Just feeding chickens scratch feed & cracked corn.

[Ema]

Quote:
BOSS id black oil sunflower seeds
Scratch has corn in it, but also has other things in it like oats and other grains.

no question is dumb, seriously I asked the same question when I first began asking questions here. lol

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Quote:
BOSS id black oil sunflower seeds
Scratch has corn in it, but also has other things in it like oats and other grains.

no question is dumb, seriously I asked the same question when I first began asking questions here. lol

No kidding , I thought everybody was suggesting I feed my wife to the chickens. Wasn't sure exacly how that would help them have shiney feathers, but I was willing to try.

 

[Ariel301]

I had chickens growing up. (Which was not THAT long ago...) All we ever fed them was scratch and they were healthy, fat, and laying eggs faster than we could eat them and give them away. That's all anyone I knew then ever fed their chickens. That's all the feed store had for chickens. Back in the days before commercially prepared pelleted rations, chickens were fed wheat and corn that was grown on the farm, and that's about all they were fed, if they wanted anything more, they had to forage for it...and they laid well. Sure, they didn't live ten years, and they were a bit thin...but they were not pets like most people here see their chickens, they were food producing units. Once they were not producing after a couple of years, they were a nice dinner for the family.

Have chickens really changed that much in less than 20 years? Or has the feed just gotten that much worse? Personally, I think the "fact" that chickens have to eat a commercially prepared layer ration to be healthy is propaganda sold by the people who make the feed...same as the people who tell you your dog will not be healthy unless it eats premium brand expensive dog kibble, which coincidentally happens to be made of all the same junk as the regular dog food...From what I read of the label, layer feed is basically corn and scratch ground up into pellets and sprayed with some vitamins and minerals and extra protein from soy. I'd call soy junk food before I'd call scratch junk food. Maybe that's just me. I'm a bit of a rebel.

Layer feed, on the odd occasion it is available here, is $15-$17 or more per bag for crumbles (they never sell pellets) that are mostly dust and a lot ends up wasted. And they only sell chicken feed at our feed store while they are selling chicks, after that, scratch is all they've got. Scratch or corn is $8 a bag. When you are barely scraping together a living for two people on a minimum wage job at 10 hours a week...the price difference is a huge deal. My chickens aren't pets, they're food animals. I treat them as well as I can, but if it costs me $30 a week for a couple of dozen eggs...the price is just too high. So I feed scratch. And let my birds free range and eat leftovers from the kitchen, and I have been giving them some 14% pig feed pellets that I got at a discounted price. They are all fat and healthy looking, I completely cleaned up with them at the fair, won every prize there was for chickens. (I'm having some issues with them not laying but I doubt it is diet because I switched to a high protein diet for several months, nearly went broke doing it, and they still didn't lay...I think it's something going on with the birds, I know dozens of people whose birds are not laying no matter what they do!)

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

If they're food, then it probably wouldn't matter. If yours free range on healthy land, it's probably why they're doing fine.

 

[chick-in-florida]

yes i agree that if you are free ranging them it makes a huge difference and just giving them scratch grains may be alright. but if they are enclosed in pens and coops then they need protein for sure. they need greens too.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Living in AZ where chickens can range virtually year around, with scratch supplementation is far different from living in a place or pen where free ranging cannot happen. When the ground's covered with snow for 5 months, there is nothing else to eat, so a quality feed is necessary.

Let me also say that I am old enough to remember the "old days" I've raising chickens since the late 1950's.
In those days, people did indeed not feed the chickens, except what fell from the horses grain or the cows spilled, or what came out the back of those larger critters. But note this. Lot's of myths about "the olden days".

In those days, chickens did not lay for 4 months in the winter either, and THAT is the difference. No one expected eggs until spring. Egg production in those days was 160 eggs a year and most of those were laid in the spring and summer. Gee? I wonder why? Because the chicken could supplement it's horrid diet with protein from insects, worms and grubs.

You don't have to feed your hens well. They will survive. They're tough. But if you expect your hens to spit out 8% of the body weight in pure protein everyday in a calcium shell, then better feed will be required. Do as you wish.

PS my hens are not pets. They are a business and a lifestyle.

