Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Triple Willow]

Aren't those supposed to cook from all sides, yet keep a lot of the moisture in to improve tenderness and moisture??

I've never used one but they are usually placed on a stove eye with a heat diffuser between it and the eye. From what I understand most of the moisture stays in - a little steam goes out the top but the moisture runs back down so it takes very little liquid to cook with. Some are big enough to cook a whole chicken in, some probably more than one chicken! You can cook a whole meal in one. They make some that are so pretty.

 

[Triple Willow]

Very sad.  So glad the baby wasn't harmed.  I have heard a lot of info on the news today, but probably should just share via a PM, since I am WAY off topic.

Yeah I get off topic pretty regularly. lol I heard a little about it on the news today too, sad situation.

 

[LOVEIGEE]

Hey my Beekissed! Should post this somewhere else, but I know you are here......my son is totally solar in a cabin in NC . The heat lamp pulls his solar down too much to use in the winter to brood chicks......what do you use for a brooder lamp....I know the moderator might move this and I really don't care at this point....worked all week.....tended animals......I'm tired.......so I'll come to you here......He has lost some to beagles cutting through his yard, so he needs some fresh stock. would you wait til next Spring?........Love you baby!

 

[Beekissed]

Hey my Beekissed! Should post this somewhere else, but I know you are here......my son is totally solar in a cabin in NC . The heat lamp pulls his solar down too much to use in the winter to brood chicks......what do you use for a brooder lamp....I know the moderator might move this and I really don't care at this point....worked all week.....tended animals......I'm tired.......so I'll come to you here......He has lost some to beagles cutting through his yard, so he needs some fresh stock. would you wait til next Spring?........Love you baby!

Can he use a regular low wattage light bulb on that solar setup? If so, that's all they will need if you tent their brooder with a towel or something similar to hold in the heat. I've brooded chicks with just a regular desk lamp and 60 watt bulb and they did just fine..that was in March, so still chilly here in the hills in March.

If he cannot, just do what they did in the old days...hot water bottle, small brooder, change them out when necessary. You can even use a hot brick wrapped in flannel or a terry towel.

 

[LOVEIGEE]

Thank you BF....I love you!

 

[RoseMarie1]

Bee..........I got ANOTHER egg!

I was in the nesting area tiding up because they keep pulling the soil out around the board at the bottom and I don't want anything to dig into their pen. GOT to get my wire buried into the soil along with many many other things. lol Anyway was in there doing that when she comes in there and hops up on the perch and goes into the nest with me standing there. You could have knocked me over with a feather! She started messing around with the nesting materials and then she sits down to lay her egg. To not bother her I walked out and got me a chair since they were out free ranging and she came in to lay. So I get me a chair to wait on her so the others wouldn't bother the egg once it was laid. In no time she was coming out of the nest and she still isn't cackling or anything. She's so precious and soooo docile. I hurried inside so I could see her leg band but couldn't see the number so I reached down and picked her up and she didn't fight me or anything. Her number on her band has disappeared since those things get wet. I got to fix them again. This makes 3 eggs so far now and it looks like she's laying every other day now. Got one Sun., Wed. and Fri. The first one weighed 41g and this one was 46g.






I broke the other two yesterday when I made some ice cream and the yellows were soooo nice and yellow. Not sick looking at all like the store bought eggs. I am so excited I can't stand it.

I even took pix of my broken eggs to!

 

[Beekissed]

Thank you BF....I love you!

I love you too, Sis!

Bee..........I got ANOTHER egg!

I was in the nesting area tiding up because they keep pulling the soil out around the board at the bottom and I don't want anything to dig into their pen. GOT to get my wire buried into the soil along with many many other things. lol Anyway was in there doing that when she comes in there and hops up on the perch and goes into the nest with me standing there. You could have knocked me over with a feather! She started messing around with the nesting materials and then she sits down to lay her egg. To not bother her I walked out and got me a chair since they were out free ranging and she came in to lay. So I get me a chair to wait on her so the others wouldn't bother the egg once it was laid. In no time she was coming out of the nest and she still isn't cackling or anything. She's so precious and soooo docile. I hurried inside so I could see her leg band but couldn't see the number so I reached down and picked her up and she didn't fight me or anything. Her number on her band has disappeared since those things get wet. I got to fix them again. This makes 3 eggs so far now and it looks like she's laying every other day now. Got one Sun., Wed. and Fri. The first one weighed 41g and this one was 46g.






I broke the other two yesterday when I made some ice cream and the yellows were soooo nice and yellow. Not sick looking at all like the store bought eggs. I am so excited I can't stand it.

I even took pix of my broken eggs to!

You are just precious! So fun to see how excited you are! Good looking pullet egg and she sounds like a winner to me, being docile enough for you to pick up off the nest. Mine hop off the nest as soon as I approach..they are a little more wild about their laying habits and they don't like folks messing with them. I've spoiled them a little in that way.

Wait 'til you have one for breakfast..these eggs from FF are mild, sweet and no eggy, sulfur smell or taste. Just pure sweet and silk!

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

You can..I don't any longer as the laying ration has enough calcium for good shell production, it seems.  I've bought 2 separate bags of OS in my chickening life and that was only after I started here at BYC...I saw absolutely no difference in the flock whether I offered it free choice, fed it in their feed or when I didn't give them any at all, so I stopped buying it.  Maybe free ranged birds just get their daily calcium requirements out on the lawn, even in the winter time. 

The reason I asked about the OS during the winter is because the laying mash is 3.8% calcium, do you think that is enough ?

 

[Beekissed]

The reason I asked about the OS during the winter is because the laying mash is 3.8% calcium, do you think that is enough ?

Seems pretty standard...Layena Sunfresh formula has this listing for calcium percentage:

Calcium, not less than 3.25%
Calcium, not more than 4.25%​

 

[Triple Willow]

I hope all the new folks starting fermented feed learn quicker than I do. Every time I do this I think to myself how I won't do that again! There was at least 6" space left at the top of the bucket but not enough! Note to self ...again, "DO NOT FILL YOUR BUCKET TOO FULL OR IT WILL OVERFLOW WHEN THE FEED SOAKS UP THE WATER AND THE FERMENT STARTS WORKING!"