Nutrition especially for your Peas

[frenchblackcopper]

Kathy, I was editing my post when you made the above post,,try the link and click on the downloadable pdf file at the very top of the page

 

[frenchblackcopper]

Anyone here wanting to try a more peafowl specific breeding diet that is willing to keep records with their findings-hatchrate results ,,,,now is the time to consider it and start feeding it.Kathy,Arbor,AugeredIN,,I know your all wanting to at least try this on some birds. I pointed out earlier this ration is very comparable in costs of commercial bagged feed,made more for chickens with less protein.If your not able to go to a feed mill and have a custom mix made for you,I can still give you alternatives of specific "seeds" to be included in this diet. If you grow your own garden there is specific vegetables very,very beneficial to peafowl you can plant and feed during the breeding-egg laying season.50% hatchrates are NOT ACCEPTABLE in todays economy,especially when this species only lays eggs 3-4 months a year and one egg every other day. I'm accurately estimating one peacock or peahen eats roughly a little over 225 pounds of feed each year. If u bought commercial poultry feed in 50lb bags at $11-$15 per bag,thats $67.50 worth of feed on the high side,not counting anything else such as pen building,housing,ect.And that feed does not include specific needs of breeding birds.

 

[frenchblackcopper]

This news story today was on AOL,and if some here remember me asking awhile back,if they knew where I could find any de-hulled hempseeds,,,this is why,,the protein levels is huge,along with both Omega3 and Omega6,,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rache...id7|htmlws-main-bb|dl10|sec1_lnk3&pLid=426591

 

[frenchblackcopper]

Tomorrow we will be making the first new batch of feed for 2014 but only 500 pounds to make sure they like it. We will be adding the CLE which is a super sticky additive. I first plan to slightly crack the corn and sunflower seeds, then add the CLE to get a coating on these larger pieces, then add the fish meal, alfalfa meal,and a few other ingredients that are very fine in particle size. My ultimate goal is when it's feeding time NOT to see any small particles left at the bottom of the feed bowl. If it was just 7.5% protein corn left, no biggy but when it's the 44% soybean protein being left behind it's not getting into the peas, and it's money I'm wasting. Gotta outsmart those peas somehow

 

[frenchblackcopper]

After many delays today we finally made the trip to the feed mill,and had a small 500lb batch of feed made. Ingredients were 50lbs of soybean meal(48%),50lbs of fish meal(60%),50lbs of red millet(11%),50lbs of blackoil sunflower seeds(15%) 312lbs of corn(7.5%),and 1.5lbs of trace minerals,,and we tried adding 35lbs(5gallons) of whats called CLE which is a sticky vegetable based oil,standing for Concentrated Liquid Energy.Plus the extra ingredient to improve everything related to peas. This ration ended up close to 18%total protein. We did add some alfalfa meal but only about 15lbs this time.We first cracked the corn and BOSS,,then added the CLE hoping it would make the fish meal,soyben meal,and alfalfa meal adhere to these larger pieces of grain that the peas will head for first.It did NOT work like I had hoped it would.All the fines in the feed are "damp" on feel and looks,I was hoping it would help making larger pieces in the ration act as carriers for the much more needed,smaller particles that has the proteins and much needed trace minerals.
I'm very tempted at this point to build my own pelletizer,capable of taking a ration that has been ground fine,and making it into pellets.There wouldn't be any "picking" over the cracked corn,or cracked sunflower seeds and red millet and leaving the fines behind..This will be the first time my birds will taste fish meal.It is considerably a higher cost for protein enrichment but if they don;t like soybean meal,I'll gladly make all feed with fish meal.It is 60% protein vs.48% protein found in soybean meal.
My poultry guru in Ohio is checking now what I'm feeding to see if I need to add other essentials but what he has seen so far he's been impressed with.The past 2 years when feeding this to my two breeding pens was easier than now trying to get every bird on the place to get used to it.I still think a pellet will be the only logical way to get every ounce of value-cost of this feed into the peafowl. And I'm very capable of building my own pelletizer for less than half the selling prices listed for junk being made in China and sold here now.$1500-and up,less shipping.

 

[casportpony]

What is the "extra" ingredient?

-Kathy

 

[frenchblackcopper]

Sassafras tea

 

[AugeredIn]

Really? I thought the problems with animal testing is why they eliminated its use in root beer?

 

[Yoda]

The oil doesn't make your bird's poop runny? I rescued the 2 horses and I had to add oil to their food to fatten them up. What is the fat content of your mixture? Do you have the whole analysis of your feed? I would like to see it if you don't mind I don't have a mill near me at all that I know of to get mixed feed
To high of protien can lead to infertile eggs too! and if you can let your birds get the calcium from the oyster shells cause they do not need a high percent of calcium only like 1-2% cause when you have a high amount in your feed remember the males are eating the feed too and do not really need the higher calcium, it can cause kidney damage.

 

[frenchblackcopper]

The sassafras tea was a joke,sorry. Yoda, long time no see or type, hows things? When I get home tonight I will pm you what we used in this batch. the CLE is fat rich oil. Last night was the first time my adults was offered this feed with fish meal and CLE,,my two test pens has been on this ration for the most part already, but the other adults are doing a slow adjust this winter before breeding season and the protein levels will be over and around 22-24% My 2012 and 2013 hatched peas has been eating this CLE enriched feed for 2 days now and no noticeable loose stools in them. This batch of feed was about 17.9% protein from my calculations. I may keep it at this level until mid March then boost up to over 20%