Hay for the run, for seed scratching ??

[IdyllwildAcres]

I use Timothy hay, lots of seeds. It is kind of pricey but I figure I will only use 2-3 bales a year. My coop has a hay loft I pull down a flake at a time to freshen up the deep litter every so often. The girls love to help spread it for me.

Gary

 

[tigger19687]

@IdyllwildAcres Inside or outside the coop ?

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

@IdyllwildAcres Inside or outside the coop ?

Inside, coop and run are sorta combined, my coops big there is a link to the left

Gary

 

[aart]

This is how I remember it.
Straw is bedding, Hay is feed.
Either can be moldy depending on how/when it's cut and baled,
and how/where it's stored.

Straw is the stalk of any grain plant, wheat, oats, etc.,
left behind after grain is harvested...can be grain free, or not.
More likely to have been sprayed and be GMO.

Hay can be a variety of grasses grown for animal feed,
can be real weedy, or not.
Probably less likely to have been sprayed or be GMO,
but not really sure about that.
Wish I had the experience to look at a bale and ID the plants and quality.

I throw down some thin layers of straw when run gets slippery.
Thin layers as I shovel parts of my uncovered run for access for both me and the birds. I keep a bale of hay too, toss out a flake here and there in the coop or in the dry 'under-run', more for activity 'enrichment' than nutritional value.
I have enough room to store a couple bales, to keep them from spreading all over my storage area I made 'bale bags' to keep them contained after cutting strings.

 

[lazy gardener]

Thanks all for excellent input re: straw and hay. I'm sure that availability, plant species that make up the bale, and other details vary by region. I have never dealt with 4 footed animals that eat hay, so am "out of the knowledge loop re: quality". The hay that I buy does have a fair amount of weeds in it, and as far as I know, it is sold as animal feed. But, I've never asked that question. I'm simply pleased to have it available close to me. Any time I've bought straw in the distant past it has been barley or oat.

 

[Fairview01]

Johnson grass hay may look inviting with all those seeds heads, particularly the last cut which frequently occurs after a frost. If the Johnson has been cut too soon after a frost , up to less than 10 days after the frost, it can accumulate high levels of cyanide and nitrates.

I haven't read found any reports about the effects on feeding it to poultry but fairly certain cyanide is a universal poison and high levels of nitrates aren't to good either. Deadly for horses and cattle if enough is ingested after a frost.

 

[tigger19687]

No Johnson, check

@aart yes that is what I am doing, for entertainment not really food food per se.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

A deep layer of wheat straw or if available shredded corn shucks are a great medium for your flock to scratch in. Chickens keep themselves entertained by scratching. Say 1/4 to 1/2 of their daily ration broadcast into the straw or shucks will keep your flock focused on finding food and not getting into trouble.

 

[lomine]

For entertainment value, I don't think you could go wrong with either choice. I toss flakes of straw in the coop whenever the dl is looking a little 'dirty' and both the chickens and ducks love it. They will nibble a little but mostly they have fun scratching around in it. It keeps them occupied much longer than the pine shavings.

My goats get alfalfa hay and anything that hits the stall floor is left uneaten. (Because it's obviously been tainted and is no longer fit for them, little farts!) Whenever I muck out their stall I'll put a wheelbarrow or two full of (mostly) clean hay into the coop. That gets mostly eaten and doesn't add much for bedding.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

... Whenever I muck out their [goats] stall I'll put a wheelbarrow or two full of (mostly) clean hay into the coop. That gets mostly eaten and doesn't add much for bedding.

There is little in this old world that is better for or more eagerly eaten by chickens than the poop of bovines, equines, and ovines. Manure is in fact the breakfast of champions for chickens.