homemade scratch.

[turkeys gone wild]

Hello, I could use some advice please.
I've been making my own scratch for four month's now, but they seem to wast it,
so i thought if i hung the feeder's that would help, but nope they still pick through and scatter the rest on the floor of the coop.
how can i stop so much waste?
my scratch is, crack corn,wheat,oats,peas,fish meal, and oyster shell (free choice)

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC. I’d suggest looking through relevant articles here for inspiration - Articles and here - https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/feeding-watering-your-flock.12/

 

[416bigbore]

Hello and welcome to BYC, You found an Awesome poultry Forum to be a part of with many great knowledgeable members who are more then willing to jump in and help you with any questions you may have.

 

[allosaurusrock]

Scratch is considered just a treat, and I’d really avoid putting it in feeders. Treats like scratch should only make up 10% of any poultry’s diet.

 

[DobieLover]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
Scratch is a treat to be fed very sparingly.
You need to offer a complete feed with 18-20% protein and properly balanced vitamins and minerals. What you're feeding sounds more like a homemade feed but lacks a vitamin/mineral mix for poultry.
Whenever feeding a whole grain feed, it's best to ferment it to get the fines to stick to the grains. But you have to feed it differently as it won't fall through a gravity feeder.

 

[N F C]

Hello, thanks for joining!

 

[sourland]

Hello, and welcome to BYC. Given the opportunity, birds will pick out the grains they like most and waste the rest. This is one of the reasons commercially produced mash/crumbles/pellets work so well.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Welcome to our FUNomenal community!

I hope you enjoy it here as much as we do!

 

[turkeys gone wild]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
Scratch is a treat to be fed very sparingly.
You need to offer a complete feed with 18-20% protein and properly balanced vitamins and minerals. What you're feeding sounds more like a homemade feed but lacks a vitamin/mineral mix for poultry.
Whenever feeding a whole grain feed, it's best to ferment it to get the fines to stick to the grains. But you have to feed it differently as it won't fall through a gravity feeder.

 

[Starburst]

Hi, and welcome to BYC! So excited you joined!
Make yourself at home in this amazing community!