Maine

[CoopChick719]

Hey there Jazor! Wanted to add my

on the FF. I have 14 birds and feed FF & free choice dry crumbles along w/any leftovers. I know someone who has 8 birds and is feeding 4 cups of FF per day during the winter. She’ll cut way back when they can free range again.

I just started fermenting again even though the Animal Health Lab at Orono told me to stop AND didn’t give me a reason as to why I should stop. Someone mentioned the Lab is going to recommend whatever Big Ag is doing anyway. I can’t believe the FF is anything but good for the birds!! Too many testimonials on the FF thread & Natural Chicken Keeping thread!! I started all my chicks on FF at Day 3. They devoured it!!!

Anywhoo…I didn’t personally care for the holey bucket system. It took me too much time and needed 2 buckets going at the same time. However I did find it I let it drain the night before I had a good consistency the next morning. Last summer I fermented in the garage. Brought everything in for the winter to the downstairs bathroom—fairly cool temp depending on if the door is open or closed. Can be downright chilly if someone shuts the door for a while! BRRR! DO NOT put your bucket 3 feet from pellet stove!! You WILL have mold by day 3!!!

Now I just scoop out 1 or 2 scoops the FF with a strainer from my 5 gallon bucket into my 8 quart feeding bucket, add extra dry feed crumbles until it’s a crumbly, oatmealy consistency—just moist enough to have form like when you’re making cookie dough. I divide it between 3 feeding stations. Found this at Target

I’ve used UP/ACV to start in the past. This time started a small batch with:
2 Tablespoons of plain, unflavored Hannaford yogurt
2 cups dry crumbles
1 cup of dry corn
½ cup “run of the mill” birdseed
Hot Water from the tap to cover the top of the dry stuff. Mix it up good with sturdy wooden or plastic utensil. Check it about an hour or so later--Add water to cover again and mix again.

Stir at least once or twice daily for at least 3 days until it starts to bubble and smells tangy. Scoop and feed. Replace scooped FF with same equivalent dry ingredients and water, if necessary to cover.

If it smells like alcohol or moldy, dump it out and start over after washing all your equipment.

I like to have enough water covering so nothing can grow on the feed. This batch started fermenting by the 2nd day using the yogurt. Whenever I mixed it, there were nice bubbles coming to the top giving off that tangy sour smell. I fed it to them this morning (Day 4). I did add hot water this morning to give them a warm breakfast. I’ll give an update from the food critics when I get home from work tonight.

 

[MEMama3]

Yes! Thank you.  This is more valuable than what I was able to draw from the other threads.  I understood the process of the bucket-sieve system, just not necessarily the finer points.  How much feed is going in the sieve-bucket when you do this?  The entire back of pellets is to be submerged in the cultures?  I plan to use some raw ACV for my first run through with some layer pellets this spring.

I'm not sure exact quantity of dry feed. Basically I eyeball 1/3 bucket full (any more and it will overflow when the feed swells) and then I add a bit more when it goes low (again, don't add too much or it will overflow).

 

[buckabucka]

I've only done fermented feed occasionally in the summer. One of the benefits is supposed to be that the villi in the intestine grow larger and absorb more nutrients. This will happen with just moistened, unfermented feed as well. The fermenting is supposed to have other health benefits, though.

I have trough-style feeders that never run empty. Since I top off the feed each day, the stuff in the bottom starts to get dusty (and I imagine stale), so I occasionally scoop it out and mix it with water and they devour it.

When I ferment, I put the dusty stuff in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket, fill with enough water to totally cover, add a shot of ACV and a pinch of bread yeast, and cover with a towel. I stir twice a day, and after a couple of days when it is bubbly, I put a big strainer over an empty 5 gallon pail, and pour the liquid off, letting the solids drain, throw it in a food dish and deliver it. I reuse the liquid to start the new batch, although I dump some of the sludge.

My problem was I got busy/distracted and left the liquid without adding more feed for quite some time. It had a cover on it, so I did not notice immediately. The odor was so horrific, that I haven't tried fermented feed since. I dumped it over the bank outside while holding my breath. Maybe next summer I will try it again.

 

[lazy gardener]

Yeah, if you don't use it daily, it gets over ripe. when I see stuff floating on top, I dump it and start over. It does great when I shove it in the fridge if not using it daily, but, again, my flock is smaller than most. However, here's a thought... a bit of FF mixed with dry would be better than no FF at all. You could do a 1 - 2 qt container, and mix FF in with dry, add water to get the right consistency and then feed it out, that way you could refrigerate as needed to keep it from over ripening. I don't cover mine unless it is in the fridge. It needs to be open to the air.

 

[quailtrail]

My newly reinforced coop knox held strong last night in battle fox. A stupid fox was yipping it's stupid little head off right in my yard!  I went out to scare it away around 11:30. It wouldn't leave! It was right on the edge of my woods. I couldn't see it because my batteries were dying in my headlamp! I was screaming "get out of here, you little  bas***d!" and he was replying"grrrr, yip, yip, yeeeeep!" He wasn't scared of me! Eventually he did leave. 

So, tonight I will make sure to have new batteries in my headlamp and load-up my fox exterminator.

it's a little scary that they aren't scared of people!?!?!?

 

[quailtrail]

Well my 11yo egg collector came in with 5 eggs today!!?? Now yesterday we had a nice dark olive one. I do have 5 hens but as of yesterday we were 4/5. I'm thinking since they were all brown or beige that she missed 1 yesterday, or 2 as she only came in with 3 total yesterday. .. they don't go from olive tobrown do they??? I think she missed one yyesterday, that the last is laying, and I only have 1 OE ...

Looks like a math word problem my kids would have had in school lol!!

 

[ashandvine]

FWIW I take it as encouragine3 that these animals are still alive but discouraging that they have to come into our areas for food... I mean, it was their area and then ours but we are like foxes apparently: once we turd on it we don't like to leave. lol

My OE lays a lot darker egg than your Bucka. Its not grey at all. Sometimes I don't like it as much because the dark bloom from the BCM really covers up the green. I can't complain too loudly though. I wanted a green egg and this is.

As far as I know hatcheries do not mark chicks. If you order all black of any variety unless you can tell by comb or shank differentials you can't tell till they are older. :/

 

[buckabucka]

The good thing about the foxes is that they keep the mice population from exploding, but it is difficult keeping them out of the chickens.

I have a lot of weird color eggs, some which are darker and probably would qualify as olive. If the IPad will let me post a photo, I will:

Assuming the photo posts, the uppermost darkish egg I call true olive. Is that the color you have, ashandvine? I really like that color, but I like the other varying shades of gray-green as well. I'm not even sure what to call the egg on the lower right. With the birds I have to work with here, it is much easier for me to get grayish colors than the dark olive.

 

[lazy gardener]

Bucka, those eggs are beautiful!

 

[CoopChick719]

The FF was a hit just a little left in the tray. I had been just soaking my feed or mixing w/hot water before I decided to start fermenting again. I found a couple of inexpensive pet food scoops that measure 2 cups. They are really handy to leave in feedbags. I bought something like this at the Christmas Tree Shop last week to scoop the FF.

Bucka, you have such pretty eggs!