Help! What do I feed this flock?

[U_Stormcrow]

For anyone reading this advice: check the labels on the bags available to you. It varies from one brand to another, and may change any time the company changes their recipe.

For an example of the variation, I just checked a few websites. Purina's website has their flock raiser at 20% protein while the chick starter is only 18% protein. Tractor Supply's website has Dumor chick starter at 20% protein, while Dumor All Flock is down at 17% protein. Also on Tractor Supply's website are chick starter and all flock from Nutrena Naturewise, both at 18% protein. And if anyone is reading this post a few months or years later, they will probably find that the protein levels have all shifted around again.

 

[mossyoakpro]

How old is he? Sometimes they mellow with age, sometimes not. I gave an Australorp roo to my son and they’ve gone a few rounds with long stretches of harmony between so sometimes those hormones get the best of them regardless lol.

I had an SS rooster who would try to sneak up behind me when I was in the coop to collect eggs or clean. Nowhere near the girls out at the other end of the yard. If it wasn’t for the kids I would have let him be, he was good at keeping the girls safe, but the kids help with yard chores and the roo would stalk them so he had to go.

He's 8 months so technically still a cockerel....

 

[BeeJayBird]

The 20% chick starter/grower, with a separate dish of oyster shell, would be fine for all of them: the chicks, the hens, the rooster, and any other chickens you may have in the future.

Nutritionally, all flock and chick starter tend to be pretty similar. Read the nutrition information on the bag if you want to know for sure, but you can probably use any chick starter or any all-flock type feed from any of the brands you name.

When choosing a feed for a mixed flock, the big difference to watch out for is calcium. Layer feed has about 3% to 4% calcium. That is too much for non-layers (like roosters and chicks.) Most other feeds have about 1% calcium, give or take a bit, which is a safe level for all chickens. That is what you should find in chick starter, all flock, and probably quite a few other feeds with various names.

Having a separate dish of oyster shell is a good way to let the laying hens get the extra calcium they need, while they eat the same low-calcium main food as any other chicken.

Very good information! Thank you!