Is it worth the extra $$

[Wild-Turkey]

Start with her about me section on one of her sites.

Okay, the second paragraph was immediately bull. Taking the time to bring the bird to the vet and letting them suffer is cruel. Also, acting like culling is a bad word??
By-products are still what they are, but I’m not gonna argue with that, wish I’d seen that sooner, thank you.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/by-product

 

[oldhen2345]

Aaron, you are asking a question I have asked myself plenty of times. I WISH I could afford organic feed -- not just for my chickens but for all of my pets and for me. My suspicion, and it's only that, is that at least some of price difference is a matter of marketing.

I used to turn up my nose at off-brand people food and drove past Aldi without a second thought. As it turns out, I am now a devoted Aldi shopper because their store brands appear to have the same or better nutritional value as the "good" brands, taste just as good or better and cost a lot less to buy. I like to stretch my dollars as far as possible while still getting good value.

My birds have been eating either get Purina, if it's on sale, or the local feed store's house brand for several years, and I haven't seen any ill effects. I am far from an expert and am looking forward to reading others' opinions.

Ditto for me. My girls get Layena Free Range made by Purina I think. When I have pullets and hens, I use the All Flock. Hens are all nice and healthy.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

But they have photos of their clients surgeries and x-rays on their website and blog, and a whole database with accurate anatomy and medicine?
Do you have proof aside from word of mouth?

Ask them.

Do you see a Vet's name there, or a bunch of abbreviations thereafter?

" We are not a substitute for a veterinarian. We do not agree with and will not promote any inhumane treatment of poultry, or any animal for that matter. This means that we will never recommend or use the word 'culling'. If a bird is so sick or injured that it cannot be helped, they should be brought to a veterinarian and humanely euthanized. We do not look at poultry as a commodity, we look at them for who they are---living, breathing animals, who are each unique individuals and deserve to be treated with compassion and respect. "

The wonder of the Internet is that anyone with time, effort, and the ability to educate themselves can put together a very slick, advertising supported, incredibly useful (or not), page of information conglomerated from other sources. Do it right, and your own users will provide valuable content.

Their case stories come from a host of sources, SOME OF WHICH are Vets. Nothing claiming those vets are the source behind the rest of the page, however. Its simply good advertising for them.

Glancing at representative Case Studies, I see:

"Written by Rebecca L. Gounaris, DVM of Pleasantville Animal Hospital of Fallston" (Maryland) many of their duck studies, and chicken stories too. Clearly quite active on the PoultryDVM page.

Dr. Ramsibhai Chaudhari of VCA Dunmore Animal Hospital (Pennsylvania)

Dr. Devinne Bennett of Back Mountain Veterinary Hospital (also)

National Taiwan University Veterinary Hospital (NTUVH).

Paws & Claws Animal Hospital is a full-service veterinary clinic located in Wilmington, NC

Dreamer’s Hen Rescue (DHR) is an animal rights organization located in Australia

The British Hen Welfare Trust (BHWT) is a charity in the United Kingdom

If its a single Doctor, they are age and gender fluid and extremely well travelled...

 

[Kiki]

Okay, the second paragraph was immediately bull. Taking the time to bring the bird to the vet and letting them suffer is cruel. Also, acting like culling is a bad word??
By-products are still what they are, but I’m not gonna argue with that, wish I’d seen that sooner, thank you.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/by-product

Kelly Rutkowski, MBA

 

[Kiki]

One more...
https://hennyandrooblog.com/2019/01/17/meet-kelly-from-adopt-a-bird-network/

 

[Wild-Turkey]

One more...
https://hennyandrooblog.com/2019/01/17/meet-kelly-from-adopt-a-bird-network/

Sorry to reply again, but oh boy, “half the birds in my flock are roosters,” is a huge red flag. Those poor hens must be torn apart.
She obviously doesn’t understand that just because they’re valued for food doesn’t mean they’re not valued for themselves, either. I sure appreciate a bird giving up their life to fill my plate.
She sounds like bad news, thank you again for informing me.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Organic is required to sell certified organic eggs and meat. At least that's how it is here. I feed half organic and half not because I feed what my chickens like. But I have a good friend who is a certified organic farmer. He has state regulators come out to his farm regularly for him to be able to put that little stamp on his eggs, broilers, fruits, veggies, etc. He has to jump through major hoops: no inorganic fertilizers, no pesticides, organic animal feed, no antibiotics. They take soil samples and animal feed samples. And his farm is an itty bitty farm. That's why he charges more for his goods. Gotta pay for the effort and all the dang regulations.

So he, and others, feed organic because they have to. Vicious cycle, really.

ETA: He does it for the good of the planet. Super nice and ecologically minded guy.

 

[Trisseh]

Personally I prefer to support my local feed mill. The feed is less costly because transport costs are less of an issue - the feed is made from crops grown by farmers here, it’s milled here, and I’ve never had a bag that was more than a month old. The birds love it, and it doesn’t break the bank. I tend to stay away from most “value added” products that play on consumer trends. Organic, high omegas, etc are all a marketing ploy to meet the desire of the consumers. I have no issue with anyone who chooses to use said products but I personally see no benefit to them, and unless it can be demonstrated without a doubt that there is marked benefit to feeding it over my locally sourced, fresh feed, I won’t buy it - but I also won’t strongly urge others to choose to do the same as I do.
I certainly wouldn’t be able to go through certification for organic eggs from my birds even if I did feed organic feed, as they free range and eat anything they can get their beaks on. Never had better tasting eggs though.
Personally I think so long as we meet the nutritional needs of our birds, there’s nothing wrong with our choices whatever they may be.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Got to love the Internet. A little digging, and we can find out all sorts of stuff. Maybe not enough to make us experts, but certainly enough to provide a passable illusion of competence.

and "regarding by-products", courtesy the Food and Drug Administration, who has some asserted expertise (and near complete legal authority) in such matters, within the USA.

Honestly, I'm not thrilled when I see "by-products" on a bag either, but not because it scares me, rather because I don't like to be ignorant. ...and later, if I do have a problem, seeing the catch all "by-products" doesn't allow me to avoid them in the future. Say I had an undiagnosed allergy to something in wheat hulls, not present in wheat germ, or in a fruit's peel, but not its flesh - seeing "wheat by-products" or "mango by-products" - doesn't help me identify whether the product contains that allergen to me.

But the opportunity cost of complete adherence to the precautionary principle is too high for me to pay. At some point, you roll your dice and take your chances. Yes, I look at the table odds before I sit down at a chair, but its the only Casino in town, if I'm going to win, I have to play one of the games.

 

[oldhen2345]

Sorry to reply again, but oh boy, “half the birds in my flock are roosters,” is a huge red flag. Those poor hens must be torn apart.
She obviously doesn’t understand that just because they’re valued for food doesn’t mean they’re not valued for themselves, either. I sure appreciate a bird giving up their life to fill my plate.
She sounds like bad news, thank you again for informing me.

Maybe she has dedicated bachelor pens??? I say, cull or sell if you can't keep all you flock.