My babies won't eat fermented feed

[ccnycnc]

My babies won't eat the chick starter I just finished fermenting. Should I wait or switch back to dry? They're 1 week old and have been on whole grain starter since birth. Thanks!!

 

[azygous]

I have seven-week old baby chicks right now. It took them until around age three weeks to suddenly jump on the FF.

Two things hinder new babies from eating the FF. One is that they are so tiny, being offered a huge glob of wet feed is overwhelming to them. Although my last years sex-links dove right in to their FF on the very first day, quite literally. Up to their little bony knees.

The other reason it's hard to get them started at a young age on FF is because, by instinct, they are more adept at finding and eating tiny morsels of food off the ground. FF is not in their DNA.

I start baby chicks off by sprinkling dry feed on the floor. They have no problem finding it and knowing it's food. Their appetites are as tiny as they are in the first week, so they aren't going to be strongly driven by hunger.

By week two, they are well into their rapid growth. This stimulates their hunger, and they will be more receptive to trying new foods. I raise my chicks in proximity to the adult chickens, and by age two or three weeks, they are mingling with the flock, observing what the big chickens are eating, and they are eager to emulate them by eating the FF. At that point, I stop giving them dry feed and switch them to FF all the time. Once they start eating it, they love it.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have seven-week old baby chicks right now. It took them until around age three weeks to suddenly jump on the FF.

By week two, they are well into their rapid growth. This stimulates their hunger, and they will be more receptive to trying new foods. I raise my chicks in proximity to the adult chickens, and by age two or three weeks, they are mingling with the flock, observing what the big chickens are eating, and they are eager to emulate them by eating the FF. At that point, I stop giving them dry feed and switch them to FF all the time. Once they start eating it, they love it.

x2. I find it difficult to get very young chicks to try FF, so I've stopped offering it to them. As I also do early integration with chicks, I find it easiest to let the chicks copy the hens' behavior so when they start showing interest in the hens' FF (which is grower), I start offering fermented starter to the entire flock.

 

[ccnycnc]

So great! I'm super encouraged, thanks a million!!!

 

[Eri_Oak]

My babies won't eat the chick starter I just finished fermenting. Should I wait or switch back to dry? They're 1 week old and have been on whole grain starter since birth. Thanks!!

I also have week-old baby chicks! This is my first flock, so I can only speak to my experience with these little ones so far.

I did try to feed them fermented whole grain starter beginning on day one, but they HATED it. Would recoil from it and wipe their little beaks furiously after trying it. I tried different things to tempt them - yogurt, scrambled egg, different serving dishes, different places in the brooder. No dice.

They do love their DRY whole grain chick feed, though. So I thought maybe if I took a little of the fermented feed, and mixed in enough dry feed so that it was crumbly *maybe, just maybe* they would like it.

And it worked! They've been eating a small bowl of it for the last two days. They were five days old when I finally had success. But again, I think it's because I've mixed enough of the dry food into it so that it's no longer too wet and sticky, as someone else mentioned.

Keep trying, and hopefully you'll have some luck soon! PS - I've been keeping my ferment in the fridge to slow the fermentation so I don't have to waste it and that's worked great =)

 

[thepick4uchicks]

My babies won't eat the chick starter I just finished fermenting. Should I wait or switch back to dry? They're 1 week old and have been on whole grain starter since birth. Thanks!!

I bet in the colder weather when the temps are not so tremendously hot in most parts of the world that warm fermented feed will be very welcomed to them in their daily diet.

 

[JaeG]

I've given ours fermented right from the start. They are 2 and a half weeks old now. I started out with a stiffer mix but found a few of them needed dried on fermented feed soaked off their little claws. So now I keep it sloppy.

They go absolutely bonkers for it. It's hilarious! They don't care if I reach in from the top of the brooder (it has a side door too) because it usually means a fresh dish of fermented feed. They are jumping up to meet me and I get mobbed. There are usually at least 2 chicks in the bowl before I've even set it down.

Have you tried clucking like a broody calling her chicks to eat and tapping the food? Ours are very reactive to that and will try whatever we "Tuk, tuk" about.

They have dried food available all the time too but it certainly does not get the same reaction as the fermented feed does.

 

[thepick4uchicks]

I've given ours fermented right from the start. They are 2 and a half weeks old now. I started out with a stiffer mix but found a few of them needed dried on fermented feed soaked off their little claws. So now I keep it sloppy.

They go absolutely bonkers for it. It's hilarious! They don't care if I reach in from the top of the brooder (it has a side door too) because it usually means a fresh dish of fermented feed. They are jumping up to meet me and I get mobbed. There are usually at least 2 chicks in the bowl before I've even set it down.

Have you tried clucking like a broody calling her chicks to eat and tapping the food? Ours are very reactive to that and will try whatever we "Tuk, tuk" about.

They have dried food available all the time too but it certainly does not get the same reaction as the fermented feed does.

Just curious. Why do you choose to feed fermented feed to your flock? And especially right away to your babies?

 

[JaeG]

Just curious. Why do you choose to feed fermented feed to your flock? And especially right away to your babies?

They waste less, they eat less and they love it. The broiler industry has taken a closer look at using fermented feeds in recent years and studies suggest it improves the birds health and growth performance.

 

[azygous]

Just curious. Why do you choose to feed fermented feed to your flock? And especially right away to your babies?

Fermented feed has natural probiotics and the fermentation process releases additional nutrients in the feed. I've been feeding it for around nine years. I can see the long term effects in health and long egg laying years. I have eight-year olds laying regularly.

Someone mentioned warming the feed for cold mornings. I have resisted doing that, not wanting to risk destroying the probiotics and nutrients. Gentle heating on a stove top probably would be safe enough if you don't let it get too hot.