 

[AKsmama]

Yes, I do think things have changed in 20 years. Maybe not the chickens themselves, but certainly how most people & backyard flock owners in particular manage their flocks. When the "old-timers" (and I am not calling you one, Ariel301, just using an example) had chickens, they usually had a farm. There was decent foraging, not just for greens & bugs but through other animals' manure, and on pastures too. Those farmers probably had a bit of land to let the chickens do the foraging. Not so much anymore. How many threads are there here on "I'm an outlaw chicken keeper?" How many stupid rules do a lot of owners have to follow these days- everything from "can't have a rooster" to "your coop must look exactly like your house" to "coop may not be within 50 feet/yards/whatever of any dwelling?" Perhaps that is not your situation, Ariel301; it's not mine, thank goodness. But the fact is, things change. The majority of backyard flocks absolutely do not have the room or permission for their chickens to adequately free range. Not in the US- I don't really care what it's like in Thailand or any other country.

Bledsoe, the OP, asked a good question, and s/he isn't the first to ask that here. However, when you couple the scratch question with her/his other question about egg-eating, then that changes things a bit. Her/his flock is lacking something they are not getting- not from scratch, corn, table scraps, cat food, or any foraging. Seems like you didn't appreciate the answers based on your personal experience. But your experience is not everyone's experience. Your chickens are seemingly healthy- good for you. The OPs are not, but sounds like s/he is doing her/his best to remedy that.

 

[they'reHISchickens]

I'll chime in to say that one company's scratch is not another company's scratch. I've purchased scratch from local mills that is a good variety of mostly whole grains and could very well be a fairly good diet. Then I bought a bag of Purina scratch and was totally shocked at the amount of corn in there! I suppose even the local mills vary the amounts of grains in their scratch depending upon the season.
I agree that layer feed is just all these grains ground and formed with some minerals and vitamins added. The question is what proportion is what grain and how much is added filler or other unmentionables.
If you don't have access to variety, you may as well buy the layer pellets. If you have access to a good variety of healthy grains and supplements, study the subject and formulate your own ration.
One size isn't going to fit all, folks, and everyone's mileage will vary
And really, if you have to pay $25 a bag for layer pellets, maybe it's worth it to feed cheap scratch and not get eggs for 4 months a year. Store eggs can be real cheap eating on sale. Some people live on lobster and some live on really fatty hamburger. We all do what we can.

..and if you had told me how much we would spend on these darn chickens, I'd have told you you were crazy. They's CHICKENS! yeah, but I guess they are sorta cute

 

[mississippifarmboy]

they'reHISchickens :

I'll chime in to say that one company's scratch is not another company's scratch. I've purchased scratch from local mills that is a good variety of mostly whole grains and could very well be a fairly good diet. Then I bought a bag of Purina scratch and was totally shocked at the amount of corn in there! I suppose even the local mills vary the amounts of grains in their scratch depending upon the season.
I agree that layer feed is just all these grains ground and formed with some minerals and vitamins added. The question is what proportion is what grain and how much is added filler or other unmentionables.
If you don't have access to variety, you may as well buy the layer pellets. If you have access to a good variety of healthy grains and supplements, study the subject and formulate your own ration.
One size isn't going to fit all, folks, and everyone's mileage will vary
And really, if you have to pay $25 a bag for layer pellets, maybe it's worth it to feed cheap scratch and not get eggs for 4 months a year. Store eggs can be real cheap eating on sale. Some people live on lobster and some live on really fatty hamburger. We all do what we can.

..and if you had told me how much we would spend on these darn chickens, I'd have told you you were crazy. They's CHICKENS! yeah, but I guess they are sorta cute

I never thought about that, but you are right. I bought scratch once at TSC and it was only cracked corn and three other grains. The scratch we use is a 7 grain scratch.
I still think they do better with pellets, but a quality scratch might not be as bad as that 3 and 4 grain stuff.​

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Quote:
I never thought about that, but you are right. I bought scratch once at TSC and it was only cracked corn and three other grains. The scratch we use is a 7 grain scratch.
I still think they do better with pellets, but a quality scratch might not be as bad as that 3 and 4 grain stuff.

Hmmm... I think I'm going to ask my feed store about 7 grain scratch (maybe could save me some time mixing up some of my grains)! All I have seen/fed is 2 grain scratch, and it is mostly corn.

OP, we all feed what we want to feed...and do the best we can. Do what you have to do! They will appreciate worms- have you checked out some of the growing worms threads? That is really cheap protein once you buy the worms to get started.