Mixing Feed

[WhiteAfrican923]

I have decided to start mixing items into my feed. I have two base feeds and they are Purina Flock Raiser (20 %) for the bantams, large fowl, and guinea fowl. For the ducks and geese I have Duck and Goose Pellets from Armada (16 %). Each base will be 80 % of every pound fed and scratch grains will be 10 % of the pound and calf manna will be the other 10 %. I would like to here your comments on my rations. (Please no post of how by doing what I am doing will screw up my birds or any negative stuff. Been to a lot forums and trying to avoid that.)

Thanks

 

[loveourbirds]

your feed has to match your conditions. its been a while since i used purina feeds and i really dont know much about ducks and geese - but i can help you with your chickens.

im assuming your chickens are adults. most chickens do best at 16-18% protein, they get any additional protein through table scraps or insects eaten in the run/free range. i have used calf manna in the past, but i really dont think you need it. to much protein causes irreversable kidney damage. also calf manna contains GMO soy, the antinutrients in the soy will more than likely counteract about 8% of your total protein intake. i will use it during molts to help them along.

keep in mind all feed products have good and bad qualities, the object is to mix them to maximize the good and minimize the bad.

here is a few things i have noticed from mixing my own feeds.

straight layer crumble (brand name) - good egg production, chickens were overactive, overall appearance was dull.

corn - empty fat, no real nutrition, dull appearance, low egg production. however corn does contain a chemical needed for digestion/absorpsion.

black oil sunflower seeds - feathers were no longer dull, fat pocket developed above the vent internally in hens causing egg binding. protein is useful, fiber is great but use in moderation

oats - low fat useable protein, but no weight gain - to many oats makes thin chickens.

wheat - good protein especially in non GMO varieties. oil does help with making chickens shiny. they can cause an "overdose" on protein.

sorghum/molasses - great micronutrient, contains progesterone that can make hens broody - may also cause more female chicks.

corn based mash mixed at local feed store - ok egg laying, dull appearance, dusty feed alot of waste.

cat food - good source of temporary protein, to much can be toxic to chickens.

fish meal - may contain mercury, good source of protein

soy oil - will boost protein, antinutrients may actually slow growth

liquid animal fat - builds a good winter fat, makes feathers glossy, not alot of nutrition. will aid in egg binding, but to much may lead to egg binding. (same buildup as sunflower seed)

canadian pea - only tried whole, some chickens choked to death. these occasionally come in sunflower seeds.

alfalfa pellets or cubes - good source of calcium, but most chickens will ignore them unless they are "dissolved" in water and drained.

meal worms - excellent source of protein, not cost effective, not a good feed ingredient - best fed as treats.

i hope this helps you along

 

[WhiteAfrican923]

Thank you very much for the advice. All of my chickens are adults. As a side note, I would like to say that I have not yet started to use this formula. I just wanted to see what people thought. My main concern is not egg production, I have chickens that are mainly pets that when they are gone no more. I am looking for feed that does not screw their insides up but it doesn't make them bored by eating the same thing. I have four white african geese that got thin because of they had a worm problem (gape) and they are rebounding with strides. I am just looking for a ration that keeps weight on the birds. Any notes on what people use for their birds would be nice to here.

 

[loveourbirds]

if your just caring for a few birds, your best bet is to probably use a good quality layer crumble in the morning. in the afternoon use a good quality scratch grain. let them free range if you can, if not try to supplement what they would get if they did free range.

 

[WhiteAfrican923]

Lets say somebody mixes scratch grain in with lets say flock raiser, how do you calculate the average protein of the mixture? Would you add both the proteins of the feeds and then divide them by 2? I am not sure.

 

[WhiteAfrican923]

I went to the Metzer Farms website and used their protein calculator and found it to be a big help.
These are my specifications. Keep in mind that Calf Manna says at the most to make up 10 % of the daily birds diet.

Flock Raiser (20 %) 80 % per pound of feed
Calf Manna (25 %) 10 % per pound of feed
Purina Scratch (8 %) 10 % per pound of feed

You will need to mix 10 pounds of 8% feed with your 90 pounds of 20% feed to get 18.8% Feed.

You will need to mix 10 pounds of 25% feed with your 90 pounds of 20% feed to get 20.5% Feed.

You will need to mix 100 pounds of 20.5% feed with your 100 pounds of 18.8% feed to get 19.65% Feed.

Duck and Goose Pellet (16 %) 80 % per pound of feed
Calf Manna (25 %) 10 % per pound of feed
Purina Scratch (8 %) 10 % per pound of feed

You will need to mix 10 pounds of 8% feed with your 90 pounds of 16% feed to get 15.2% Feed.

You will need to mix 10 pounds of 25% feed with your 90 pounds of 16% feed to get 16.9% Feed.

You will need to mix 100 pounds of 15.2% feed with your 100 pounds of 16.9% feed to get 16.05% Feed.

I think that in very small doses the calf manna and the scratch grain will not cause that much of a problem. I am not giving them more than 10 % of their daily diet of each supplement. Loveourbirds I just want to say thank you for being a big help.