My chickens don't like corn!

[NuffSaid]

I make my own feed (oat groat, wheat berries, split peas, lentils, flax seed, sesame seed, etc) and whole corn is one of the ingredients. My girls are 5 months old and they consistently leave the corn in the feeder, picking out everything else. I realize during the summer it's just an inexpensive filler in the feed and it will be more important to their diet for keeping warm at night in the winter. However, I'd still like to be able to include this in their feed both for expense reasons and the fact that my recipe is balanced nutritionally counting the corn. I was wondering if anyone has tried to boil whole dry corn and then feed it to them?

I'm considering leaving it out of the feed, and then use the same amount that I'd normally put in a batch of feed to boil for them and feed it evenly dispersed throughout the same time period that I feed the rest of the batch of dried feed, in a separate bowl of course. I buy the ingredients in bulk bags, so I've got several pounds of whole corn that I don't want to go to waste. Additionally, it's a pain to have to empty out the corn; we use a homemade PVC pipe feeder and the feeding tray part gets full of corn and no more feed will flow down into the tray until we empty out the corn.

Another idea would be to skip the corn for a couple batches and then try to add a little back in and see if they begin to eat it better later.

Any thoughts/ideas/suggestions on how to get them to eat corn would be greatly appreciated!

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

My chickens (actually, all my animals) LOVE LOVE LOVE corn.

Try boiling it. They should go after it like hawks. I've never met a chicken who could resist wonderful corn.

 

[MeepBeep]

we use a homemade PVC pipe feeder and the feeding tray part gets full of corn and no more feed will flow down into the tray until we empty out the corn.

How long do you leave it like this? Like any animal they are going to seek out the favorites and as long as you keep giving the favorites to them they will continue to not eat the fill... If you leave that corn only in the feeder for a day or two, I'm willing to bet they might just start eating it...

 

[piratescove]

My girls don't like corn either.

 

[thehackleguy]

It could also be the weather, my birds leave some corn in the summer but it is the first thing they eat in the winter, hard to digest and lots of carbs = heat.

 

[NuffSaid]

@MeepBeep - I have done a day or two, and end up caving out of guilty feelings that I'm "starving" my girls! The way they attack the feeder when I pour feed in, you'd think they were starving! Even though they have plenty of grass, worms, etc in their mobile tractor run space... on top of the daily treats that get tossed in to them. They are far from starving, I know.

@piratescove - It's good to know mine aren't the ONLY ones LOL.

They just finished up a batch and we mixed up a new one last night, sans the corn. I'll throw a couple cups in the crock pot over night and try to feed it to them separately, see how they feel about it cooked. Living in the south with regular rain and super high humidity, I can't leave anything in the feeder too long or it begins to sprout or mold. Sprouting wouldn't be so bad except for the fact that it clogs up the feeder when it starts growing, hence the need to empty out what they don't eat on a regular basis.

Thanks for all the input!

 

[RonP]

Read about fermenting your feed.

Whole corn may be your problem, mine love the cracked corn in their scratch.

 

[Phoenix Collins]

I make my own feed (oat groat, wheat berries, split peas, lentils, flax seed, sesame seed, etc) and whole corn is one of the ingredients. My girls are 5 months old and they consistently leave the corn in the feeder, picking out everything else. I realize during the summer it's just an inexpensive filler in the feed and it will be more important to their diet for keeping warm at night in the winter. However, I'd still like to be able to include this in their feed both for expense reasons and the fact that my recipe is balanced nutritionally counting the corn. I was wondering if anyone has tried to boil whole dry corn and then feed it to them?

I'm considering leaving it out of the feed, and then use the same amount that I'd normally put in a batch of feed to boil for them and feed it evenly dispersed throughout the same time period that I feed the rest of the batch of dried feed, in a separate bowl of course. I buy the ingredients in bulk bags, so I've got several pounds of whole corn that I don't want to go to waste. Additionally, it's a pain to have to empty out the corn; we use a homemade PVC pipe feeder and the feeding tray part gets full of corn and no more feed will flow down into the tray until we empty out the corn.

Another idea would be to skip the corn for a couple batches and then try to add a little back in and see if they begin to eat it better later.

Any thoughts/ideas/suggestions on how to get them to eat corn would be greatly appreciated!

My chickens don't like corn either. Unless it s fresh corn (like the stuff that is in the grocery store) or frozen and canned corn. It could be just that it's more unappetizing dry. You could try soaking it through boiling or with a bowl of water overnight. Then give them some in a separate bowl so it doesn't cause mold to your regular feed. Then store the rest in your fridge. My birdies are indoor birdies so I don't worry about corn. I just give them fresh stuff as a treat.

 

[nuthatched]

My chickens don't like corn either. Unless it s fresh corn (like the stuff that is in the grocery store) or frozen and canned corn. It could be just that it's more unappetizing dry. You could try soaking it through boiling or with a bowl of water overnight. Then give them some in a separate bowl so it doesn't cause mold to your regular feed. Then store the rest in your fridge. My birdies are indoor birdies so I don't worry about corn. I just give them fresh stuff as a treat.

This thread is 8 years old, my friend.

 

[Phoenix Collins]

This thread is 8 years old, my friend.

Ha! Didn't read that.