Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[mstricer]

Okay from what I'm reading, Im not feeding fremented feed even though it has a skin on top. I dont ferment it long enough. Only overnight. There is never any water in it. I've tried, adding more water but i make it in the evening before I go to bed so it is ready in the morning. 12 hours isn't enough to ferment it , right?

 

[Kilsharion]

Okay from what I'm reading, Im not feeding fremented feed even though it has a skin on top. I dont ferment it long enough. Only overnight. There is never any water in it. I've tried, adding more water but i make it in the evening before I go to bed so it is ready in the morning. 12 hours isn't enough to ferment it , right?

You are fermenting feed. There it nothing wrong with fermenting it. And, if it has a skin on top, you are certainly fermenting it.

What you are not doing is creating an alcoholic hooch. It takes more than 48 hours to get alcohol of any reasonable level...and, you can't get alcohol once you've introduced vinegar, anyway. The vinegar overwhelms the alcohol and converts it to vinegar. So, even if you let your feed stand in a full fermentation bath (with 1" or so of hooch over it) you would not have any significant alcohol levels in your feed.

12 hours is plenty enough time to get an initial fermentation going (carbs being broken down). It just takes longer for alcohol to be derived from it. Are you meaning there is no water above the level of the feed? Doesn't really matter - as long as there is enough liquid in it for the feed to actually absorb it and move to the fermentation process. I'm pretty sure that's the consistency Yinepu does hers. I do mine with a full hooch over the top - mostly because I use the snap crackle and pop of the carbonation being created as a confirmation that my yeasts are happy little buggers doing their job. But, it's certainly not a requirement.

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Quote: How about shutting the door lol!

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Quote: Can you show me the difference between mash and crumble before adding to FF please?

 

[mstricer]

Mash is powdery and crumbles are just what it sounds like.

 

[Kilsharion]

Can you show me the difference between mash and crumble before adding to FF please?

From left to right: mash, crumbles, pellets

 

[Lacy Blues]

Okay from what I'm reading, Im not feeding fremented feed even though it has a skin on top. I dont ferment it long enough. Only overnight. There is never any water in it. I've tried, adding more water but i make it in the evening before I go to bed so it is ready in the morning. 12 hours isn't enough to ferment it , right?

You could start a second bucket. That's what I do. I have one for morning and one for evening. That way it has a chance to ferment for almost 24 hours.

How about shutting the door lol!

That was going to be my suggestion too. If there is shade outside and food and water, shut the barn door and force them to stay out for a few hours at a time. I realize the other birds will need to get in to lay their eggs, unless you want to start a massive egg hunt so I'd only do it for a short time to begin with.

Have you gone into the barn to see what they are doing in there and what the attraction might be? Most birds, I imagine, prefer to be out in the sunshine and grass and bugs.

 

[3 NH reds]

I feed the fermented scratch grains and they love it. I got jumped feeding them today.

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Mash is powdery and crumbles are just what it sounds like.

Thanks, I didn't know that they made powdery feed.

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Quote: I see. thanks.