Is it possible to overfeed?

[jedidja]

My chickens are going through an insane amount of food (it seems .. I have no frame of reference). I couldn't find anything on the FAQ for this site or searching, so I will ask here

Is there an average amount of food a chicken should eat / be given each day?

The thirty-five White Rocks I've got can empty a 4-foot trough pretty much three times a day now. It seems like a lot of food...and it's not like I can really get them on a scale to weigh them to see if they are growing too quickly

Any rules of thumb on this? Any recommendations for # of times/day to feed them and how much?

Many thanks

 

[Rolsjo]

We just make sure they have feed for about 12 hours/day and none at night. A friend suggested a good rule of thumb is make sure each bird gets about 17 lbs. of feed by the time you process. Ours are 6 weeks old and 25 birds have gone through 350 lbs of feed. So we're right at 15 lbs/bird. One more 50 lb. bag should do it. Anyone else use these kinds of guidelines?

Although we found one dead this morning, but we're not sure if it's heart issues or dehydration (the waterer blew the seal last night). I've been observing the rest and they are very active so it could just be an isolated incident.

 

[jedidja]

Rolsjo: Very handy, thank you

That is the kind of guideline I was looking for. I will sit down and do some calculations myself to see if I'm on track (or wayyy over)

I think giving them food for 12 hrs/day makes sense too; I think I have been keeping them fed closer to 15 hrs/day - filling their trough around 6 am, noon, and 6pm.

 

[Peruvian]

Cornish Cross Rocks have a food conversion ratio of approx 3:1 - a 5 lb bird requires around 15 lbs of feed. I would expect White Rocks to be quite a bit higher.

 

[little_giant]

well im trying to keep my cornish Xs thin because i don't want to process them. so i just put food out for about 10 hours a day becuase they are already pretty fat.

 

[jaku]

They do eat whatever you put down as soon as they can. If they're starting to eat more than you're willing to spend on food, remember they don't HAVE TO have food for the full 12 hour day. I fill my feeders when I get up in the morning, then before I leave for work around 1:00, and that's it. I'm sure they run out long before the 12 hours is up, but they do fine.

 

[momoftwinsinwi]

this thread also really helped me calculate that raising them is going to cost me approx $8-9 per bird, so I'm not getting any less than about $12 per bird

THANK YOU!!