Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Triple Willow]

Wait... there's a topic?

Hmmm... what off the wall, I mean off topic topic could we come up with next??? I'm sure something will happen to somebody around here to give us something new to ponder.

 

[Triple Willow]

A question for you all. I have been doing FF since early last spring. I always offer dry in a small feeder as well, but between the FF and free ranging, it often goes untouched. They have always gone to the FF like it's candy.

Over the last month the girls are eating less and less FF. Today I went to give them their morning FF and saw the dry feed was empty so I filled that too. They completely ignored the FF and dove into the dry. I'm not sure why this would be happening. I've always made it the same way. I always use the same brand of pellets and I don't think the company has changed the formula. Plus, if they did, I'd think the birds wouldn't eat the dry either.

Any thoughts?

Hi MEmom3. I don't know, maybe they just wanted something different...? Maybe you could add something a little different to the ff to give it a different taste. I started mine with buttermilk and since it has turned off cold (it is in the garage with the window open) I smells just like real sweet apples. I don't have a clue how it can smell that good but it does. I thought about tasting it but I want to do it on an empty stomach because I might barf! LOL Have you thought about just taking the dry feed away completely?

 

[Shellz]

You guys are a riot! Now that I've got a new bag of feed (layer mash for my pullets just starting to lay) I'm going to get started again. My last batch went off because I think it got too cold in the basement. The birds wouldn't touch it anymore.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Hmmm... what off the wall, I mean off topic topic could we come up with next??? I'm sure something will happen to somebody around here to give us something new to ponder.

GREAT!!!!!! I was hoping we could do some more pundering soon.......

 

[Triple Willow]

GREAT!!!!!!   I was hoping we could do some more pundering soon.......

Plundering ...maaaybe? lol

 

[BCMaraniac]

Plundering ...maaaybe? lol

Hhhmmmmm...........

 

[Beekissed]

Okay, back on track... I started 3 jars of fermented seven-grain scratch feed. Tomorrow is day three. They will be on a three day cycle, dumping the water from the day three jar into the new jar with fresh grain each day. Have yet to see results this early, but I will be looking for a change in chicken poop soon! (Seriously, I will.) I had to put a paper towel and rubber band over the top of one jar to keep out gnats. The other two jars aren't attracting gnats. They were all started with unpasteurized ACV on the same day. Now I'm wondering if the gnat-attractant-jar is better or worse than the others. I'm assuming that the ones that are not attracting gnats are producing vinegar bacteria and the other is producing alcohol yeasts (which attract vinegar-bacteria-carrying gnats). I'm also assuming that the non-gnat attracting jars are going to be better for my chickens. How far off am I, and does yeast-colonized grain have any benefit?

How about just putting all of it in a big ol' bucket and then you won't have to wonder if this one or that one is fermenting or not...the whole thing will be fermenting at once and you can clearly see and smell the signs of fermentation and you can just feed out of it until it's almost gone, add more feed and water, stir it, start feeding out of it the next day and the next and the next until it gets low again.... and repeat the cycle over and over ad infinitum.

Gnats are usually attracted to anything rotting or fermenting, so I'd say the one attracting the most gnats is the one with the highest level of fermentation going on.

Curious...why would you use a complicated and fussy system of jars and a daily job of messing around with dumping, refreshing, etc? It really is much more simple than that and can really streamline your chores if you just feed out of a bucket and be done with it...unless, of course, you like fussing about with small containers and such, then I'd say "Carry on!"

A question for you all. I have been doing FF since early last spring. I always offer dry in a small feeder as well, but between the FF and free ranging, it often goes untouched. They have always gone to the FF like it's candy.

Over the last month the girls are eating less and less FF. Today I went to give them their morning FF and saw the dry feed was empty so I filled that too. They completely ignored the FF and dove into the dry. I'm not sure why this would be happening. I've always made it the same way. I always use the same brand of pellets and I don't think the company has changed the formula. Plus, if they did, I'd think the birds wouldn't eat the dry either.

Any thoughts?

Yep...take away the dry feed and keep feeding the FF. The dry feed has very little merit beside the super food of FF and they don't really need a choice. Is it getting colder where you live? If so, the colder, wet feed may be playing second fiddle to a dry ration on a cold morning. I just wouldn't give them a choice and lower the total feed fed until they start cleaning up the FF well.

Also, if colder and your FF is kept outside, are you sure your feed is fermented well as opposed to just being wet? It's hard to determine the cause without knowing more about how you do the FF and such.

About FF, mine doesn't smell ANYwhere near as strong as it did a few days after I first started it...maybe I'm not letting it ferment enough now between adding and taking out? I'm thinking I need to start another one (an additional one). One to let ferment a few days and one I've had fermenting already. Is that what you guys do or what do you think I'm doing wrong (if anything)








-BTW it's still in the same spot it was in when I started which is inside so I don't think temp has anything to do with it right now (and...still in the dang pickle jar. I SO need to UPgrade!) lol

Yep...you need a big ol' bucket and to let your ferment keep on fermenting as you feed out of the larger vessel...then, when it gets low, refresh then and repeat the process. That way, you are using the old to inoculate the new and the new gets more and more old with each passing day..the more fermented, the better.

 

[JesNflock]

How about just putting all of it in a big ol' bucket and then you won't have to wonder if this one or that one is fermenting or not...the whole thing will be fermenting at once and you can clearly see and smell the signs of fermentation and you can just feed out of it until it's almost gone, add more feed and water, stir it, start feeding out of it the next day and the next and the next until it gets low again.... and repeat the cycle over and over ad infinitum.

Gnats are usually attracted to anything rotting or fermenting, so I'd say the one attracting the most gnats is the one with the highest level of fermentation going on.

Curious...why would you use a complicated and fussy system of jars and a daily job of messing around with dumping, refreshing, etc? It really is much more simple than that and can really streamline your chores if you just feed out of a bucket and be done with it...unless, of course, you like fussing about with small containers and such, then I'd say "Carry on!"

Yep...take away the dry feed and keep feeding the FF. The dry feed has very little merit beside the super food of FF and they don't really need a choice. Is it getting colder where you live? If so, the colder, wet feed may be playing second fiddle to a dry ration on a cold morning. I just wouldn't give them a choice and lower the total feed fed until they start cleaning up the FF well.

Also, if colder and your FF is kept outside, are you sure your feed is fermented well as opposed to just being wet? It's hard to determine the cause without knowing more about how you do the FF and such.


Yep...you need a big ol' bucket and to let your ferment keep on fermenting as you feed out of the larger vessel...then, when it gets low, refresh then and repeat the process. That way, you are using the old to inoculate the new and the new gets more and more old with each passing day..the more fermented, the better.

I definitely am going to get a bucket ASAP...Somehow I ran the FF out of my large pickle jar today lol looked cool but uh..messy!

When I started it in the pickle jar I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to ferment it...I didn't know it would be THIS EASY! Now I know.

 

[Triple Willow]

I definitely am going to get a bucket ASAP...Somehow I ran the FF out of my large pickle jar today lol looked cool but uh..messy!

 When I started it in the pickle jar I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to ferment it...I didn't know it would be THIS EASY! Now I know.e

Don't tell anybody but I made another mess a day or two ago...shhh.

 

[JesNflock]

Don't tell anybody but I made another mess a day or two ago...shhh.

It'll be our secret....