Official BYC Poll: How Do You Keep Your Feed Costs Low?

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I think you will get more answers if you post this question in a new thread.

The answer will vary by state, as well.

 

[jonalisa]

Keeping chickens is a wonderful hobby, but the price of their companionship and fresh eggs is the feed bill, which can get scary when you keep a large number of birds. In order to make chicken keeping more economical, or perhaps even profitable, How Do You Keep Your Feed Costs Low?

Feel free to choose multiple answers and please elaborate in the comment section if you choose "Other".

View attachment 2570630

For more money-saving tips visit the Feeding & Watering Your Flock forum sections.

Further Reading:

• Fermenting Chicken Feed: A Straightforward Method
• Creating Your Own Fodder System
• The Scrap Bucket - a MUST for every chicken keeper

(Check out more exciting Official BYC Polls HERE!)

I don't even really think about food costs - any more than I consider my dog food costs.

 

[Lemon-Drop]

I know this is a bit older... but I selected “keep my flock size small” originally.

Originally I had 7 hens. Now that’s increased to 16. So I’m not sure that totally counts as a small flock.

I then chose “other”

Because, well, I don’t really keep their feed prices low. I spend on feed approximately 600 dollars a year.

Though now I’ve decided I might start selling their eggs at 5$ a dozen and that should start mostly paying for feed.

 

[BoogieWight]

We are completely free range so that helps a whole lot with feed cost. Outside of that we use about 60oz each of gamebird crumble, scratch, whole corn, and sunflower seeds. The crumble gets split and placed on opposite sides of the yard, and everything else is mixed and put in solar powered deer feeder (because I am lazy).
Water comes from roof runoff and a/c drainage that gravity feeds to rubber troughs filled with goldfish throughout the property (again due to laziness). They also eat the leftovers from rabbit pellets, since the rabbits apparently can't be bothered unless its a whole pellet.
I do overseed a lot of my property with clovers, turnips, beets, radish, winter wheat, and mustards at the end of every summer. Overseeding cost about as much as our feed bill for the entire year. They get scraps that don't go in the worm bins or to the pups. When I feel that it is too cold I do throw whole corn out at the end of the day.
That is all it takes to feed 100+ free range chickens and 15+ free range rabbits (happy accident).

 

[BoogieWight]

One problem I do have which the chickens do not help with are fire ants. I would poison the nests some of them are HUGE and it'd take a few applications, and they'd bust up in to smaller nests and migrate etc, so what I do now is I get a shovel, scoop up one nest and plop it onto another nest. They think they are invading and kill each other off then leaving a lot less ant mess for me to have to deal with.

Aaron

I have enjoyed doing fire ants like that since I was a little kid.. That or sprinkle some tater chips between to large beds and check out the mass graves they put out the next day. As much problems as they can cause, you have to admit they are amazing creatures.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

I have 15 hens and I pay $42 for 20% layer pellets about every 5 or 6 weeks. I could get cheaper feed I guess but $7-$8 a week does not seem excessive to me.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

rubber troughs filled with goldfish

Do the hens eat the fish? Why are the fish in the troughs?

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

wild birds excitedly waiting for me

I would reconsider your generosity to the wild birds. Biosecurity....

 

[SueT]

I would reconsider your generosity to the wild birds. Biosecurity....

In the 6 yrs I’ve had chickens, both free range and confined to a large run, there have been wild birds in and around and no issues w the flock, even in the bird flu years. We’ve never even seen coccidiosis. I am not paranoid about the wild ones, and there is little I could do if I was. They are definitely more permanent than we are. If it were to become unsafe to keep chickens, then I guess I wouldn’t keep them anymore.

 

[BoogieWight]

Do the hens eat the fish? Why are the fish in the troughs?

They keep the water cleaner and mosquito free. Through playing around and experimenting this is what I have found they like to eat: betta fish, algae suckers, cory cats, shrimps, crawfish (if you can even keep them in), and any dead fish. For some reason they just don't eat the goldfish, and I don't know why. The goldfish will even come up to their beaks to eat leftovers that fall in the water. Small gamefish will also do fine, but they don't survive as well and are scared to death of everything.