HEN FOOD! please?

[MandyH]

If I may offer my 2 cents on this subject. Scratch, like silkiechicken said, is a mix of corn chops and various other grains mixed in a bag. It is considered a filler or treat because it does not contain any real nutrients. A regular old bag of layer pellets/crumbles has everything everybody needs. That's what all my animals get except the babies that get starter crumbles until I throw them out in the yard with the others.

 

[silkiechicken]

Compared to Lone Cowboy's scratch, the one I get is probably 60% corn or more. Like I said earlier though, scratch is regionally different with whatever grain is cheapest in that area. When I get home tonight, I'll take a pic of my regular layer pellets, the high protein layer supplement pellets ( 20% protein vs 16%), chick grower, and the scratch.

 

[Mareloo]

LoneCowboy.. Thank you for the pics.. They look very similar.. Except for the sunflower seeds..

I am feeding my chickens wrong.. Our layer pallets look the same.. We just don't get them crumbled.. We also get layer "flower" (fine powdered)

We haven't got oyster shell, but I do feed the hens lime grit.

I also feed the chicks wrong then.. I start them of on starter feed and from about 3 weeks I start to mix in my basic food.. I thought it was a great source of EVERYTHING they need to be healthy.. I also leave them on it until I slaughter them or decide to keep them, or they start to lay eggs.. Then I go over to half layer pellets, half my grit..

When they older I allow them about 15 hours a week access to my veggie garden ext. As treats they get greens (everything in season, rice, porridge and bread)

I need to change all of there diet.. Can we start with the baby's? What age do they go of starter feed and onto what?

Buff Hooligans.. LOL! I lost count.. I had some deaths and some new borns.. I need to do a senses again. I guess about 80. Lots of mixes, orpington, austrolock and some young turks..

 

[MissPrissy]

Mareloo, do your chickens stay in a run all of the time or do they run around outside freely eating bugs and grass too?

 

[silkiechicken]

Well, do what works for you but here is the "standard" procedure.

Chicks up till about 18 weeks get chick starter/grower. Treats can go into their diet at about 3 weeks or so, at about 10% of their diet tops.

After 16 or 20 weeks or so ( egg time) switch them over to layer food. Your Lime grit is the calcium that they need. I think it's your area's version of oyster shell.

Free range and treats are good for them so keep that up.

 

[devora]

I'm not sure if I quite understand the concern about scratch grains. I looked on our organic pellets ingredients and the things are, essentially, corn and soy. Grain. I wouldn't give them only scratch, but a concern that a hen eats too much corn (or grain) confuses me. (Ours get pellets and a handful of scratch a day and I'm sure that's OK, but if I were to give them, say five handfuls would it really hurt them? Doesn't seem likely?)

 

[silkiechicken]

Well, in the short term it probably wont do anything too bad, but in the long term, they will start to show signs. One is too much corn will lead to fat chickens. Fat chickens don't live as long and often end up with issues laying eggs due to deposits in the cusion and around the reproductive tract. Second, the protein levels in corn is about half that of feed, not enough protein makes it hard to lay protein filled eggs or to cover yourself with protein based feathers. If you want a hen to grow feathers back faster after moult, up the protein to 20% with a high protein feed. In addition, chickens love corn and will just eat that if they had a chance. Like a human only eating rice, they will lack some essential building blocks for the body. If you don't supplement with calcium, that can go awry too. Too little magnesium can also lead to feather picking as it is necessary for feather growth, and they will eat feathers to get it if it comes to that.

In short, a few extra hands will do, and you can raise them all on corn, but their quality of life will decline once they past their first year of life.

Edit: Yes, grain is what they eat, but it is the proportions and minearl/vitamin additions which make it complete. Historically they didn't have this type of diet, but especially with confined housings or runs, we need to give them the best we can.

 

[MissPrissy]

I believe the concern being expressed here is that scratch grains are not a complete nutritional feed. Poorly fed chickens don't lay well, the eggs are not as nutritionally complete and the birds bodies are starving for minerals and vitamins. A healthy chicken is also most resistant to disease and other illness. Healthy in means healthy out. I like big fat hens who lay big fat eggs. My chickens get far too much to eat. The eggs they lay show it. The meat birds show it as well.

I would warn anyone who only feeds scratch or corn to their chickens that they are not properly providing for the complete nutritional needs.

 

[devora]

I guess my point is that if we are feeding commercial feed we are feeding mostly corn and soy. Yes, it has trace amounts of extra stuff they need, but (golly, I wish I could remember the percentages, sorry!) the pellets are mainly grain, aren't they?

 

[MissPrissy]

The lable from my laying ration bag reads for ingredients -

Grain products, plant protein products, calcium carbonate, processed, grain by-products, monocalcium, phosphate, salt, vitamin A acetate in gelatin, Vitamin D3 supplement, Vitamin E supplement, Riboflavin supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, Niacin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, menadione sodium biaulfite complex, choline chloride, folic acid, manganous oxide, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, zinc oxide, sodium selenite, ethylnadiamine dihydriodide, roughage products, dl-methionine.