Help with Niacin?

[ksmith]

I really would like to start giving my ducks a niacin supplement to prevent leg issues. I got them on thursday, so I hope it's not too late to start giving them niacin. And btw they don't have any leg problems as of right now. But how do I find non flush free niacin? I looked at walgreens and they had time release niacin, but it said nothing about it being flush free. Is this what I should be looking for? If you can please include a link of the niacin I would add to their water. Thank you very much!

 

[duckymommyyy]

niacin can be found in brewers yeast which can be added to a gallon of water in a small amount to give to your ducklings to help with leg problems

 

[Mikanik]

I didn't know about niacin needs until mine were old enough for their "big bird" food. Don't know if I just got lucky that no leg problems appeared or what, but I just got a game bird feed with niacin in it..that one of the customer service people recommended. I still made sure to read the label to make sure it contained the right percentages of stuff as per the advice of the great people here! I do wonder that even though the food says "niacin supplement" in the ingredients...do they still need additional suppliment? I think I need to go back and read the thread that lists all the stuff our little feather babies need to keep them going strong. btw...what is "flush free"? and should I be making sure it's the right niacin even if the feed is bird specific?

 

[dumb_cluck]

Just buy game bird starter crumbles. It contains all the niacin they need. When they get to be about 4-5 months old, switch over to game bird grower pellets.

 

[ksmith]

And if I buy the flock raiser feed, can the chicks eat it too? Thank you for all the great answers!

 

[dumb_cluck]

Flock raiser is for "older"poultry. If your chicks and ducklings are less than 4-5 months old, then use the game bird starter crumbles.

The extra niacin in the food should not affect the chickens.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I have 2 Cayuga ducklings in with about 50 chicks right now and feed both organic starter and sporting bird starter to them. I mix it and they eat it.
I just used the sporting bird starter on my other ducklings last year and they have all done very well. I have 30 ducklings due in next week and have a few bags set back for them, too.
I have niacin on hand but have not used it yet. I hope I never have to since the food seems to do the trick.