Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[RoseMarie1]

LOL! I give my hens fermented feed even though they are layers and not for meat, and I definitely notice a difference. They are 3 1/2 yr old RSLs and still going strong... but you know the hybrids, I don't know if they will last as long as your Little Red Hen.

lol man your chickens are soooo pretty! LOVE that one in the first pic, The Little Red hen!

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

My ff water seems to evaporate...is that common...its been hot /dry last few days. Just adding more will be ok, right? Also, I wanted to know what grains and ratios people were mixing for the ff. Since starting ff last week, I've noticed some runny stools....are the birds just adjusting? And finally, I am interested in which birds you all think would lay the longest and are generally the healthiest and dress out best out of my flock of 8 week olds ... I have RIR, BO, SS, RSL,BA, BSL, WR,and a Turkmenistan. I must keep one RSL since she is my friendliest girl.

 

[Beekissed]

My ff water seems to evaporate...is that common...its been hot /dry last few days. Just adding more will be ok, right? Also, I wanted to know what grains and ratios people were mixing for the ff. Since starting ff last week, I've noticed some runny stools....are the birds just adjusting? And finally, I am interested in which birds you all think would lay the longest and are generally the healthiest and dress out best out of my flock of 8 week olds ... I have RIR, BO, SS, RSL,BA, BSL, WR,and a Turkmenistan. I must keep one RSL since she is my friendliest girl.

It absorbs pretty much and it's common. I just keep it a dryer mix and so just use it as is, but some folks will add water after the initial water has absorbed. Right now I'm feeding straight layer ration but will soon be moving into my fall mix, which usually consists of layer mixed 50% with barley, a little BOSS, and whatever else I want to throw in there that's low cost as the birds won't be laying top notch as they move into winter.

The runny stools can be caused by the extra moisture intake. Some birds drink more in the hot weather and so they pee more as well...but they have to consume some moisture to get to the feed, so they are taking in more fluids than they probably would due to moist feeds and also drinking more in hot weather. It will all resolve itself soon, so no worries. About half my flock was doing that for a time a few weeks back.

Your RIR, RSL and BSL will be your production layers and will lay the best for about a year and a half. They won't maintain the best feathering into that second year and will burn out earlier than the other breeds due to their high production.

Your BO, SS are medium production, with the BO laying larger eggs but not at production levels. Due to their big feed consumption and large eggs, BOs are often through laying by their 2nd year as well and often they are prolapsed. If you have a rooster the BOs will be the birds with no feathers on the back..they are very eager breeders.

Your WR(if you are talking about a Plymouth White Rock..some folks have taken to calling a Cornish Rock Cross a White Rock, but they are not the same bird) and BA are your gold star breeds out of that bunch (I don't know anything about the Turk bird, so have no point of reference for it.). They will lay steadily and at excellent rates far past 2 years, and if managed properly, will keep laying great clear up into their older years. They will have more natural hardiness as well, will do well in all weathers and maintain good feathering.

The largest carcass will be your WR, hands down. The BO will look like a big bird, but that's a lot of feathers and internal fat, not so much meat. The BO and SS will be about the same carcass. The production gals will all have the smallest carcasses, along with the BA.

 

[RedRidge]

Will do! These old gals are 6 yrs and have been through a lot in their day, put a lot of eggs in the nest and have raised the next generations. Can't wait to see how they have aged inside..if I find anything out of the ordinary or interesting at all, I'll take some pics.

We slaughtered our 6 and 7 yr old production layers last fall and I was surprised how much fat a few of them had. They free range during the summer. I didn't expect them to have any fat at all, but they did have "some".
What I really look at when I slaughter production layers that age (as opposed to my others who live much longer before not being productive) is the organs - heart, liver, kidneys... that will tell you more than anything else about their health.

