I'm so confused!

[MACCanadianCoop]

I don't even have my chickens yet (but I did order them today!) and I'm already totally confused on feeding. There is so much conflicting info! Feed them only commercial feed,feed them compost, don't feed them table scraps, do feel them table scraps, grow your own feed, don't try to feed them on your own if you don't have eleventy-billion acres growing every plant known to man!
Ok so the last one was a bit cheeky, but you get my point. How does one sort it all out?

 

[Lenny loves chickens]

I don't even have my chickens yet (but I did order them today!) and I'm already totally confused on feeding. There is so much conflicting info! Feed them only commercial feed,feed them compost, don't feed them table scraps, do feel them table scraps, grow your own feed, don't try to feed them on your own if you don't have eleventy-billion acres growing every plant known to man!
Ok so the last one was a bit cheeky, but you get my point. How does one sort it all out?

Ok so this is what I do I feed the chick starter till they are 16 weeks then I will switch to layer crumbles for the rest of there life. However for the first 10 months I do not feed table scraps because they simple dont need it so young they need to learn what there food is.....so then after a year. I feed table scraps layer crumbles and a side of grit and or oyster shells sometimes. I also teach them to come to or go in there house when I shake a bag of mealworms after the year of 1. Hope this help. Lmk if you want me to post pics of the brand and kind of food I buy

 

[Lemon-Drop]

I don't even have my chickens yet (but I did order them today!) and I'm already totally confused on feeding. There is so much conflicting info! Feed them only commercial feed,feed them compost, don't feed them table scraps, do feel them table scraps, grow your own feed, don't try to feed them on your own if you don't have eleventy-billion acres growing every plant known to man!
Ok so the last one was a bit cheeky, but you get my point. How does one sort it all out?

This is what I do, if it helps:
Buy a bag of commercial chick feed, feed that to them I until it’s run out-if it’s run out and they can’t eat pellets yet, continue with the chick feed or crumbles.
Then, once they are adults, I feed an all flock commercial feed, and supplement with calcium (I currently have chicks, old hens, young hens, a rooster, so layer feed isn’t the best bet)
Basically, I mostly feed commercial feed along with oyster shell, with the occasional kitchen scraps such as apple peels, and occasional mealworms and scratch.

I also like to grow fodder for them using barley-it’s quite easy and they enjoy it.

I don’t have the patience of time to completely grow their feed, plus you would likely need to add things to it.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Take a breath. Relax. It's going to be okay.

Commercial feed is easy to purchase, to dispense (feeders) and is scientifically prepared for the best nutrition. (My daughter was a Vet Tech, and they did feed studies in college).

You can decide if "organic" is worth it or not. (My daughter is also an organic farmer, and they are the first to tell you "organic" is not necessarily used accurately...it is how the land is prepared and maintained...not the food stuff.)

You can decide if you want corn, non GMO, or not.

For me? I don't worry about this stuff. I buy Purina or Nature Wise layer when they are at lay because layers need the extra calcium. I buy the chick start when they are chicks as they need the extra protein and vitamins/minerals.

I have happy healthy birds who forage a bit (but we're on 1/4 acre so bugs are pretty well picked over.)

It is important to not feed more than 10% of their nutrition in treats....just like children you want them eating the good stuff and not just snacks.

Personally I just get wild bird seed with millet and black sunflower seeds for scratch. I do avoid too much corn as that can be hard on their digestion.

I also recommend Apple Cider Vinegar, raw with the mother, in the water. It helps acidify their gut to keep their immune system boosted.

You can go all crazy super organic, nonGMO, locally milled, if you want, but you don't have to.

I can tell you (after 10 years of owning chickens and coming from farming folk) that unless you have significant field forage, they won't get enough food from foraging. It takes several acres of rotated field to achieve that. My SIL would let his chickens follow the cows. They got a lot of nutrition picking through the cow pies. (No Kidding.)

So, imho, don't sweat it. Just buy good quality commercial feed.

LofMc

 

[Lenny loves chickens]

Ok so this is what I do I feed the chick starter till they are 16 weeks then I will switch to layer crumbles for the rest of there life. However for the first 10 months I do not feed table scraps because they simple dont need it so young they need to learn what there food is.....so then after a year. I feed table scraps layer crumbles and a side of grit and or oyster shells sometimes. I also teach them to come to or go in there house when I shake a bag of mealworms after the year of 1. Hope this help. Lmk if you want me to post pics of the brand and kind of food I buy

Oh and if you like i do live in a cold area a month before winter i mix a bad of scratch with layer pellets to help fatten them up for the winter

 

[Rose Quartz]

I do feed store feed, chick starter from 0 - 8 weeks, then chick grower for the rest of their life. With random fruit if i have some that are going spotty, or table scraps occasionally. The extra is all considered treats though.

They do free range so they eat whatever they find through the day.

I dont usually give the chicks under 8 weeks treats of any kind, and then once they're in the adult flock they would have to beat the adults to the good stuff so they dont get much if any until they're older.


---

My friend raises her birds on organic fermented feed.

The recipe she uses is 2 gallons of fermented wheat strained. (She drilled holes in the bottom of the bucket)

8 small hand fulls of powdered hemp

1 mug of crab meal

1 - 2 small hand fulls of seaweed.

She mixed that up in a grey tub and used it for several days. You could probably halve it pretty easily. It's expensive to feed them that way though.

 

[MACCanadianCoop]

Thank you for the replies so far! I guess the biggest controversy/confusion (in my observation of reading through the info) is what is considered a treat vs not. I see people saying seeds and bugs and fruits and some greens are treats, but those are the kinds of things they would naturally eat, so I just don't get it. Corn, sure I understand that one. Corn is basically the candy of the grain world. But other stuff?

 

[Callender Girl]

I get your confusion. There's a lot of information when you're starting out, and even after you've been at it a while. I think my first hens were lucky to survive my lack of knowledge!

I don't consider bugs and whatever else they forage as "treats," because as you said, it's things they would naturally eat. And, since I let them wander around uncooped when I'm home, it's impossible to stop them from eating natural stuff or measure how much good stuff they're eating.

I only use scratch grains as a lure to get obstinate birds moved to where I want them to be. Throwing one handful to a couple of dozen birds does the trick and won't ruin their appetite for a nutritious (and expensive) commercial feed dinner.

And, birds have their own preferences. I feed duck food to the runner ducks, layer feed to the laying hens, all-flock to the coops that have roosters and to the geese. However, when given the chance, all will gladly eat someone else's food, like kids at the neighbor's house.

I feed chick starter until they are about four months old, then switch to all-flock. Once they start laying, I switch to layer feed. In the winter, when most are not laying, it's back to all-flock.

I am confident you will find your way, and your potential flock will be fine. Let us know when those chickens arrive!

 

[MACCanadianCoop]

I am confident you will find your way, and your potential flock will be fine. Let us know when those chickens arrive!

thank you! I ordered ready-to-lays so they won't be coming home with me til September. But I haven't even built a coop yet, so the extra time is good.

 

[Callender Girl]

Timing sounds great -- because once you get chickens, "extra time" can become a foreign concept!

Good luck with the coop build!