Homemade Feed Recipe

[U_Stormcrow]

Just something to think about .... I asked because I have two mills.
First, the Country Living mill which was one of the best two hand-cranked mills on the market at the time - over twenty years ago. It is still one of the best but there may be more top notch options now; I haven't looked thoroughly recently.

I've used it twice. It is smooth and obviously well made. It just takes an enormous amount of cranking to get even coarse flour. I bought an electric mill that I actually use.

I kept the hand crank mill because it can be used without electricity so I feel safer. And it is quite cool. If I ever use it again for anything other than letting my grandkids learn how hard it is the mill flour (I don't have grandchildren yet) - I will set up a belt to a bicycle at least. Possibly to a windmill or watermill or some sort of devise to use draft animal power.

Hand cranking to just crack wheat rather than make flour is much easier. You wouldn't need grain ground much finer than cracked for chicken feed.

the country living mill has retained top (or near top) marks over time - it remains one of the best hand crank mills out there. I don't own one - no need, I don't produce significant grains - and because their price has increased significiantly as their reputation grew.

and yes, a bicycle/recumbant modification would make it much more practical in the absence of a water wheel and the power of nature

 

[saysfaa]

In a SHTF situation I can see animal proteins being a problem. We're not right next to the sea and I have no fishing gear. Anyone have any suggestions here?

My plan is to eat eggs and chicken, mostly. Doves, pigeons, and quail maybe. Goats if I have space. Then raise pigs or rabbits for some of the poultry feed.

In real life, there is no way I would be able to protect my food supply from actually starving people, especially the production parts. Partly, actually couldn't and partly wouldn't be willing to do what was necessary. I still plan it and actually do as much as I can to see what actually works. It is fun and has some practical benefits at any time and substantial benefits if the S Hitting the Fan is only spatter, like these days. The more other people doing some means what I've done can handle heavier splatter.

 

[NatJ]

In a SHTF situation I can see animal proteins being a problem. We're not right next to the sea and I have no fishing gear. Anyone have any suggestions here?

If you eat any animals or fish, take any part you do not eat and give that to the chickens.
You probably do not need to mix it into the feed, just offer it to them when you have it available. So for example, if you butcher one chicken to eat, give the guts to the rest of them.

Maggots and worms and bugs are good sources of animal protein. They will raise themselves in compost, chicken manure, dead leaves under trees, and various other places. Let the chickens scratch around and harvest their own.

If you find any mice or rats, the chickens can eat them too.

These ideas may not provide ENOUGH animal protein, but in the situation you are describing, every little bit would be an improvement.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

If you eat any animals or fish, take any part you do not eat and give that to the chickens.
You probably do not need to mix it into the feed, just offer it to them when you have it available. So for example, if you butcher one chicken to eat, give the guts to the rest of them.

Maggots and worms and bugs are good sources of animal protein. They will raise themselves in compost, chicken manure, dead leaves under trees, and various other places. Let the chickens scratch around and harvest their own.

If you find any mice or rats, the chickens can eat them too.

These ideas may not provide ENOUGH animal protein, but in the situation you are describing, every little bit would be an improvement.

I did this with the head of the goat I took for my own use. (the fat became soap - a practice I need more practice at), but the chickens enjoyed it. As did the bits on the ribs I was not able to clean off with a sharp knife.

 

[Zeoliter]

If you are preparing for a SHTF situation, BUY A PRESSURE COOKER. You need it for canning.

and since you already have rice paddies, you should be able to do aquaculture - raising small fish in/around the plants. I suggested that earlier with the mention of carp or freshwater shrimp. Read up!

A canner is my acquisition list for sure.

The water that feeds the rice paddies is only on June to October so wouldn't be able to do anything like raise fish or shrimp.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

A canner is my acquisition list for sure.

The water that feeds the rice paddies is only on June to October so wouldn't be able to do anything like raise fish or shrimp.

