Hens won't eat any food, cry on and off all day

[RoyalChick]

Scratch & Peck is the brand name, it's whole grain, but it isn't "scratch grains". The brand does recommend fermenting or wetting the food to avoid the problem of eating only the bits they want (and to ensure they get all the "fines"), but it is a 'nutritionally balanced' feed. I just wanted to clarify that point.

Scratch & Peck also do crumble feed. There will be less wastage if you use it to make mash but they do eat the spilled crumbles off the floor eventually.

 

[TooCheep]

OK. If you are semi-handy, then either of the following designs work well. Note that they only work with dry feed.

Design #1- I have this setup (with a single opening). Works very well and can hold a week+ of dry feed. Unfortunately, I don't think it will work for you due to your rat problem.

Design #2- This would probably be better for you. I'd build it using a 3-5 gallon bucket with two holes and put it on a rope so you can raise it overnight until you solve your rat problem.

If you aren't very handy, then there are more expensive commercial versions available. Here is a link to check some out:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/D3076B36-4037-4516-B838-63EE6C9075A8

 

[ChickyCh00k]

Scratch & Peck also do crumble feed. There will be less wastage if you use it to make mash but they do eat the spilled crumbles off the floor eventually.

Yes! I use the starter crumble for my chicks. I'm not the OP, I just wanted to clarify for the other commenter who mistakenly thought the OP is feeding the hens "scratch grains" as their main feed. They're not.

 

[ShrekDawg]

@Kiki has a very handy chart on different feeds in her signature. Ideally you should be feeding them crumbles or pellets and yes, they will eat when they are hungry. Ignore the crying. They will not starve themselves to death. If you leave the food they will eventually see it as food.

 

[cluckcluckhens]

We use Purina feed in the crumble form We only use pellet if the farm store doesn't have the crumble The reason for crumble is because squirrels will take the pellets and stuff their mouths and take back to the others. I we use a serving tray for their feed and oyster shells. I have different sections to put feed and oyster shells in. Ours like fruit, weeds etc.
Here where I am at I have one hen laying the rest are molting here in the PNW. Feather loss is all along the enclosed run. Soon a big wind will come by and blow all these feather away.
Good luck finding feed that the hens will eat. You can give them eggs also. We scramble their eggs to feed them some.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Thanks for the additional info. I also feed S&P but strictly fermented - back when I fed it dry, my birds would pick through the grains and throw a lot of excess on the ground. I feed out of small ceramic or glass bowls. I find that even if they bill out some of it, they'll come back later and eat it.

I also feed dry layer pellets during the day but mine will generally go for the FF first. I keep that feeder in the coop during daylight hours and again I notice anything that gets billed out also gets eaten later.

No other treats other than the occasional greens?

Since you do ferment it, how do you go about doing your ferment? Asking because everyone ferments a little differently.

 

[NatJ]

We're at our wits' end! We have four backyard hens that we love dearly and pamper too much. We've been in search of the ideal food situation, because we're dealing with the predictable rat problem, and also our hens are bad eaters. They only eat their favorite seeds from the whole grain mix, mostly they dig it into the dirt, and they don't see crumbles or pellets as food unless I make a mash of them (which they also knock into the dirt). They'll take one or two bites of mash, walk away, never return, cry for ages. Egg laying has been on and off (we've also dealt with worms and possible fowl pox or scaly leg mites, lice, and a lot of heat this summer). Molting has started. Their yard is completely enclosed and unfortunately lacking in grass because, well, they're chickens. We bring them fresh greens a few times a week, but they prefer wandering through my garden (supervised) when I bring them out for a jaunt. There's plenty of grit and oyster shells in their food (and in the dirt), though they far prefer their own eggshells to the oyster shells.

I know they can train us to pamper with this horrendous noisemaking, but when their crops are still empty at the end of the day, I worry they'll starve themselves. Are they too stupid to figure this out? Or stubborn enough to starve themselves?