 

[RedRidge]

You said you don't feed your production layers during the summer? Are the HRIR your production layers? That is really neat that you have bees. I have wanted to try bee keeping ...but I'm kinda skeerd. lol

No, I have a flock of farm raised layers that originally came from stock from hatcheries or 4-H kids. They are buffs, production reds, wyandottes, red stars... you name it. I sell a LOT of eggs, so I hatch some of these each year for replacements. They are serious egg producers and I usually slaughter them when they peter out - usually about 4-5 yrs old. I had a big group I didn't slaughter the year we moved, so they got to be a little older and got slaughtered at 6-7 last fall. Usually I don't keep the production layers that long.
The HRIR will lay fewer eggs a year, but as many eggs over their lifetime. They also have a beautiful carcass. I no longer raise CX since I have the HRIR - it's just not necessary... we just eat most of the HRIR cockerels and keep a few back for breeding.
My Rhodebars are the same way, although I keep several cockerels back since I am working on my breeding program with them and need to double barred cockerels to my over my HRIR for genetic improvement.

The bees are really hubby's project... he loves them. It's something he can do that is "his" that doesn't require daily attention. When we first started in bees we started by attending a county bee meeting... it was very informative, free, and the folks were so helpful. I'd encourage you to find a local beekeeper's association and attend a few meetings.

 

[RedRidge]

My ff water seems to evaporate...is that common...its been hot /dry last few days. Just adding more will be ok, right? Also, I wanted to know what grains and ratios people were mixing for the ff. Since starting ff last week, I've noticed some runny stools....are the birds just adjusting? And finally, I am interested in which birds you all think would lay the longest and are generally the healthiest and dress out best out of my flock of 8 week olds ... I have RIR, BO, SS, RSL,BA, BSL, WR,and a Turkmenistan. I must keep one RSL since she is my friendliest girl.

As I mentioned in a previous post... most of these production birds do not lay a long time... they last a lot in their earlier years.
My HRIR will lay until they are 10 yrs old and will dress a beautiful carcass, but they only lay about 180 eggs a year.
So... it's a trade off. And... finding really nice HRIR is a tough thing to do... very few really around.

 

[RedRidge]

Quote:
And NOW I see Bee has responded... sorry, I should have read further ahead before posting...

I will add that I have tried many different breeds for good dual purpose.
I have also raised Cornish Cross. Also the Freedom Rangers.
The closest I have found to true dual purpose that still a nice large, and not stringy carcass is definitely the HRIR... but I have not raised White Rocks.
All of mine, regardless of breed, get nothing but FF... they all love it.
I only feed once a day, in the morning... I feed by weight and make sure they still have a little left at dusk... it's a touchy feely thing to get used to how much to feed, but once you figure it out, feeding once a day is easy.

 

[colburg]

Quote: X2

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

And NOW I see Bee has responded... sorry, I should have read further ahead before posting...

I will add that I have tried many different breeds for good dual purpose. I have also raised Cornish Cross. Also the Freedom Rangers. The closest I have found to true dual purpose that still a nice large, and not stringy carcass is definitely the HRIR... but I have not raised White Rocks. All of mine, regardless of breed, get nothing but FF... they all love it. I only feed once a day, in the morning... I feed by weight and make sure they still have a little left at dusk... it's a touchy feely thing to get used to how much to feed, but once you figure it out, feeding once a day is easy.

Thank you both of you! I am revising my keepers and those that I'm giving away as layers. I will definately be keeping a white rock for laying then in the home flock as well as a RIR and a BA. I will be giving my sister a WR too. I will give my dad the other BA and a BSL and that should keep him happy both short term and long term. He has very hot weather most of the year. I greatly appreciayte the longevity info as I hadn't known or considered it before. Thanks again!

 

[AletaG]

well I sure HOPE she does Bruce, because that sadden me to hear her say that because I am learning so much from her. She'We'll be lost without her chickens.

Fixed.

.
My HRIR will lay until they are 10 yrs old and will dress a beautiful carcass, but they only lay about 180 eggs a year.
So... it's a trade off. And... finding really nice HRIR is a tough thing to do... very few really around.

Thanks for that info, I knew about the laying, and that they live longer than 6 yrs, but 10! I'm thrilled. Will be getting 2 HRIR ckrls from MumsyII and 4 pullets from RonnieWayne in TX from the Ron Fogle line. VERY excited to receive them this fall!