Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[RoseMarie1]

I used to add it to my FF but I know longer do. Its better used as a once in awhile treat than as a main part of their food. (I want to say its because its high in fat but I'm not sure thats the reason) I just know that someone said it was better as a once in awhile treat

also high in protein. I also use it as a treat AND to get them to really stirring up my DL (deep litter).

 

[RoseMarie1]

Last time I went swimming in the river we were sort of shooting these little rapids and it shot me right into a large, brown water snake! I put my hand out to fend him off and he was swimming hard to avoid me but it was closer than I had wanted to get...touched the booger with my hand! He was probably the more scared of us two....

We've been cleaning out the backside of our old shed and encountered three different snakes, two of the same kind but different sizes. I caught the largest and put him in the nearby woods, the middle sized one got away under the building and the smallest I caught and gave to the chooks. Little Red snatched it up and got the big protein for the day.

None of the snakes were poisonous and they were all quite beautiful. I'm just glad none were a copperhead or rattlesnake.

chills.....nope not catching em!

 

[RoseMarie1]

I do believe I am going to try to snakeproof my coop and run that I am going to build!

I hear the snakes don't like crawling across lime but you know how that goes. So I don't know IF it works or not. THEN ALSO someone said moth balls and said they put them in a PVC pipe they have drilled tiny holes in all around and over the PVC pipe so the smell will be able to get out. and then lay that around the pen. Don't know if that works either and that'd be a lot of expense AND work if it doesn't work.

 

[Triple Willow]

Last time I went swimming in the river we were sort of shooting these little rapids and it shot me right into a large, brown water snake!  I put my hand out to fend him off and he was swimming hard to avoid me but it was closer than I had wanted to get...touched the booger with my hand!  He was probably the more scared of us two....    

We've been cleaning out the backside of our old shed and encountered three different snakes, two of the same kind but different sizes.  I caught the largest and put him in the nearby woods, the middle sized one got away under the building and the smallest I caught and gave to the chooks.   Little Red snatched it up and got the big protein for the day.   

None of the snakes were poisonous and they were all quite beautiful.  I'm just glad none were a copperhead or rattlesnake. 

Snakes don't bother me much if they are #1-not venomous, if they don't surprise me and me in their strike zone before I know what kind they are and if they don't get where they are not supposed to be like in the house! Venomous snakes freak me out a bit... quite a bit! LOL We have copperheads and water moccasins here and a few rattlesnakes about 50 miles away.

Don't assume a venomous snake is harmless even if you chop its head off! I'm sure this is offensive to some people, so if dead snakes do offend you don't watch!

 

[Beekissed]

A few of you good folks are always talking about feeding your chickens BOSS; I have never given any to my birds... Is it something you should only feed as a treat or should it be used in their daily feed ration ?

I add it to the feed in the fall and into winter because I drop total proteins and add fats. That's just something I like to do to mimic the current nutrition being used by wild birds...as they go into winter after the first frosts, they glean less bugs and more seeds and nuts to lay on the fat layer they will need for warmth in the winter. I also let my dog(s) put on a little more fat for winter as well for the same reason and they are fed the fat, skin and bones from the deer we kill to help with that.

For the birds, I want fat under the skin and not so much stored in the body, so I'm hoping by mimicking the diet of the wild birds they will achieve that...and it seems to work in just that way. When I happen to do a cull in the fall under my normal feeding regime(last year's was just not normal!), it seems to yield a bird with fat under the skin but not so much around the vent and organs. I'll be processing a few old hens this fall and will see if this theory bears out once again.

The BOSS isn't a huge part of the ration, but it's there and you can still see some in the feed mix long into the summer from the seeds filtering down into the feed can contents . My birds are currently gleaning grass seeds quite a bit and this will continue into the fall as the fall fescue goes to seed.

 

[Triple Willow]

I hear the snakes don't like crawling across lime but you know how that goes. So I don't know IF it works or not. THEN ALSO someone said moth balls and said they put them in a PVC pipe they have drilled tiny holes in all around and over the PVC pipe so the smell will be able to get out. and then lay that around the pen. Don't know if that works either and that'd be a lot of expense AND work if it doesn't work. 

I mixed up some lime and sulfur and used it around the front of my house then one day I saw a bird that was sick and looked to be dying. I figured the lime and sulfur did it, don't know. I haven't used it sense. I need goats and about six king snakes!

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

Ok, reading about feeding small animals to chickens...I didn't realize that was possible. My dad just bought this big (for us 24&3/4 acres is really big) property that is totally overrun with ground squirrels, rabbits and the big outbuildings are infested with mice. This also attractss quite a few rattlesnakes. There is a coop of sorts on the property and my dad wants to get chickens for eggs. He is big into eggs. However I don't want to give him mine because all he wants to feed them is cracked corn and dead vermin. He is very insane. I'm not joking, he really is in a league of his own. I told him I would buy his feed for him but if he did throw some dead rabbits or squirrels, would the chickens actually eat them? I really don't want to give him chickens since he wont care how healthy they are. I 'll be out there regularly in the future so if I do give him the chickens at least I can supplement their diet with ff and veggies. Ugh, sorry to bring this up...I just had no idea chickens would eat rodents and snakes.

