looking down the road with different aged chicks and feed

[Folly's place]

A point about feed storage:
Always check the mill date on each bag, and buy within one month of milling, and use it up within another month if possible.
At home, keep it in the original bag in your container, and use it up before using the new stuff in the newer bag.
If there's ever a problem with feed, the manufacturer will want to know about it, including the lot number, etc, and it is more likely to keep better stored that way. Old feed ain't good!
Mary

 

[sayccrn]

I’ve had a fluctuation in the number of birds I’ve had, but have always had at least 2, at most, 4. I also feed organic feed and during the warm months when the birds can free range for even a few hours a day, our bag of feed lasts close to 3 months. I have 2 birds now that are 14 weeks and 2 that are 5 weeks, and I would say we just broke into our second bag of chick feed (we bought a new bag in May but just dumped it into the tote that already had feed in it, so I can’t say for sure when we would have run out of the first bag). When I had 2 full grown birds over the fall/winter, the feed went a little faster because they were not ranging as much, but I would guess that if you have 5 birds that free range a bit each day, you could probably go 2 months on one bag of feed, providing they get additional snacks.

Thanks so much! I think the 'normal size' is about 40 lbs for organic, is that right?

 

[sayccrn]

A point about feed storage:
Always check the mill date on each bag, and buy within one month of milling, and use it up within another month if possible.
At home, keep it in the original bag in your container, and use it up before using the new stuff in the newer bag.
If there's ever a problem with feed, the manufacturer will want to know about it, including the lot number, etc, and it is more likely to keep better stored that way. Old feed ain't good!
Mary

Thank you!

 

[sayccrn]

i Feed game bird grower finisher 22%. I have two pans of oyster shell out and the only time they touch it is when I have egg shells in it. We are in the process of rotating out old and raising up the new so we were going to go to layer feed 16% Because they don’t eat the oyster shell

Interesting, Thank you!

 

[sayccrn]

Feeding a non layer feed myself, my hens (6 laying at the time) go through 5 Pounds of oyster shell in 6 Months:

Edit : wrong! Just realized looking at the screenshot, this is the one time ever that I bought Layena feed, taking advantage of the Purina “taste test challenge”’coupon!



View attachment 2199066

Holy Chicken, Batman! You keep a spreadsheet?! Very organized. Have you found this helps you decide what they do and don't like? And do different breeds of bird like different things, or is it like people and very personal?

 

[sayccrn]

I keep them separated and my hens eat way more Shells than Grit.
I don't feed a layers feed.
When I did feed a Layers feed they ate about equal amounts.View attachment 2199056
GC

Ok thank you!

 

[sayccrn]

The birds I g hv ave will eat anything I don’t think they can differentiate between grit and shells. I put my 10 week old out I. The coop give them layer crumbles nearby mixed with corn. But it is really a free for all in there.

Hmm..Ok..thank you!

 

[sayccrn]

If the non laying chicks start consuming the Shells then your ground doesn't have enough small stones.
A 25 lb bag is $10 and lasts a long time. GC

OHHH!!!! OK! Wow! that is great to know! Thank you!

 

[sayccrn]

It's best to offer grit too, because you won't know until later how much they will need.
I always offer chick sized grit to the babies when they hit the soil and are eating anything other than their crumble. Necessary!
Oyster shell in a separate feeder when they start laying eggs, and the birds will eat it as needed.
Modern birds need their base balanced diet free choice all year, and depending on what they find outside, will likely eat less of it during the summer. That's nice, but growing large and producing lots of eggs is hard work, needing fuel!
Mary

Ok, good to know, I will get some chick grit when I pick up my last two tomorrow. I plan on bringing the one chcik out this weekend when it will be warm enough for her. Thank you!

 

[Doc7]

Holy Chicken, Batman! You keep a spreadsheet?! Very organized. Have you found this helps you decide what they do and don't like? And do different breeds of bird like different things, or is it like people and very personal?

This is only to track my costs per dozen eggs. I could care less what the chickens like : They get oyster shell, grit, and the latest mill date flock raiser feed at Tractor Supply, plus some cracked corn or scratch mostly as a "free ranging time is over" lure.