No feed when free ranging?

[FenrisMau]

We realize that we are spending quite a bit on our flock of 11. $250/mo for organic waterfowl feed. 2 geese and the rest are ducks... when we let them out all day, do they need the feed, or is the grass and bugs sufficient for them until they get penned up at night with their feed?

 

[FrostRanger]

They should always have access to feed.

That said, 250 bucks is a huge amount to spend on feed for just 11 birds, is something perhaps getting into the feed? Is it getting wasted a lot?

 

[FenrisMau]

They should always have access to feed.

That said, 250 bucks is a huge amount to spend on feed for just 11 birds, is something perhaps getting into the feed? Is it getting wasted a lot?

Okay, thanks for your response. The feed itself does turn into dust at the bottom, which they pretty much refuse to eat, understandably.

I've been buying New Country Organics. It's $1lb plus shipping. Shipping is hefty. Not opposed to buying another brand, but can't find any soy-free, organic non gmo waterfowl feed anywhere else any cheaper.

 

[FrostRanger]

Okay, thanks for your response. The feed itself does turn into dust at the bottom, which they pretty much refuse to eat, understandably.

I've been buying New Country Organics. It's $1lb plus shipping. Shipping is hefty. Not opposed to buying another brand, but can't find any soy-free, organic non gmo waterfowl feed anywhere else any cheaper.

I would at least reconsider the no soy requirement, soy is perfectly safe in poultry feed and it's an important source of several nutrients. Of course that's not to say that companies can't make a good poultry feed without soy but unless there are allergies involved there's no reason to avoid it. Organic feeds also tend to have the absolute bare minimum (or sometimes not even that) of certain nutrients such as lysine and methionine so while it comes to personal preference whether you feed organic or not (I don't for that reason) it's something you want to make sure to watch out for

That said, I would still look into seeing if something is getting into the feed or if it's being wasted a lot 'cause even considering you buy expensive feed you still shouldn't be going through 250 bucks worth of feed a month with just 11 birds

 

[Goosebaby]

My flock of 11 geese and 7 ducks go through a 50 lb bag of feed per week, I feed them purina flock raiser. They’ll eat more in the winter, about a bag and a half per week at most.
I would suggest looking for a cheaper feed.

Geese can subsist on forage for awhile, but they’re much larger birds than their wild ancestors and so have a higher nutritional demand. When molting, laying, or stressed they also require more nutrition.

How are you feeding your birds also? Is their feed available at all times or do you feed them at specific times?

With mine I feed them once a day, twice a day in winter. The rest of the day they’re expected to forage. Some of my more finicky birds will waste their food if it’s always available whereas other won’t bother foraging if their feed is available 24/7.

 

[Anon112]

With the stuff that turns to "dust" (know exactly what you're talking about). You can scoop it out and mix it with water (and maybe a few berries) to make a yummy mash. That way it doesn't go to waste.

I was going through so much chicken feed for a while because I had a rat problem. Now that I have treadle feeders, I'm using so much less.

 

[FenrisMau]

My flock of 11 geese and 7 ducks go through a 50 lb bag of feed per week, I feed them purina flock raiser. They’ll eat more in the winter, about a bag and a half per week at most.
I would suggest looking for a cheaper feed.

Geese can subsist on forage for awhile, but they’re much larger birds than their wild ancestors and so have a higher nutritional demand. When molting, laying, or stressed they also require more nutrition.

How are you feeding your birds also? Is their feed available at all times or do you feed them at specific times?

With mine I feed them once a day, twice a day in winter. The rest of the day they’re expected to forage. Some of my more finicky birds will waste their food if it’s always available whereas other won’t bother foraging if their feed is available 24/7.

Good to know! I keep feed available to them at all times. Maybe I should be feeding them less. How much should i give them each day in summertime? For 9 ducks and 2 geese

 

[FenrisMau]

With the stuff that turns to "dust" (know exactly what you're talking about). You can scoop it out and mix it with water (and maybe a few berries) to make a yummy mash. That way it doesn't go to waste.

I was going through so much chicken feed for a while because I had a rat problem. Now that I have treadle feeders, I'm using so much less.

Will try this thank you!

 

[FenrisMau]

I would at least reconsider the no soy requirement, soy is perfectly safe in poultry feed and it's an important source of several nutrients. Of course that's not to say that companies can't make a good poultry feed without soy but unless there are allergies involved there's no reason to avoid it. Organic feeds also tend to have the absolute bare minimum (or sometimes not even that) of certain nutrients such as lysine and methionine so while it comes to personal preference whether you feed organic or not (I don't for that reason) it's something you want to make sure to watch out for

That said, I would still look into seeing if something is getting into the feed or if it's being wasted a lot 'cause even considering you buy expensive feed you still shouldn't be going through 250 bucks worth of feed a month with just 11 birds

Thanks for your response! We choose not to give them soy because we dont want to consume soy through the eggs. As far as organic goes, we choose not to consume pesticides.

We might just be feeding them too much and need to put them on a specific feeding schedule instead of access at all times.

 

[SnackMeat]

You might look into fermenting the pellets. It can cut down on food waste because they can't fling it everywhere. Supposedly it also makes the nutrients more bio available too, from being partially broken down. It's very easy to do. They may not like it at first but you can always put some dry food on top, or feed them the wet stuff at night when they are tired and ready for bedtime-- if they're hungry, they'll eat it.

If you are particularly worried about it, and your birds are at least moderately handleable, you can weigh them on a scale to see if they are losing weight