Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[bruceh]

@paul. thank you for your input. i have noticed the same vigor with my batch of 32 (11 days old). i was going to run the same type of study you did, but i ran out of time. so all 32 are on fermented feed. they are very active flighty and healthy. they also feather out faster than the ones i did last time on dry feed.. the brooder is cleaner and has no real smell. stools of the birds are solid. no pasty butts. the water consumption is much less also. the food consumption is also at about half the feed on fermented feed than the last batch with dry.

time will tell me on grow out.

paul if you could , would place your method on " meat birds tell us how do it thread " i started that thread for education on raising meat birds.


bruce

 

[jrsckn]

In my experiment, I found that the CX that ate the 50/50 fermented crumble/whole grain mix had the lowest weights followed by the dry crumble, but the CX fed 100% fermented crumble were the heaviest.

It all came down to ease of digestability

 

[Tivona]

I started the ferment 2 days ago with my waterfowl pellet feed and ACV as well as some probiotics. I have always given my baby birds the probiotics for the first week so I had some on hand and I thought they might help get it started. Today I have bubbles! I only have a small batch as I didn't have any big buckets available. Actually I used a salad spinner so not much at all. I will pick up buckets as soon as I can for the bucket system but my ducks got to have a bit today. As I figured that the mash is still getting stronger in good bacteria and whatnot, I only gave the birds a spoonful of the stuff mixed into their pellets. They seemed to like it fine so far and perhaps the small amount mixed into their normal feed will help them get a taste for it. I will be getting some actual buckets for this as soon as I can. I will be keeping an eye on their poop and see if it firms up. Hopefully the mix gets even better bacteria-wise here soon so when I get the buckets its really working.

 

[thunderbolt&marjorie]

Good morning all
Thought I would post an update:
My birds are now 6 weeks old (23 FR and 5 SLW). I started with fermenting crumbles, then moved to layer mash/crumble mix at a 2:1 ratio/3:1 ratio depending on how I feel.

Before I switched them to the layer mash mix, I did notice there was more of a poo smell (week 3) but not as 'nasty'. Now, at week 6, I notice no smell. Their roosting area is sprinkled every day/every other day with PDZ and a light sprinkle of fresh shavings (I have just finished using 1 full bag over the 6 week period, that says something right there!) The outdoor 25x25 run is also not smelly; last batch I did I had to rake it constantly to try to keep the smell under control!

These birds are much more active than my last batch; unsure if it is because I have them on scheduled feedings vs free choice or what. More of them roost; dust bathe, run around, etc. Water consumption, as expected, is much lower. Little to no pasty butt when they were little, and while I did lose three chicks early on (crippled chick was the 26th, other two losses were weak birds, not flip or anything), I am quite pleased overall.

I am quite pleased with the results, and while I am not keeping statistics, (weights) I think by the time I am done I will have gone through 3 bags of chick starter crumbles and maybe 6 bags of mash. I plan on taking them to 10 weeks.

 

[Beekissed]

One thing I've noticed about everyone's results in using the FF is that they all note the lack of bad smells in the coop/bedding. That is a great side effect of using the FF, but I think it's important to mention that it is merely a side effect and the physiology behind why it is happening is a much more important and desirable goal.

This means that there is better bowel health due to more villi being present in the bowel. More villi means more blood supply, which means better nutrient absorption from the available feeds passing through the small intestine. The fermentation of the feed before consumption also changes some of the feed ingredients, allowing it to be digested and absorbed by a monogastric animal such as a chicken. This means that the food is being used instead of passing through the bowel underutilized. This means the bird is getting more from the feed and this results in less overall feed being fed or needed. This translates into saving pennies that grow into dollars over the long haul.

The introduction of good cultures also helps inhibit the overgrowth of more harmful pathogens such as salmonella, coccidia, e.coli, etc. This means your chickens have better health overall.

Another good side effect of having this healthier bowel structure, blood supply, and good bacteria is a decrease in parasite infestation. The more digestive enzymes and better digestive action is prohibitive to the growth and production of intestinal parasites. They thrive better in an unhealthy bird with an unhealthy bowel.

This is important to know when you are thinking of de-worming your chickens: One has to ask themselves, how did my chicken's health get to such a state that it has an infestation? Take care of that problem and the other problem~visible worms being shed in the feces~will right itself. All mammals have a parasite present in their bodies/bowels, but you will rarely see evidence of it in the fecal matter unless there is an overgrowth. When is the last time you looked in your toilet and saw long, white worms in the poop? This does not mean you have no worms, it merely means you have them but you are not infested with a large population of them.

Same with chickens. It's expected that chickens will have some level of intestinal parasites, but never enough to affect their health or production. All animals have them and they thrive anyway. The key is not to try to get all the worms out of your chickens~if the conditions are that lovely, they'll just be back. Rather, the goal should be to create such a healthy chicken that the worms can not get a foothold inside them and colonize enough to cause problems.

FF has so many benefits that I can really see no down side to it and I know that the decreased smell of the feces is the most obvious, but that lack of smell is just a sign of the many other benefits of this method of feeding.

 

[armorfirelady]

My 22 week old hens (4) have been on the FF food for over a week now. I use a mixture of layer pellets, scratch mix, cracked corn, BOSS & rolled oats.
They instantly took to eating it. When they hear me in the run stirring the mix they come to watch. I have been trying to get the right amount in the feeder so that they eat it all but still a little in the bottom.

The things I have noticed since I started feeding them the FF is that they have not been eating the layer pellets that they have access to 24/7. I filled the PVC feeded at the same time I started the FF & its still full.

Their water cosumption has gone down. Their feces is firmer now. And except for one small bloody stool(?) on a roost it has less odor. I just raked up the hen house after realizing I hadnt touched it in over a week and noticed more firm poop, less smell (and it was stinky) and less wet spots. A good raking and some fresh litter & it was good to go (deep litter method)

The hens seem more energetic, forage better, and their feathers are getting a nice healthy glow. They have been going thru a slow molt but yesterday they seemed to be losing more of their gray down feathers in spots.

They have not started layin yet so whether or not it will have any benefits to laying I wont know for another couple weeks.

 

[Beekissed]

A little confused....uh...if you are using the deep litter method, you probably won't be raking out any poop or bedding?

The deep litter method is normally when a person leaves the bedding in place for a long period of time, letting it degrade naturally, while adding fresh bedding along the way. No removal of poop is necessary in a true deep litter system.

I'm so glad they are showing good benefits from the FF...everyone seems to have the same consensus that their flock's overall health and activity levels are improved with this method.

 

[armorfirelady]

A little confused....uh...if you are using the deep litter method, you probably won't be raking out any poop or bedding?

The deep litter method is normally when a person leaves the bedding in place for a long period of time, letting it degrade naturally, while adding fresh bedding along the way. No removal of poop is necessary in a true deep litter system.

I'm so glad they are showing good benefits from the FF...everyone seems to have the same consensus that their flock's overall health and activity levels are improved with this method.

I'm sorry I misspoke. I just removed poop from nesting boxes & Perches and knocked it to the bottom of house where I raked stuff around to bring any damp bedding to the top & added some fresh shavings with some crack corn to encourage them to scratch around. I didnt remove anything

 

[Beekissed]

Ah...that clears it up!

Was wondering......

It seems you are moving right along in your chickening experience...I saw the neato pop door you made! A woman after my own heart....I also use stuff I have lying around, zip ties, baling twine, etc. It doesn't have to be pretty to be functional, I always say!

 

[armorfirelady]

I have decided that the staple gun has been added to my favorite tools of duct tape, zip ties & cool string my dad gave me spools of. ANd reusing what I have at home gives me more room also