It can't be drained and retained elsewhere? That's disappointing

 

[3LilChickadees]

I agree with others that you need to figure out an animal protein source to get all the essential amino acids. Animal protein is the most expensive component and you cannot afford to use protein that can be eaten (by humans to feed chickens. Chicken processing waste can fill part of that need but you'll need processing waste from other animals to make up the difference.

Before buying equipment, you will need to either secure a source of electricity or plan to do all the processing by hand. Most of the grain will need to be milled and the animal protein pulverized. The feed will also need to be cooked to remove antinutritional factors and to glutenize starches so it can be bound together. It would be a lot of hard manual labor but possible to do without electricity.

Don't underestimate bugs, snakes, and other creatures that show up in the run as a source of protein. If we do have a complete collapse of civilization, running equipment won't be possible and we'll have to be concerned about our own access to clean water and sanitation. (No sewer treatment or trash pickup!)

Trying to plan for a doomsday scenario is almost impossible, but a goal of sustainability is always good. To that end free ranging and feeding scraps is a good bet. It's not ideal, but now it cuts down on the cost of commercial feed. Later, if "the end" comes, you can grow food primarily for yourself, and the chickens might still provide you with adequate meat and eggs.

My outlook is enjoy the now, trust in God, and plan to reinforce local community in any disaster. And remember how many times "the end" has been predicted and not come.

 

[sallyo]

I have several friends who bought a small family milk cow to feed milk to their chickens. We've been feeding our small flock raw milk and milk products (yogurt, cottage cheese, spoiled milk, etc) and they pretty much live on that. They are fat and sassy and eat mostly what they forage besides the milk. I haven't bought chicken feed except for when there's snow on the ground in over a year.

 

[saysfaa]

I came across another recipe. Note that it is from 1967, that is before selenium was known to be important.

https://www.researchgate.net/public...on_of_Chicken_Breeder_Rations_on_Hatchability

Recipes from this source are in the pictures.

Source also says:
Fish meals, such as herring meal,
which are manufactured from whole
fish, are generally considered to be desir-
able supplements in breeder rations.
...
Occasionally, embryos and newly hatched chicks showed symptoms of riboflavin deficiency in experiment 1. The level of supplementary riboflavin in the breeder diets was accordingly increased in the subsequent experiments. In experiment 2 some embryonic mortality was ascribed to a deficiency of biotin on the basis of typical symptoms. The biotin deficiency may have resulted from sub-normal levels of biotin in the dietary ingredients in experiment 2, or to an abnormally high requirement for biotin by the particular strain of birds employed in this experiment
...
It should be noted that white fish meal,
because of the nature of the raw material,
cannot be considered as reliable a source of vitamins of the B-complex as herring meal.
A recent study in which different types of
fish meals were compared showed that
British Columbia herring meal and Atlantic coast white fish meal were similar in protein nutritive value for the chick, but that the latter contained appreciably less
riboflavin, pantothenic acid, niacin and vi-
tamin B12 (March et al., 1967).

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

If you are preparing for a SHTF situation, BUY A PRESSURE COOKER. You need it for canning.

and since you already have rice paddies, you should be able to do aquaculture - raising small fish in/around the plants. I suggested that earlier with the mention of carp or freshwater shrimp. Read up!

If a worse case scenario happens, a pressure cooker won’t work.

But a Waterbath canner will.
You can preserve with the WB method most anything using correct times. (Which can be done on a fire pit.)

And before you go attacking me that it’s not usda safe or whatever.
Until this year I was raised that you only Pres. Can meats & low acidity stuff. WB the things that are “safe” per the “rule” books.
But if you look into other cultures, our ancestors, etc…you’ll find that pressure canning is more often a novelty & WB a staple. (Some countries can’t even get PC; to get one in Canada is exorbitant priced.) They also don’t have some gov agency telling them specific recipes are only safe.

So if a worse case scenario hits, you should be comfortable w doing WB for all given you have access to fresh water. (Which after using for canning you can use to wash dishes, sanitize, etc…)

Just some more food for thought.