Measuring foraging

[Dr.Dale]

I am planning on starting breeding my own birds this year. My primary selection trait would ideally be foraging. I would like to breed birds that forage a substantial portion of their diet.

Does anyone know of a way to measure foraging? How can I identify the best birds

 

[centrarchid]

A few years back I followed a group of chickens for 24 hours checking on their location and activity at 15-minute intervals. Before and since I have watched chickens a lot as well with a lot less rigor. Conclusion is that if you have a slacker forager or two in the mix, they will still keep pace with the more aggressive leaders. Additionally, just because a bird travels a lot does not mean it gets a lot of food. Finally, just because the birds eat a lot does not mean they eats are quality.

If I were to try and do this for real again, then I would put out a feeding station that has only one type of grain, not feed. The volume applied would be limited so all is consumed before end of day. Then I would go out and check crop fill every night and weigh of birds on a roughly weekly basis. Trap nest would be employed to see who is weighing how many eggs and of what size. The birds must be truly free-range for this to work.

When they force me into retirement, then I will be doing this myself.

 

[Dr.Dale]

Then I would go out and check crop fill every night and weigh of birds on a roughly weekly basis.

This is a good idea. How quickly does the crop empty? If the feed is removed maybe two hours before sunset then night time crop fill would indicate both volume of foraged food and how late the foraging continued.

 

[centrarchid]

Crop emptying rate appears dependent both demand and quality of what is being processed.

 

[bluebird]

A few years back I followed a group of chickens for 24 hours checking on their location and activity at 15-minute intervals. Before and since I have watched chickens a lot as well with a lot less rigor. Conclusion is that if you have a slacker forager or two in the mix, they will still keep pace with the more aggressive leaders. Additionally, just because a bird travels a lot does not mean it gets a lot of food. Finally, just because the birds eat a lot does not mean they eats are quality.

If I were to try and do this for real again, then I would put out a feeding station that has only one type of grain, not feed. The volume applied would be limited so all is consumed before end of day. Then I would go out and check crop fill every night and weigh of birds on a roughly weekly basis. Trap nest would be employed to see who is weighing how many eggs and of what size. The birds must be truly free-range for this to work.

When they force me into retirement, then I will be doing this myself.

x2

 

[centrarchid]

@Dr.Dale ,

How many acres are available on your place for free-ranging? How many chickens?

 

[Dr.Dale]

@Dr.Dale ,

How many acres are available on your place for free-ranging? How many chickens?

We have 5.5 acres, with about 1.5 of that being cleared and the rest being woods. We currently have 6, but as we start breeding and expanding our flock I think we will probably cap it at 30-50.

 

[centrarchid]

In my setting, where you are really pushing free-range, 6 acres is tight for even 30 birds. I can keep them in with a combination of feeding stations and cover patches in key locations but during winter it is a real battle to keep birds on property. Your test efforts at some point will involve serious investment in predator exclusion that will involve more than the dogs.

 

[Dr.Dale]

In my setting, where you are really pushing free-range, 6 acres is tight for even 30 birds.

Do you mean 100% free range feeding? Maybe I should realistically target more like 25%-50%

 

[centrarchid]

I am talking the 25 to 50% as well. If total, be ready for a pair of birds to use close to 10 acres.

Generally, the free-range forage comes up short on only certain nutrients and there is a strong seasonal component to that. Currently, my birds are challenged for energy so shell corn is all that is needed to keep them tight. As protein sources are consumed, protein will become an issue as winter progresses. If heavy snow cover is involved, then everything becomes limiting and my birds greatly increase ranging after a couple days of barely leaving barn.