ORGANIC feed, scratch, and whatever else may apply!

[gjoyner]

I am going to eat their eggs, so can I just go straight to the layer feed? Is that what they eat forever? Also...their starter wasnt medicated....does that matter?
thanks!

 

[lisahaschickens]

medicated starter is a personal choice. Lots of us don't use it, including me.

Birds shouldn't eat layer feed until they are laying. Until then, they need the extra protein for growth and the extra calcium in the layer feed can be harmful to them. You need to get them on a feed called, "broiler" or "grower" or "developer" until you get the first egg.

If you are looking for organic feed, you should find a supplier or local mill and go with their suggestions. They are all generally very helpful.

 

[gjoyner]

I am having such a hard time finding organic feed in the denver co area. Could i keep feeding them starter until they lay?

 

[lisahaschickens]

it is hard. I would really suggest Countryside Naturals if you can't find anything locally. Keep looking, though, because Colorado is grain-growing country and ranch land. I bet there's something out there if you keep looking. Have you looked around in Boulder? They are very environmentally aware and have local, organic restaurants and farms (I lived in Westminster, CO last year).

I don't think starter will hurt them if they stay on it, but it's better to find something to fit your needs. How many birds do you have?

 

[gjoyner]

I have two right now. A guy at a store told me to keep them on the starter for a few more weeks beacuse they are only about a month or so old. their heads are bit fuzzy yet! And he said not to put htem on broiler because thats for if you are going to eat them. I will be eating their eggs. Im sooo confused now....

 

[TexGardenGirl]

I'm looking for a feed that has no wheat, barley, rye, or soy, and no GMO corn. Organic would be an added bonus but not absolutely necessary. Similar reason to the OP - I have celiac disease and can't eat even tiny amounts of wheat, rye, or barley, and even though I'm not eating this feed, I always get the dust on my clothes & stuff and I'm sure I wind up ingesting some (sometimes I have a day when I feel icky the way I used before the diet, and I can only trace it to the feed). I just think soy is not good for anyone as a primary ingredient in the diet, and the GMO thing is a matter of principle.
I think I'm going to have to get something custom-milled. All other grains are fine, even corn is fine if non-GMO, and other things like oats, sorghum, millet, are pretty common. I guess I'd have to go with peas or alfalfa and/or fish meal for protein.
So how does one go about finding a local mill? I've tried googling and not found much more than just feed stores, and the ones I've visited are not that much better than TSC, maybe a little wider selection of feed but not individual ingredients. If anyone knows of something close to the Dallas area I'd love to hear about it. Thanks!

 

[jamieneenah]

Quote:
I feed the birds wheat and do not have any problems with the dust from it making me ill the way eating wheat (gluten) does. It is whole wheat, so it isn't dusty the way flour is.
I don't mind giving the birds gluten containing grains, and I don't feel the wheat is bothering me. However, I too would like to get them on a better quality protein source (i.e. less soy), I've been looking for a local source for peas, fish meal, etc, but so far have not been successful in finding anything.
You can mail order organic feed or organic fish meal, but it is very $$$. With the costs I have seen for having organic feed shipped, it would have cost me atleast $2,000 more for my feed last month based on the prices I've seen on mcmurry,, vs conventional feed. (meaning feed I mix myself based on whole grains and SBM).

jamie

 

[Nana2KJS]

Ronda at Greener Pastures Farm has put together some great information about backyard flocks and mixing your own feed. It is definitely not the most cost efficient, but for just a few birds, neither is shipping in huge bags of feed.

http://www.greenerpasturesfarm.com/Chickens.html

This link goes straight to the feed page:
http://www.greenerpasturesfarm.com/ChickenFeedRecipe.html

I can get almost all the ingredients at Whole Foods, and I order the kamut and kelp from Azure Standard.

 

[TexGardenGirl]

Quote:
Hey, thanks, that's reassuring. Maybe I'm getting sick from the pellet feed, not the scratch. (Or maybe I'm getting sick from something completely different.) It does make sense that whole grains wouldn't give off dust the way cracked or ground ones do. I guess all the dust in the scratch is from the cracked corn portion... (BTW, my husband refers to scratch as 'crack' due to how much they love it. haha)

 

[jamieneenah]

Quote:
Hey, thanks, that's reassuring. Maybe I'm getting sick from the pellet feed, not the scratch. (Or maybe I'm getting sick from something completely different.) It does make sense that whole grains wouldn't give off dust the way cracked or ground ones do. I guess all the dust in the scratch is from the cracked corn portion... (BTW, my husband refers to scratch as 'crack' due to how much they love it. haha)

Hi,
I pulled out a handful of whole wheat again tonight to look at it for dust / powder and it was really very clean. It looks to me like all the whole grains I am buying are pretty good and clean. The powdery mess is with the stuffed that is milled (cracked ground rolled etc).
Ive even fed whole soy, figuring it is better than meal, but they dont care for it much.
I'd make sure what your eating directly is fully wheat free - feel free to message me privatly if you have human diet / gluten free questions.
Jamie