Is this a complete chicken diet?

[MelissaCoupas]

That may be too much layer pellets so scratch that, no pun intended. I'll look it up but surely 25% of their diet probably needs to consist of layer pellets+free ranging+compost+Solidier flies and fruit and scraps from the food bank vegetables which are not fit to give out. Our chickens free ranged last time on 1/4 acre however they ate a good amount of organic layer pellets too. That's probably why it was so expensive. The compost pile was only a couple of trash cans full but did provide a ton of worms. These were very healthy looking chickens.

 

[Weeg]

That may be too much layer pellets so scratch that, no pun intended. I'll look it up but surely 25% of their diet probably needs to consist of layer pellets+free ranging+compost+Solidier flies and fruit and scraps from the food bank vegetables which are not fit to give out. Our chickens free ranged last time on 1/4 acre however they ate a good amount of organic layer pellets too. That's probably why it was so expensive. The compost pile was only a couple of trash cans full but did provide a ton of worms. These were very healthy looking chickens.

To make it easy on yourself, but free feed the layer pellets. You can also feed all flock, starter, grower, as long as you supplement with calcium. If one is cheeper than it may work better for you.

 

[All4Eggz]

This may help:
Thread 'Chicken Feed Recipes, Articles and Systems'
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-feed-recipes-articles-and-systems.1510115/

 

[MelissaCoupas]

Thanks so much! Yes we have plenty of calcium via sea shells we can grind up.

 

[MelissaCoupas]

I may alternate them

 

[sandburRanch]

We want to raise chickens again but have their food be 100% free. Years back, we paid for chicken scratch. Where we will move is in the forest in high elevation so there is very limited things we can do to provide their food.

We can do: Soldier Flies, Raise worms in compost, & Duckweed. We can supplement with other items as we have them such as excess vegetables we sometimes have to toss out from the food bank. I would need to dehydrate some of the soldier flies to be able to last during the winter and the worms are year round.

Does this sound like a balanced diet? They can and will be free range part of the day but not 100% since there are bears around. We would need to use chicken tractors (tall chicken tractors) letting them out 1-2 hrs a day to free roam. Our pen for them will be large and set right next to the house so we can open the window, yell or jump outside if there are animals. Animals we are less worried about as we had chickens before so the pen will be major bear proof. Thanks so much

If you're in a area where Alfalfa can be grown possibly trade eggs to a rancher for Alfalfa .

My late father fed nothing except whole Oats , Alfalfa hay ( leaf-ie alfalfa ) ( there can be a wide range of quality ) , Oyster shells , table scraps and excess garden vegetables . A flake can occasionally be placed on the ground and they'll pick the stem clean of leaves then collect and save the stems as garden mulch .

 

[MelissaCoupas]

Thank you! Yes I go to church with alfalfa farmers. I am sure they would be willing to trade for eggs. Thank you

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Thank you so much! Sorry everyone, I called it scratch but meant laying pellets. We gave our chickens laying pellets years ago plus compost which had a ton of worms and they were free range on 1/4 acre. So they ate well. We also supplemented with calcium sometimes.

I am also afraid of COVID so want to be 100% self sufficient if the feed stores close up. Our property also has a TON of frogs so we could provide that as protein and we will be raising fish too so that would work too. There is a good flowing spring which runs year round. Again, thanks to you all.
We will supplement the chickens with laying pellets, at least 2 ounces per chicken per day.

Still not a complete diet, sorry. Severely lacking in some essential things.

 

[sandburRanch]

Still not a complete diet, sorry. Severely lacking in some essential things.

Also not complete by what the book -- Feeds and Feeding by Morrison -- reads , but why change it if the poultry seems healthy and a grade A Xtra large carton can't be closed when full of eggs . And Melissa in reply #16 is shooting for 100% free food .

 

[U_Stormcrow]

but why change it if the poultry seems healthy and a grade A Xtra large carton can't be closed when full of eggs

Welcome to BYC @sandburRanch . I find no evidence in this thread that the OP claims their prior feed regimen performed as you describe above, nor, based on the description of the offered diet, would I expect them too.

"seems healthy" is a vague, almost standardless, judgement of chicken performance.

Modern Science has given us a very good idea of what chickens need, not just to survive, but to thrive. "Surviving" chickens seem healthy, when that's what you are used to seeing. They aren't unhealthy.

But they can't compete in weight gain, rate of lay, quality of lay against an identical chicken that is thriving - and a chicken raised on a deficient diet (at a time when their nutritional needs are highest) will never perform to potential - no different than a human child that spends its first decade of life in starvation before moving to a first world country with better care and more available food. They carry the evidence of the deficient start with them all their lives. Compare, for instance, the average male of North Korea with the average male of South Korea. Or the massive growth in average South Korean male height over the past few decades, as more protein became a regular part of their diet.

Same principle at play in chickens.