Higher Protein for Chicks?

[Brooks_]

They seem to find the Gamebird feed delicious for some reason

Probably all that protein.

 

[Geena]

Probably all that protein.

It smells really good too. I'm not sure why, but better than chicken food - to me anyway.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Would loves thoughts;

What breeds or hybrids do you have? What are your goals for those chickens? I would feed the commercial hybrid laying chicks, low producing decorative chicks, standard dual purpose chicks, chicks meant for showing, and meat birds differently. I think the diet should be tailored to the breed and purpose.

Also would my laying hens going through molt benefit from a higher protein feed than layer pellets??

What is the percent protein in your Layer pellets? Some has 16% protein, some has 18%. Also, some of us don't like to feed Layer to non-laying chickens because of concerns of non-laying chickens eating the excess calcium in Layer when they don't need it for egg shells.

But whether your Layer is 16% or 18% I personally do not see any significant benefit to feeding a higher protein feed. Some hens are fast molters and others slow molters. That is controlled by genetics. The speed of them getting over a molt is not about how fast the feathers grow back but how long it takes for the feathers to fall out so they can start growing back. Higher protein is not going to cause them to fall out any faster. The feathers will grow back a little prettier with a high protein feed but you can get an even better effect by feeding them a small amount of vegetable oil. It does not take much. The oil will make their feathers shiny and soft. Just three or four seeds of Black OIL Sunflower Seeds (BOSS) contains a lot of oil and will make a difference. Oil can lubricate the digestive track so don't overdo it.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I think 30% is too high. You could mix the two for a target of about 22-24%.

@U_Stormcrow, What are your thoughts on upper protein limits for chicks or chickens in general?

OK, I do this. I feed my hatchlings 24% protein to 8-10 weeks, then drop them to 20% with all the rest.

The cons??? Cost.

The Benefit? Slightly better put together birds, slightly faster growth, theoretically larger birds overall, better feed conversion rates as adults.

All those benefits are so small that, even taken together, it doesn't outweigh the costs for most.

Why do I do it??? I hatch my own and eat most of my boys at an early age, so I'm raising them much like Cx - and the extra nutrition at the start helps me select for which are keepers, and with are freezer campers.

30% for most breeds under most conditions is simply wasteful. The law of diminishing returns rears its ugly head.

 

[Brooks_]

30% for most breeds under most conditions is simply wasteful. The law of diminishing returns rears its ugly head.

So other than wasteful, 30% would be fine nutritionally? Not a risk of gout or other?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

So other than wasteful, 30% would be fine nutritionally? Not a risk of gout or other?

Just wasteful. NOT for use with waterfowl, where its associated with increased incidence of Angel wing. Fine for Cx, for Quail, not dangerous (but not measurably better) than 24% protein for chicks - or of so little additional beenfit that what you are really talking about is diferences in key aminos.

Even 24% is barely better than 20%.

 

[Ridgerunner]

So other than wasteful, 30% would be fine nutritionally? Not a risk of gout or other?

Do an internet search on "avian gout" or "gout in chickens". I sometimes have trouble telling if I'm reading about birds in general, chickens, parrots, or whatever. And be careful how they phrase it. A reputable source is not going to say this will cause gout 100% of the time in each and every bird but will use words like "may", "can" or "has been shown to". Evidently some individual birds are more susceptible to gout than others.

From how I understand what I read, some potential causes of gout in chickens is low phosphorus, calcium in excess of 3% for non-laying birds, and protein in excess of their nutritional needs. I did see 30% protein mentioned as a threshold but I wasn't sure that was for chickens, parrots, or birds in general.

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

It smells really good too. I'm not sure why, but better than chicken food - to me anyway.

Have you ever fed any Kalmbach brand food? That stuff smells so good!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Have you ever fed any Kalmbach brand food? That stuff smells so good!

Kalmbach is a very popular feed here on BYC for that market segment.

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

What breeds or hybrids do you have? What are your goals for those chickens? I would feed the commercial hybrid laying chicks, low producing decorative chicks, standard dual purpose chicks, chicks meant for showing, and meat birds differently. I think the diet should be tailored to the breed and purpose.

These are future layers. Nothing special.
Have 4 marans, 1 EE, 1 Cin. Queen, 1 Sapphire Gem that are almost a week old.
2 Wyandottes, 2 Starlight Green Eggers, 1 Polish, 2 Speckled Sussex that are 6wks.
5 White Leghorns, 4 Black Jersey Giants, 3 EE, that are 9wks old.

Then I have my adult group.

Most of our adults, are dual purpose, so future hatchlings at our place would most likely be meat birds. (Not all though.)
But the food is a learning topic for me. I def want them healthy, and if a higher protein would benefit them at least for the first few months, I'd like to know.

What is the percent protein in your Layer pellets? Some has 16% protein, some has 18%. Also, some of us don't like to feed Layer to non-laying chickens because of concerns of non-laying chickens eating the excess calcium in Layer when they don't need it for egg shells.

My layer protein is 16%. Chick starter is 18%.
Yes, but currently it's the only Non-Soy/Non-GMO feed we can afford, so the Rooster & drake have to eat it too. (They also get scraps, scratch and grass on occasion.)

But whether your Layer is 16% or 18% I personally do not see any significant benefit to feeding a higher protein feed. Some hens are fast molters and others slow molters. That is controlled by genetics. The speed of them getting over a molt is not about how fast the feathers grow back but how long it takes for the feathers to fall out so they can start growing back. Higher protein is not going to cause them to fall out any faster. The feathers will grow back a little prettier with a high protein feed but you can get an even better effect by feeding them a small amount of vegetable oil. It does not take much. The oil will make their feathers shiny and soft. Just three or four seeds of Black OIL Sunflower Seeds (BOSS) contains a lot of oil and will make a difference. Oil can lubricate the digestive track so don't overdo it.

Thank you for that info.
Idk, I thought protein might help.
I have 3 that seem to have been molting for months! The feathers are starting to come back in, but they're barebacked.
We've gone down the past week to 4-5 eggs/day! From almost a dozen. (Granted we did sell 5.) But I have 14 hens atm, 1 broody, 3 molting = still should be getting around 10 eggs a day. Somebody is free loading! lol