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

I add it to the feed in the fall and into winter because I drop total proteins and add fats.  That's just something I like to do to mimic the current nutrition being used by wild birds...as they go into winter after the first frosts, they glean less bugs and more seeds and nuts to lay on the fat layer they will need for warmth in the winter.  I also let my dog(s) put on a little more fat for winter as well for the same reason and they are fed the fat, skin and bones from the deer we kill to help with that. 

For the birds, I want fat under the skin and not so much stored in the body, so I'm hoping by mimicking the diet of the wild birds they will achieve that...and it seems to work in just that way.  When I happen to do a cull in the fall under my normal feeding regime(last year's was just not normal!), it seems to yield a bird with fat under the skin but not so much around the vent and organs.  I'll be processing a few old hens this fall and will see if this theory bears out once again. 

The BOSS isn't a huge part of the ration, but it's there and you can still see some in the feed mix long into the summer from the seeds filtering down into the feed can contents .  My birds are currently gleaning grass seeds quite a bit and this will continue into the fall as the fall fescue goes to seed. 

Thanks for the info, Bee. I always wondered what the actual benefits were of feeding BOSS and from what little research I did it appears that folks are feeding it more as a treat from time to time than anything else.

 

[Triple Willow]

Ok, reading about feeding small animals to chickens...I didn't realize that was possible. My dad just bought this big (for us 24&3/4 acres is really big) property that is totally overrun with ground squirrels, rabbits and the big outbuildings are infested with mice. This also attractss quite a few rattlesnakes. There is a coop of sorts on the property and my dad wants to get chickens for eggs. He is big into eggs. However I don't want to give him mine because all he wants to feed them is cracked corn and dead vermin. He is very insane. I'm not joking, he really is in a league of his own. I told him I would buy his feed for him but if he did throw some dead rabbits or squirrels, would the chickens actually eat them? I really don't want to give him chickens since he wont care how healthy they are. I 'll be out there regularly in the future so if I do give him the chickens at least I can supplement their diet with ff and veggies. Ugh, sorry to bring this up...I just had no idea chickens would eat rodents and snakes.

As far as cleaning the place up, goats are the best at that! He could put up a couple strands of electric to keep them in or get some of that poultry netting and move it from place to place. For the venomous snakes he could get some king snakes and release them. They will kill and eat other snakes. (I need some myself!) They will also eat the mice. Great snakes to have. Pigs will also kill and eat snakes. Cats will also help on the rodents and small snakes. I don't know about ground squirrels but regular tree squirrels (red and gray) are a delicacy where I come from - or a little terrier type dog should thin them out. Chickens do eat dead animals but sorry, I have no experience with that. Good luck!

 

[Beekissed]

Ok, reading about feeding small animals to chickens...I didn't realize that was possible. My dad just bought this big (for us 24&3/4 acres is really big) property that is totally overrun with ground squirrels, rabbits and the big outbuildings are infested with mice. This also attractss quite a few rattlesnakes. There is a coop of sorts on the property and my dad wants to get chickens for eggs. He is big into eggs. However I don't want to give him mine because all he wants to feed them is cracked corn and dead vermin. He is very insane. I'm not joking, he really is in a league of his own. I told him I would buy his feed for him but if he did throw some dead rabbits or squirrels, would the chickens actually eat them? I really don't want to give him chickens since he wont care how healthy they are. I 'll be out there regularly in the future so if I do give him the chickens at least I can supplement their diet with ff and veggies. Ugh, sorry to bring this up...I just had no idea chickens would eat rodents and snakes.

They do when hungry enough and given the opportunity. It's not their first meat of choice as they prefer bugs, worms, grubs, etc., but they are also opportunistic eaters, some breeds more than others, and will consume most anything that is edible in their path.

The chickens may or may not eat something as large as squirrel or rabbit...depends on if they live in confinement with no chance to get their own, preferred, diet. The animals would have to be either freshly killed and laid open for consumption purposes or slightly gamey and rotten for ease of eating. The chickens have to be able to peck away bits and pieces and this cannot happen if the fur/skin is intact and it can't happen on longer muscle fibers unless they are softened from decomposition. The chickens have sharp beaks but they do not have the power in their necks and the curved beaks of carrion birds.

They would derive more from the experience if the animal were skinned and cut up into smaller pieces or even cooked. They can handle the entrails, the eyes, etc., but the long muscles pose a problem for them.

Thanks for the info, Bee. I always wondered what the actual benefits were of feeding BOSS and from what little research I did it appears that folks are feeding it more as a treat from time to time than anything else.

It makes an excellent training tool and gives broody mamas and chicks some fun when they are still in the brooder as she teaches them to scratch for and eat the "bugs". I don't particularly believe in "treats" for chickens but throwing them a handful of BOSS can sure get them where you want them if need be.