International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[marchick]

To answer your first question in the USA i am guessing that the cheaper feed for chickens may meet minimum requirements.
It is like anything else the more you pay the more you get. I would not expect the highest quality feed for the cheapest price I can buy.
Also a local mill here supplies a university with there chicken feed. This is a major agricultural university. So to me if it’s good enough for them it is good enough for me.
Luckily yes some may try to cut corners but the reputable companies have far to much to lose if they tried to play games.

You underestimate the power of greed. I use purina start and grow medicated for chicks. At close to $20 a large bag not all that cheap. My chicks had a vitamin deficiency. I started adding vitamins to the water. Problem solved. Everything now days is make it cheaper sell for high. I understand they have to make money. Which feed is best who knows. Even the organic feed who really knows how good it is. Our friends live next to organic apple orchard and they spray the chemicals at night. That's why I say who really knows. My friends had their feed analyst done at CWU.

 

[Shadrach]

Nobody I know on these mountains feeds commercially produced feed.
Most commercial feeds were developed for battery hens who were not going to live longer that a couple of years. The feed was designed to give the essential nutrients to keep the bird alive and produce the maximum number of eggs.
According to those who keep chickens here the commercial feeds have too much calcium and not enough protein. They also believe they are vitamin and mineral deficient if the chicken is expected to live a long and healthy life.
Many of those who kept fighting cocks here have been developing feeds for hundreds of years.
However, the breeds here are different and have not been bred to maximize egg production in
many cases.
Feeding meat, fish and various herbs is a popular feeding regime here but the chickens free range and this makes a lot of difference.

 

[RoosterML]

You underestimate the power of greed. I use purina start and grow medicated for chicks. At close to $20 a large bag not all that cheap. My chicks had a vitamin deficiency. I started adding vitamins to the water. Problem solved. Everything now days is make it cheaper sell for high. I understand they have to make money. Which feed is best who knows. Even the organic feed who really knows how good it is. Our friends live next to organic apple orchard and they spray the chemicals at night. That's why I say who really knows.

I personally do not consider Purina poultry feed to be a high quality product.
Personally Kalmbach and Poulin would be my favorite 2 based on talking with people and personal experience.

 

[marchick]

I personally do not consider Purina poultry feed to be a high quality product.
Personally Kalmbach and Poulin would be my favorite 2 based on talking with people and personal experience.

I do not think purina is high quality either. I was just trying to say price means nothing anymore. Just because you give a lot of money for something doesn't mean it's good.

 

[Bantambird]

I think all of us in this thread make do with the resources we have most available to us. We all live in places with vastly different climates and resources and cultures. Some of us don't even speak English as our first language, and look how we all manage to come together over our common thread? We are amazing and we all bring different perspectives to the table.

 

[marchick]

I think all of us in this thread make do with the resources we have most available to us. We all live in places with vastly different climates and resources and cultures. Some of us don't even speak English as our first language, and look how we all manage to come together over our common thread? We are amazing and we all bring different perspectives to the table.

Yes, We make due with what is available. We all love our Marans and all want to do the best we can for them. This is a discussion thread and everyone's input helps and is welcome. That's how we learn. I love this group! You are all the best!!! My friends!!!

 

[chickengr]

Not sure why you think using commercial feed would cause unhealthy chickens. I do not agree with that part of your statement.
Personally I feel unhealthy birds come for lack of basic care and unsanitary living conditions.

when there are bugs in grain they simply grind and make commercial feed. chicks that eat such feed starve and die. I am talking about feed I have around my place.

 

[chickengr]

my friend . the chooks don t care if they are vaccinated or not ,they don t care if they get commercial or home made feed .as long as they have a lot space ,a lot feed and dry shelter . safe from preditor . I have seen chooks eat dead rat ,dead chicken any thing they can get they beak into .
all what we are dealing with is human culture . vaccine .showing .SOP .and all the other stuff .chooks do no care about our believes .
chooks leave in the forest .they eat grass ,bugs ,worms ,nuts and what ever they can find .they do not have culture .they are free creature .

your chicks formula is good ,you need to add boiled eggs ,and some Vitamin .. you don t need commercial . my mom and grand mom had chooks . they never bought feed .only grains .they used mix they own formula . chicks ,/pullet or layer . dry bread soaked in milk for the cockerels .
chooks man

my chickens and dogs always eat extra eggs. I do give them vitamins from time to time but honestly I have never noticed any difference exept when I give them human vitamin b complex (neurobion - commercial name here). but I do see a difference when I give them different vegetables and fruits, honey and acv in water from time to time, if they free roam, etc.

my chickens also catch mice, sparrows, etc.

the problem with grains is that they are hybrids and/or gmo. they don't have nutricional value as it used to be. the same thing is with vegetables due to (I call it) abuse of land and growing monocultures. although they use chemicals land is almost dead and cannot provide a lot. but commercial feed is made of such grain as well.

 

[chickengr]

here a reason peoples don t like the SOP is they don t like to be told .they like to do what ever they want .because is they chooks . wrong attitude .
there is 2 type of chooks peoples .
1} the ones they want to have healthy ,good looking chooks and they like to play by the roles .
2} the ones they keep them selves in they backyard and mix the thing up .tell they destroy them ,they go ant more chooks and do a same thing .
following the SOP is not a crime . it is just a guide line to breed specific strain .nothing wrong about that .

chooks man

if there are enough people who raise 1 breed or like you, a lot of space and possibility of raising a great number of chickens, it is ok to follow the sop. but with 5-6 chickens if you cannot bring new blood evrey 3-4 years you end up inbreeding and loosing the flock. that is the problem here. when they bring new roos there is no way to follow any sop.

 

[chickengr]

To answer your first question in the USA i am guessing that the cheaper feed for chickens may meet minimum requirements.
It is like anything else the more you pay the more you get. I would not expect the highest quality feed for the cheapest price I can buy.
Also a local mill here supplies a university with there chicken feed. This is a major agricultural university. So to me if it’s good enough for them it is good enough for me.
Luckily yes some may try to cut corners but the reputable companies have far to much to lose if they tried to play games.

as you can see commercial feed at your local mill is very different from 80% of spoiled corn + 20% of anything else that is cheap (or mayby 90% corn).