbing alcohol is good. And I like all those rubs like Icey Hot, love those! Gas no and skunk pee definitely no! lol Do you remember years ago when some young boys died from sniffing Pam? Well it was bad that the boys died and all but I have a family member by the name of Pam so you can imagine... LOL

I agree with you entirely on pipe smoke versus cigarette smoke. The latter just smells so cheap and contaminated. My personal favorite is the smell of molten metal from grinding or welding metal.

 

[colburg]

Quote:


Hey fuzzie, My chicken situation is almost the same as yours. 65'ish hens, some young, some at POL, others 1 yr old, couple of roosters. My current mix is 1/3 scratch grains, 1/3 wheat(hard red winter), 1/3 layer pellets, all fermented together. The only thing we feed different is when new chicks are hatched. They get fermented layer(without whole) for about 2 weeks, then get switched to the same stuff as everyone else. If there's enough chicks, we'll pick up a bag of non-med starter to ferment for them and feed it till it's gone. It's really pretty easy.

Another optionfor fermenting in the cold is to have two buckets(or more) fermenting. This will allow a little more time for it to ferment in the cooler temps.

Pay attention to Kassaundra's posts as you read through for ideas and info on using the 55gal barrell. That's also a good option for you.

As far as the hotbox, insulation, etc. Remember KISS. If the FF isn't actually freezing, you shouldn't have to do anything, IMO.

 

[Triple Willow]

Where I live there is a lot of tobacco grown. There is "air cured" and "fire cured". They put it in big tobacco barns to cure until it is ready. It's pretty funny... they build a smoldering fire on the floor of the barn (enough to make plenty of smoke) and close it up good except for the top where the smoke goes out the vents in the top of the barn. People passing through that don't know how tobacco is done always think the barn is on fire and a lot of times they will stop at the nearest house to tell somebody that a barn is on fire. lol Anyhow, that smoke from the barns smells good ...in moderation. lol

 

[Triple Willow]

Oh, you know what is actually a great free-ranging small animal? Guinea pigs. I've heard they're tasty. They do way better than rabbits outdoors on the ground.

Anyone have any experience eating these?

I saw a show on tv where they raised those to eat. Seems like it was in some South American country. They said they were good too. They are a lot like a rabbit but... I'd eat it but processing one might be a little hard, maybe.