Our girls won't eat layer pellets and act like they are starving all the time

I see a lot of people talking about "fermented" feed but I don't understand the process really. Is it really healthy to feed my girls "rotten" food?


There's a big difference between rotten and fermented foods. Rotten foods are likely full of bad bacteria. Fermented foods are full of healthy bacteria. Rotten is more likely to happen with animal proteins. Grains and vegetables are naturally covered in beneficial yeasts and bacteria (probiotics). If you give them the proper environment, they will multiply those probiotics, aka fermentation.

Most fermentations related to veggies, seeds and grains results in them smelling and tasting sour. This sour is a sign of a fairly acidic environment, which is good, because such an environment is inhospitable to bad bacteria like E. coli or salmonella.

Fermentation has been used for thousands of years around the world to preserve the year's crop in the form of pickles, sauerkraut, beer/wine/spirits, cheese, yogurt, etc.

If you've ever made sourdough bread, it's the same process used to make fermented chicken feed, only that you don't cook it.
 
Hi and welcome

You hit the nail on the head - they are spoiled children who are throwing a tantrum and when they do you are giving in -- why would they stop doing what they are doing? It's time for a little tough love. You need to buckle down, cut the treats entirely and stick to your guns for a couple of days - when the choice is pellets or nothing, they WILL eat the pellets -- right now the choice is pellets or throw a fit until you get junk food (that is what the corn is), and of course they choose throw a fit and get junk food, because that works for them. When that tactic stops working for them they will stop using it. Reducing the corn did not help because they were still getting the corn, so they had something to hold out for and knew you would give in - it has to be cut, completely, for now.
Mine don't like layer pellets. Switch to layer crumble.
 
Okay..if the girls are hungry they will eat the pellets. Any bird gets more balanced nutrition when they eat a pelleted feed compared to crumble. I use pellets from day 1 and it's fine it that is what it's made for. Corn is an ingredient for feed so I would suggest using a scratch or flock block to supplement if you really want to give them something other than feed. Many feed companies do have good bacteria in the feed if you check the labels, even a couple store brand ones. Just remember that you can be compromising their health with a deficient diet.
 
Any bird gets more balanced nutrition when they eat a pelleted feed compared to crumble.

Why? In all the brands that I've seen that offer both a pellet and a crumble of the same feed, the two labels are exactly the same. Isn't crumble really just the very same pellets that are marketed as pellets, just "crumbled up" to be a different consistency?
 
Okay..if the girls are hungry they will eat the pellets. Any bird gets more balanced nutrition when they eat a pelleted feed compared to crumble. I use pellets from day 1 and it's fine it that is what it's made for. Corn is an ingredient for feed so I would suggest using a scratch or flock block to supplement if you really want to give them something other than feed. Many feed companies do have good bacteria in the feed if you check the labels, even a couple store brand ones. Just remember that you can be compromising their health with a deficient diet.
Quote: That's not 100% true, lets say for example you buy a bag of Pelleted Blue Seal Home Fresh Extra Egg it will have the exact nutritional value as there Crumble and there Mash of the same type (Blue Seal Home Fresh Extra Egg). The same holds true with any other company that offers a feed in Crumble, Mash or Pelleted form.
 
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My chickens free range on 3 acres of my 34 acre property their have decided that their main food source is bugs and wont eat the layer pellets any ideas on how to get them to eat the layer pellets
 
My flock is locked in their coop and run from dusk until later in the morning; 10am to 12, every day. They get up at dawn, eat and drink, and lay many eggs in the nest boxes, before going out. They come back during the rest of the day to eat, drink, and lay eggs, and eat big before roosting at night. They eat a lot more Flock Raiser in winter, so they are getting good stuff out there when there's no snow on the ground. Mary
 
Why? In all the brands that I've seen that offer both a pellet and a crumble of the same feed, the two labels are exactly the same. Isn't crumble really just the very same pellets that are marketed as pellets, just "crumbled up" to be a different consistency?
Exactly

My chickens free range on 3 acres of my 34 acre property their have decided that their main food source is bugs and wont eat the layer pellets any ideas on how to get them to eat the layer pellets
That's the benefit of free range. They are eating superior food while cutting back on your feed bill. Be thankful that you have the option of free ranging them, and enjoy your lower feed bil and superior eggsl!!!
 
But they act like they are starving every time i walk out the door they are rushing towards me for food. I Just worry about their well being they are more like pets than a food source. Of course none of them have a name except for the rooster LOL
 

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