Home Feeding Ideas and Solutions Discussion Thread

[poularde]

So, if you feed potatoes. Do they need to be cooked? I have fed sweet potatoes cooked.

 

[400constantne]

In my opinion... beings that "modern medicine" is a COMPLETE failure... I would look to what people have done in the past, and what their results were. NOT the people who say that "potatoes are hard for chickens to digest" etc, who have never actually tried to feed potatoes to chikens...

We are living in a world where we must trust much more in our neigbors and much less in our authorities...

IMO

 

[galanie]

In my opinion... beings that "modern medicine" is a COMPLETE failure... I would look to what people have done in the past, and what their results were.  NOT the people who say that "potatoes are hard for chickens to digest" etc, who have never actually tried to feed potatoes to chikens...

We are living in a world where we must trust much more in our neigbors and much less in our authorities...

IMO

There is tons of misinformation out there based on what people think up, such as Orpingtons needing to be kept out of the rain because they are so fluffy that getting wet will harm them, though other less fluffy breeds are fine. Completely inaccurate and based on supposition alone.

There are things that can be harmful that people feed to chickens with no apparent ill effects, but these things are only harmful in large quantities. The idea that potatoes are harmful is from science finding out that green, raw potato skin has a poison in it, in really tiny quantities.

It just astonishes me how many people refuse to believe a fact because it can't be explained scientifically anyway. It's as if they feel that Humankind knows all there possibly is to know and an observation must have another explanation unless they know the why of it. Completely backwards. And yet I can't tell you how many physical problems I've had for which the doctor can't do a thing.

 

[RaZ]

There is tons of misinformation out there based on what people think up, such as Orpingtons needing to be kept out of the rain because they are so fluffy that getting wet will harm them, though other less fluffy breeds are fine. Completely inaccurate and based on supposition alone.

I'm glad that my Buff Orpintons don't read. They love going out in the rain and scratching in the mud to see what they dig up. Watching them play in the water, I would swear that they are half duck.

 

[400constantne]

Goats and horses love tree bark. If you scrape the bark off of the logs used for a woodstove during the day (doesn't take long with a log scraper), and grind it up, it would provide more than enough "food", or what is more likely "filler", for a large flock of chickens. If you were to soak it in goats milk... I don't know, maybe it would be enough for chickens to survive in rough times. Pretty much pure speculation though.
I tried to look up the vitamins and minerals in bark, and this is some of the goofy stuff that I found.

This is Pine bark extract:
http://www.nutrivera.com/nvpinebark-1.aspx?gclid=CNDzk6PF_a0CFWkbQgod-2Fdsw

White Pine:
http://www.homeremedycentral.com/en/herbal-remedies/herb/white-pine-bark.html

Inproves heart function?
http://www.nutritionhorizon.com/news/Study-Shows-Pine-Bark-Naturally-Improves-Heart-Function.html

A powerful antioxidant?
http://essential-nutrition-plus.com/health/pine-bark-a-powerful-antioxidant/

I don't know... but I doubt that it will hurt chickens. Maybe I will skin a few longs, grind it up, and see if the chickens like it.

 

[400constantne]

If you click on the grouse, pheasant, or quail link you will get a detailed study of what these animals eat given a purely natural environment. I suppose that it can be assumed that a chickens natural diet would be somewhat similar. I found it very interesting that the Ruffed Grouse would eat so many Aspen leaves. Maybe we are feeding chickens too much of a human diet, and not enough of what should be a "domensticated fowl" diet.

http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cg...ader&id=EcoNatRes.DNRBull4&isize=M&pview=hide

 

[Kassaundra]

If you click on the grouse, pheasant, or quail link you will get a detailed study of what these animals eat given a purely natural environment. I suppose that it can be assumed that a chickens natural diet would be somewhat similar. I found it very interesting that the Ruffed Grouse would eat so many Aspen leaves. Maybe we are feeding chickens too much of a human diet, and not enough of what should be a "domensticated fowl" diet.

http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cg...ader&id=EcoNatRes.DNRBull4&isize=M&pview=hide

When you compare the feed of a wild bird (either pheasant or chicken or whatever) the the feed requirements of a domesticated bird it is an unfair comparison unless you want your chicken to revert back to natural egg laying (a couple of clutches a couple of times a year).

 

[400constantne]

The chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. (wikipedia)

http://www.docsdrive.com/pdfs/ansinet/pjbs/2000/1024-1026.pdf

"When you compare the feed of a wild bird (either pheasant or chicken or whatever) the the feed requirements of a domesticated bird it is an unfair comparison unless you want your chicken to revert back to natural egg laying (a couple of clutches a couple of times a year)."

Maybe, but without refference... even History, is only as good as his story. You have every right to say a chicken will only have "a couple of clutches a couple of times a year", if fed a Grouses ration. However, without a reference, or a source, what you say is pure speculation. If I say, a chicken can be healthy while only being fed dry corn according to gtggaddis grandmother. Here is my source:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100730113809AAPQ2zM

Then I have actually substantiated what I have stated with History... or in this case Her story.

To assume something is correct without any His story, or Her story is only to speculate.

 

[galanie]

Oh for crying out loud.

 

[400constantne]

Does anyone know what the commercial feeders feed their chickens in order to get those yellowish green yolks that I see in store bought eggs?