How many times/day do you feed your chickens?

[BunnyLover44]

I feed my 5 chickens about 3 cups of feed, once a day ( uaually in the morning) IS this toos much or too less?

 

[Teila]

I have four Bantams, one sitting on eggs, so hopefully more soon

They have 24/7 access to lay mix (seed and small bantam friendly crumbles).
As I work full time, every Sunday I cook up and bag 7 little packets of rice or pasta or risoni and mixed vegetables and freeze them.
Each evening I chop up some lettuce or cabbage and mix it in with the preprepared meal which they get the majority of for breakfast the next day and then the remainder for dinner when I get home at 4pm.

So basically each day they get the preprepared base to which I might add scrambled or boiled egg, occasionally cheese, roast meat, tomato and any other scraps we have. If we cook hamburgers, we cook one for the girls. At dinner time we usually serve up "some for you, some for me, some for the girls"! And yes, they love chicken!

Watermelon is their weekend treat .. it is cute to see my two 4 month old white Silkies with watermelon stained faces lol.

They free range most of the weekend and for a couple of hours every afternoon when I get home.

Needless to say they are happy and healthy

 

[KuroKitsune]

my cochin girls are let out to roam the backyard everyday all day..the only time that might change is if i have to leave then they might not get out or get put away really early....but normally their out all day.


their feeder needs refilled every 2 or sometimes every 3 days and its left for them at all times so they can have some whenever they want.



my serama, duccle's, and quail also have food available to the 24/7

 

[dave1987]

I have 20 chickens. I feed with two hanging feeders that I always keep full, so they eat free choice. I go through roughly 150 pound of feed a month this way. I used to only feed them about 6-8 pounds daily and tried to regulate their intake that way. They obviously weren't getting enough, when I would go in the run to feed they would flock to me and fly up on me and just about knock me down in the run to get at the food. Now that I feed free choice their attitudes have completely changed and they still don't seem to eat anymore during the day than they did being restricted. I'll warn you though, you don't want them to get too fat if they are layers. Overweight layers wont lay as well for you. I also got rid of some extra cockerels to lower my feed bill, they would absolutely gorge themselves at the feeders being fed free choice. Tinker with both ideas and you will find what's best for you and your birds.

 

[alyxl02]

If you have an unused garden or compost available they will usually be able to fill their crops and make most of the day feeding of that (Still might want to give them a pile of food). Otherwise if you have them in a run when there's only grass or dirt, its good to give them some food.

A fact you might use is that chickens can actually live of grass, that's how all the dumped chickens live (The live the best life a chicken can have if they have been dumped in a green live full of bugs place), but if you have gone away and your worried about your chickens losing weight or are hungry, a meaty dog roll will fill their crops and you'll be getting delicious eggs!

Good luck and hope this helps

alyxl02

 

[CHICKEN CRAZY1]

All of our chickens have free choice of a layer feed,water and scraps throughout the whole day. They also get scratch in the morning and before they go to roost. (in the winter.) It gets cold here,so that routine works out for me. In the coop it gets five degrees above the external temp. When feeding chickens you have to adjust for where you live and if they have a run or can forage free.

 

[alyxl02]

Well then your chooks should be fine, a little bit of feed should be fine

 

[Crzy Chi Lady]

Your tellin me they love my cabbage .

 

[craftiekids]

With the weather being so cold, I've been filling up feeders full and feeding warm wet beet pulp. along with whatever scraps and letting them out to forage. It's been so cold, tonight in NC 17*. They need warm tummies just like we do. I think the warm beet pulp in the afternoon really helps for night time. Weather is so strange this winter,
Wow, Global Warming??? What gives man!!! I'm so confused! Susie Q

 

[Beekissed]

I feed my 5 chickens about 3 cups of feed, once a day ( uaually in the morning) IS this toos much or too less?

That's just about right. No worries. Watch their bodies and adjust feed up or down according to if they look/feel too fat or too thin.