Lowering protein in feed.

[JamieMcClain]

I have some ducklings that are around 4 weeks old. I think it’s time to start lowering their protein in their feed but I still have a TON of the 20% protein feed. I was wondering if there’s anything I can mix in it to lower the content without having to just toss it and buy something new.

 

[Percheron chick]

Don't worry about it. Start adding fruits and vegetables to their diet and the overall intake of protein will decrease.

 

[Ratchnick]

You can cut it with cereal grains

 

[Isaac 0]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but the major concern with most owners is the risk that a high protein diet will in effect cause Angel Wing, to be more specific a high protein diet will cause a duck to grow faster, and as a result, the plumage will grow faster then the musculoskeletal structures resulting in angel wing.

My point is, ANYTHING that causes the bird to grow faster can result in Angel Wing, in the cases where it’s not genetic, the birds are often kept in small pen, overeat, and come down with it.

You can continue to feed them the 20% protein, very little studies exist on Angel Wing, but from my experience, and many others on here, you’re more likely to see Angelwing as a genetic trait, or more likely to see it with birds that aren’t getting a sufficient amount of exercise, or are overcrowded then to see it solely caused by the protein in its diet.

Cutting it with grains is just a waste of time, IMO.

"Patrick Biggs, Ph.D.

Nutritionist, Companion Animal Technical Solutions

"Raising waterfowl such as ducks and geese can be a fun addition to a backyard flock. These water-loving birds are happiest when they have a grassy area to roam and large pond or pool. Ducks and geese thrive best on a high-protein diet, such as Purina® Flock Raiser® 20%."​

https://www.purinamills.com/chicken-feed/products/detail/purina-flock-raiser-crumbles

"Feed your backyard flock. Purina® Flock Raiser® Crumbles provide complete and balanced nutrition for healthy flocks and baby birds. Sustain an entire mixed flock of poultry, including starting and growing hens, roosters, ducks and geese Purina® Flock Raiser® Crumbles is also for turkeys, pheasants and quail 8 weeks of age and older."

 

[Ratchnick]

Angel wing is one of those things that is not completely understood from a scientific standpoint, so nobody can claim they know better how to treat or prevent it better then anyone else. Mostly the information from peoples experiences is anecdotal and not relevant to other people raising other birds. All anyone can tell you with any amount of certainty is people have had success on high energy/protein and restricted/low protein diet. To highlight my point likely the two most promenent waterfoul breeders in the us, holderreads and metzers, take oposite viewpoints on this topic. The choice is yours.

 

[Isaac 0]

Angel wing is one of those things that is not completely understood from a scientific standpoint, so nobody can claim they know better how to treat or prevent it better then anyone else. Mostly the information from peoples experiences is anecdotal and not relevant to other people raising other birds. All anyone can tell you with any amount of certainty is people have had success on high energy/protein and restricted/low protein diet. To highlight my point likely the two most promenent waterfoul breeders in the us, holderreads and metzers, take oposite viewpoints on this topic. The choice is yours.

You might find this interesting,

AW=Angel Wing

"Kear (1973) reported that IAW in wild geese is affected by several factors, including; lack of exercise, large flock size, improper feeding, rearing under heat stress because of high ambient temperatures, feeling frightened frequently, and improper management."

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4852259/

"According to our review of relevant literature, the genetics of AW in geese was first reported by Francis et al. (1967). They observed AW in 53% of White Chinese goslings with AW parents, thus indicating that IAW in geese is attributable to polygenic determinism. Moreover, Lin et al. (2012) reported that the SSAW and IAW of White Roman goslings with AW at 8 weeks of age were 1.45% and 48.6%, respectively, whereas those of commercial White Roman goslings at the same age were 0.40% and 14.8%, respectively. These results revealed that parental and genetic factors play a substantial role in IAW and SSAW. Therefore, we conducted a divergent genetic selection for A Lin White Roman geese in Taiwan; the results will be published separately. "

High Protein can cause Angel Wing, but I think its overstressed, compared to several other predisposing factors that can cause Angel Wing such as lack of exercise.

I have raised over forty ducklings over the years, I fed them all the same thing, cared for them the same way, and just this year I had one come down with it, seems highly likely that this would be protein related. I’m not stating this as a fact, just stating my humble opinion. I think people stress about feeding too much protein, 20% is fine.

 

[HalfWayUpAMountain]

To answer your question (regardless of the why) I add oatmeal in to cut the protein down.

As an aside, my ducks love it when oats are added !

 

[JamieMcClain]

To answer your question (regardless of the why) I add oatmeal in to cut the protein down.

As an aside, my ducks love it when oats are added !

What kind of oatmeal??

 

[HalfWayUpAMountain]

Cheap oats from the supermarket you would use for porridge - if the grain size is large I either grind it down (my OH coffee bean grinder comes in super handy) or I make sure they have grit.

Either way, they go loony for it.

Also a useful back pocket tip for if your food ordering goes pips up.

I go roughly one third oats to the crumb - and never throw the food away, thats stuffs spendy !

 

[Ratchnick]

Cheap oats from the supermarket you would use for porridge - if the grain size is large I either grind it down (my OH coffee bean grinder comes in super handy) or I make sure they have grit.

Either way, they go loony for it.

Also a useful back pocket tip for if your food ordering goes pips up.

I go roughly one third oats to the crumb - and never throw the food away, thats stuffs spendy !

I did this a few months ago, worked well. I used quaker oats from costco.