how much feed are they supposed to eat?

[humboldtchicken]

Hi, I was just wondering how much chickens are supposed to eat? I have four seven week old chickens and they are eating about 3/4 a cup or less a day. Only few treats and not free range yet. Well, not true free range, its my backyard.

 

[Mahonri]

I always keep feed in front of my chicks. They grow and mature faster that way.

 

[crazy huhn]

Baby chicks will consume about 10 pounds of feed each during their first 10 weeks. Later on a pullet or matured hen will eat about 2 pounds of layer feed a week depending on breed and with free ranging you will feed significantly less.

 

[codybird]

Here is a good read.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=161423

Post #3 has a cool chart.

 

[Chris09]

I full feed chicks and chickens there is feed for them all the time.

Chris

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

My 11 hens and one roo go though a 50 # bag of feed in two weeks. I keep food out for them 24/7 Now that it's summer and they are out all day they go through maybe a 50 # bag in a month

 

[BigPeep]

So, doing a little math, a hen will eat 104 pounds of food in a year.
My organic feed costs $26/50lb bag, but I can get it wholesale for $15/50 lb which brings it to 33 cents a pound. Times 52 equals roughly $17/year. If the hen lays 300 eggs per year, which is 25 dozen, and you can get $4/doz for organic, free range eggs, that gives you $100/yr per hen minus the $17 in feed or $83/yr profit per bird.

If you have 100 laying hens, you would make $8300 profit. You can also sell the hens for up to $10 each when they are two to three years old to local Mexicans so that maybe gives you another $500/yr if you are selling half the flock, for a total of $8700. You have to also subtract the chick purchase costs, ($100/ 25) chick feed, electricity to run the brooders, and coop construction costs. EVen, so, it sounds like a plan.

Obviously, that isn't everthing. You may not get 300 eggs per year per bird unless you run lights in the Winter, for example, and may not have continuous market for the eggs or not at that price. They sell in the health food stores here for $5/doz. and at farmer's markets for $4 to $5. You could do an egg CSA to guarantee the sales at maybe $3.50/doz. Even with all of that I would think you should be able to clear $7K a year on 100 chickens.

People around here who are selling eggs have a waiting list of customers.

Am I missing something?

 

[BigPeep]

It looks like the math was a bit off. The cost per hen per year would be based on two pounds per week X 52 wks or 100 lbs X $0.33/lb or $33/yr. The net profit per bird would then be $67/yr or $134 over 2 years plus the price of selling her off at the end of her effective laying period. Still beats a sharp stick in the eye.