Food effiency idea - sift chick starter?

[IdealisticRoo]

My 4 week old chicks love to scratch in their pine bedding and kick bedding and poo chunks everywhere!

Quite a lot of bedding and poo end up in the feeders even though they are elevated to the height of the chicks back's.

So everytime I empty the feeders before refilling I sift the food that was in the trough on a piece of 1/8" hardware cloth This way the food sifts through back into the food bag and the poo and bedding (and also some large pellets) stay on top of the hardware cloth, that I then dump into the trash!

Does anyone else do this? I considered tossing the food, but that would double the food waste!

I realize that some impurities fall back into the food bag, but chicks that are raised by broodies peck at the dirty ground from day 1.

 

[PunkinPeep]

I usually just empty the feeder into the bedding to give the chicks practice at scratching for food. Then i just refill the feeder as normal. As you said, it is completely normal for them to peck at and eat the droppings.

 

[Tdub4chiks]

I don't think feeding feces back to any animal or putting it in fresh food is ever a good idea. Just my .02.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I sift through the feed I remove at the end of the day (sometimes) with a kitty litter scoop.

This is since they often eat the pumpkin seeds out of the shell (leaving the shell behind), and leave bits of feathers, small sticks, etc. in the feed.

 

[RIBill]

When we had chicks, I just spun the chick feeder back and forth a couple times and a little food and all the shavings and poop would broadcast. Now, I have to separate the litter and poop out of their oyster shell feeder. I just hold it downwind and blow on it a bit. The litter and most poop is lighter than foid or grit after a day of drying.