- crying chicken keeper of crying chickens

Given what you've described, here is what I would probably do:

--every morning, put out a feeder of dry pelleted food. Take it away at dark, and put it somewhere the rats cannot get it until the next morning. This will be their main feed until they get used to eating what you provide. Crumbles could work, but there will probably be less wastage with pellets.

-- give them a small amount of the scratch & peck feed each day, wet or fermented so it all sticks together. By "small amount," I mean less than a cup for all 4 chickens to share. When it is gone, they are stuck with just dry pellets until the next day. OR give them that amount of wet crumbles or wet pellets instead of the scratch & peck. Either way, it's a small amount of something they like better than the dry pellets, that is still a complete feed, and they will hopefully eat it all up before the day is over.

--provide water free choice, with grit and oyster shell also available in separate containers.

--give them eggshells if you want, but no other treats of any kind until they get the hang of eating what you provide. Later, when you do introduce other foods again, I would start with greens and plant matter, and let other grains wait until later yet.

I would not buy any new kinds of feed for this, just focus on using what you have. Pellets or crumbles can be used dry or wet, but the Scratch & Peck should be served wet or fermented to help them eat it all instead of just their favorite bits.

That is what I would personally try, but of course there are many other possible ways to deal with your situation too.

 

[TX Chick Noob]

I have had great luck with Vfeedrs. They aren’t very expensive at Chewy, make it very hard for them to fling food or waste any. And are supposed to be shaped a way to make it difficult for rodents to get to the food. They say it works with mash too but I’m not sure it actually would.

 

[KMac091]

Thanks so much for taking such care in replying. I have researched for hours on the issues we’ve had, so my failures are not from lack of effort. The Scratch & Peck brand sells balanced layer feed as well as just the seed mix that’s generally call scratch. That said, you’re right that of course they pick out their favorites. I combined grit and calcium with the food to try to limit the number of containers we need to keep an eye on, and I figured that they would only eat it when they needed it, as you say. Now I know the calcium can coat everything with too much, so we won’t combine. We have both pellets and crumbles, so we’ll begin the transition despite their objections I got a tower feeder with a little hole as well. Hoping to get everybody happy.

I appreciate you!

OK. That info helped a lot. Thanks.

First- It is obvious that you are well meaning by the type of feed you are using- organic with no corn and soybeans and very expensive. Unfortunately, there are multiple problems with your current setup. The good news is that it is fixable, but chickens don't like change, so they may complain for a while.

Problem #1- You are feeding scratch grains as a primary feed. That allows them to pick out the good tasting grains while ignoring the others that are required for balanced nutrition. That can result in predictable health problems. The usual solution is to use pellets or crumbles (usually pellets for adults) which force the birds to eat the balanced ration. Scratch grains are generally fed only as a treat (< 10% of food), not as a primary feed.

Problem #2- Mixing grit (rocks) and calcium (usually oyster shell) in with the feed. Do not confuse the two- they perform very different functions. These should be in additional containers "on the side". Putting them in with the feed may force them to eat more or less than they need. Chickens are good about eating as much of these as they need. Let them control their own intake.

Problem #3- Chickens are naturally messy eaters. They like to flick their beaks in the feed to find the good bits. That traces to their natural habit of digging around in plants/dirt looking for seeds, bugs and worms. That wasted feed raises costs and attracts pests. There are feeder designs that greatly cut down on food waste. The basic idea is to get the chicken to stick their head into a hole in the feeder. Flicked food stays in the feeder and not on the ground. I'll get some pictures/videos in another post for you.

 

[KMac091]

I have had great luck with Vfeedrs. They aren’t very expensive at Chewy, make it very hard for them to fling food or waste any. And are supposed to be shaped a way to make it difficult for rodents to get to the food. They say it works with mash too but I’m not sure it actually would.

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Thanks this is brilliant! I’ve been shopping at our local feed and seed and never thought to check Chewy!