Mesh,Grit and Shell

[brwneggs]

Is it ok to mix the three together for thier food? I do that, but there seems to be a lot of fine stuff left after they are finished eating what they want.
Is there a ratio to combine those three? Do I need to have seperate feeding devices with each one in? ZThey are in a chicken mobile/tractor so that would be hard to move around.
Thank you.

 

[CoopCrazy]

They reccomend that you seperate but it is not demanded .. I mix mine but yes there does tend to be extra (chaff) after they eat the rest .. i really think the extra is just loose crumbles that have been pecked...

 

[brwneggs]

Do you just throw that powdery stuff away? Thats what I do because they wont eat it.

Wonder why you are not suppose to mix it? Our egg shells are like super strong. I do not know the correct ratio, or they should have more of this than that.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I think the only reason for not mixing the grit and oyster in with the feed is that they tend to do a lot more picking through and potentially wasting more feed looking for just what they want at the moment. I feed mine their grit and oyster in separate cups just for that reason and they eat as much or as little they need at any given time, I just keep them filled up.

 

[elmo]

Sometimes when I offer yogurt to my hens I'll mix in some of the fine leftovers from their crumbles. They gobble up every bit if it's got yogurt mixed wth it.

 

[Cindy in PA]

If it is mash with pieces of grain in, they are missing some of their minerals etc., when they don't eat the powder, I try to scoop it out of the feeder at least once a week and wet it with water. They gobble it up & think it is great! That way they eat it all & there isn't much waste.

 

[brwneggs]

Cindy in PA - Great idea! I sometimes I mix okara (left over soy mash from making soy milk) with corn meal. Thank you for the idea! Instead of tossing it to the wind.

Quote:

 

[A.T. Hagan]

My birds are all on the ground so I don't feed grit.

Oyster shell you can feed in a separate hopper or mix it into their feed. I have gone both ways and both worked well. This last bag of shell that I bought has so much powder in it that I've taken to mixing it into their crumbles so as not to waste it.

If you start getting eggs with too many calcium deposits on the shells then cut back on the shell if you're mixing it into their feed.

 

[brwneggs]

How can you tell when there is too many calcium deposits on a shell? As I gather them, they all seem to be different.

A.T. Hagan :

My birds are all on the ground so I don't feed grit.

Oyster shell you can feed in a separate hopper or mix it into their feed. I have gone both ways and both worked well. This last bag of shell that I bought has so much powder in it that I've taken to mixing it into their crumbles so as not to waste it.

If you start getting eggs with too many calcium deposits on the shells then cut back on the shell if you're mixing it into their feed.​

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Really rough and bumpy.

If it's mostly bits of shell and only a little powder it won't be a problem. The birds will pick around it if they don't need it. It's when there is a lot of powder mixed into the feed they need to eat that it can potentially be a problem. This last bag of shell I bought is as much powder as bits of shell. Usually not as bad as that.