Grit size question - and a little cross-border rant

[Don 27]

Idaho gets pretty cold and lots of snow, and rarely have to give em grit even in winter as my hens and the rooster come and go as they please from the coop, and funny rooster comes either crowing at bedroom window or pecking on door to let me know his hens need something like if snow is deep so I can go shovel a place for them to get at the ground

What do you feed your chickens? I have been feeding ours layer crumbles which is expensive.

 

[GC-Raptor]

As for GRIT, my local TSC carries 2 kinds. CHICK GRIT and POULTRY GRIT. . .
I buy Chick Grit in a 5 lb bag and Poultry Grit in a 25 lb bag.
Chick Grit, 2 weeks through 10 weeks mixed in feed at a ratio of 1 to 40.
At 7 weeks I offer Poultry Grit in a separate container. . GC

 

[aart]

So far I've been putting shavings on my poop board and then just flicking it off and mixing into the coop shavings.

<scratcheshead>While waiting to find PDZ?

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have 3 sizes of grit on hand:


Left is chick and middle is "hen" size (I consider it pullet size) from my local feed store bulk bins.
Right is hen size, Scratch & Peck brand.

 

[slordaz]

What do you feed your chickens? I have been feeding ours layer crumbles which is expensive.

I feed them Flock raiser/all flock with oyster shell free choice

 

[Folly's place]

Chicken feed is CHEAP! At least here, Purina Flock Raiser is $16.49 to $17.99 for 50lbs, depending on which feed store is available. recently it was $13.99 on sale at one of the feed stores.
Other feeds are less expensive, and some cost more, but really, it's not expensive, compared to feeding so many other critters.
Amazon, and their 'free shipping'? Flock Raiser was $50!!!

 

[aart]

I have been feeding ours layer crumbles which is expensive.

What kind of layer feed, how much is it?

 

[MiaS]

Sand on the poop board will work...Anyways I hate helping if it turns into a debate...

No debate here. Glad to hear that the grit available works. It just looks so different from what I'm seeing across the border. Mine looks like sand, this stuff like pea gravel in comparison

 

[MiaS]

<scratcheshead>While waiting to find PDZ?

Well not exactly, but now that I have the PDZ I will give it a try. I'm once again a bit confused over the whole poop board vs deep litter question. It seems strange to me to scoop poop above when you are composting below so that's why I've just been incorporating it all into my deep litter and giving it a good mix every few days. If I use the PDZ then I will have to compost what I scoop separately, potentially adding another step...just trying to find what is going to work best for me. Goals: no smell, healthy chickens, minimal work, usable garden material.

 

[aart]

It seems strange to me to scoop poop above when you are composting below so that's why I've just been incorporating it all into my deep litter and giving it a good mix every few days.

If you're doing a true composting deep litter.... no, you wouldn't use a poop board.
...and you'd use more than just pine shavings on the floor.

The term 'deep litter' is often misunderstood and misapplied.
I've always liked this explanation:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-method-with-this-coop.1075545/#post-16440037