Hens have stopped eating pellets

[Equiem]

That's what I had to do, when I was down to 3 hens.
I had a 50 pound bag of feed go bad 5 months past mill date. The bag was stored in my house too.
The hens stopped eating it and egg production dropped.
I started to buy Non-medicated Start and Grow feed in 25 pound bags and problem solved.
Now I have 10 chickens so I'm back to 50 pound bags. GC

Today my hens ate and went to bed with full(ish) crops. Not jam packed but I could visibly see it was fuller than what it has been

They are eating the feed with the added wormer. I added hot water to 3x120g bowls over the course of the day and the majority went. I feel like this is progress.
This feed smells different, I'm not sure if it's the actual feed or the added wormer or because it was warm so I may try and buy the unmedicated version of that feed next!

 

[ShannonR]

Glad you are finally seeing some improvement! Just a couple of thoughts:

It might be worthwhile to switch the brand of feed you are using to something else if they don't like eating the kind you have now. Like a few others here, I would be wondering about a feed spoilage issue or a variance in the normal recipe, like a mess up in the milling process. You say it smells different than normal, so it probably tastes different too.

Also, do they have access to grit so they can digest the feed? That could potentially cause some problems.

 

[Equiem]

Glad you are finally seeing some improvement! Just a couple of thoughts:

It might be worthwhile to switch the brand of feed you are using to something else if they don't like eating the kind you have now. Like a few others here, I would be wondering about a feed spoilage issue or a variance in the normal recipe, like a mess up in the milling process. You say it smells different than normal, so it probably tastes different too.

Also, do they have access to grit so they can digest the feed? That could potentially cause some problems.

It smells different because it is a different feed! It's a premix of Heygates pellets and flubenvet as I'm worming them at present. I'm considering changing from the A+P layers pellets to the Heygates to see if the nicer smell (and/or taste) is still there, the A+P pellets smell kinda boring! Although they have always been on the A+P brand since rescue.

They have access to mixed grit at all times

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It smells different because it is a different feed! It's a premix of Heygates pellets and flubenvet as I'm worming them at present. I'm considering changing from the A+P layers pellets to the Heygates to see if the nicer smell (and/or taste) is still there, the A+P pellets smell kinda boring! Although they have always been on the A+P brand since rescue.

They have access to mixed grit at all times

What is mixed grit?

Grit is insoluble sharp stones like granite or flint to aid in grinding food in the gizzard.
What is yours mixed with?

 

[Equiem]

What is mixed grit?

Grit is insoluble sharp stones like granite or flint to aid in grinding food in the gizzard.
What is yours mixed with?

I am aware of what grit is! Mixed grit is just a mix of stones and oyster shell

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I am aware of what grit is! Mixed grit is just a mix of stones and oyster shell

I've never bought poultry supplies in the UK.
But I'd like to inform that all poultry need grit. However, only birds actively building egg shells need any source of extraneous calcium like oyster shell or limestone.
Your OS grit may be appropriate for a flock made up entirely of young laying hens but inappropriate for a mixed flock of young birds, cockerels/cocks and older hens not laying eggs.

 

[Equiem]

I've never bought poultry supplies in the UK.
But I'd like to inform that all poultry need grit. However, only birds actively building egg shells need any source of extraneous calcium like oyster shell or limestone.
Your OS grit may be appropriate for a flock made up entirely of young laying hens but inappropriate for a mixed flock of young birds, cockerels/cocks and older hens not laying eggs.

I only have 3 ex-battery hens that are still laying pretty much daily. When their egg production drops, I will change the grit I give them and I am already aware of this. I will only ever rescue hens in the future (the only reason I have them was to rescue) and will never have chicks, young chickens or a cockeral in my flock.

I'm sorry if there was any confusion!!

I had to learn an awful lot about chicken keeping in a very short space of time.
My ex-batts have had numerous health ailments due to the way they were treated before the charity saved them from the slaughter truck at approx. 18 months old!
Within the first week I experienced a vent prolapse! Then thrush, vent gleet, egg peritonitis, sour crop, slow crop, impacted crop and bumble foot. Almost anything a chicken can have, one or more of my girls have had it. I may still be relatively new to this but I have learnt a lot and have doted on my girls since day one!

Again, sorry if there was any confusion!