I have 18 buff orphingtons and have been allowing them to free range throughout the day. I live on 7 acres in missouri, there is plenty for them to find.. I also have been feeding them egg pellets. I am feeding about 200 lbs a month in addition to their free rangeing. I am wondering if i am feeding too much?
Holy cow, are you sure nothing else is getting access to their feed? I've got 21 hens out in the coop and I only go through a hundred pounds a month, if that. Something smells fishy......ya might wanna check it out!! Oh, btw, mine have free access 24/7 to their feed also.
I keep the food in a large lidded can... I give them 1 1/2 scoops a day.. i use an old bleach bottle(1 gal ) as a scoop.. I have filled their 30 lb feeder and they wil go thru it in a couple days with no problem.. I am thinking of cutting their ration i feed in half.. as it is i am feeding about 6.6 lbs per day or .37 lbs per day to each bird... along with what they range...
Wow, that's a lot of feed. I have 10 RIR's and their 30lb feeder lasts a week. I have a 40lb feeder in with 16 5wk old meaties and it lasts about 4 1/2 days.
I have 40 Production Reds who free range on 28 acres, but probably only range about 4/5 acres. I feed them about 2lbs of food in the morning before I let them out, and about 2lbs of food when I bring them in, in the evening along with any kitchen scraps. They are fit healthy and producing eggs really well. I think you might just be overfeeding or that something else is getting into the food.
What kind of feeder are you using? Where is it located, inside or outside? They're either wasting feed, are way over-eating or something else is getting into that feed.
