Pellets turning to powder?!

[hokankai]

So I got some Organic Developer feed from a feed store and it seems like it is disintegrating into powder. This is really frustrating because the chickens won't EAT powder...and it's clogging up the PVC feeder. Is this a normal thing for pellet feed? I'd love the pellets if this wasn't happening because it feels like they turn to powder just by touching them.

 

[ND]

It could be just the brand you bought, or maybe it had bugs/moths in it that did it. (see any of it seem like it was coated in a webbing? I can't buy ANY feed at a particular feed store because their storage area is apparently infested with something that gets into the bags. Can't really see whatever is it...but it pulverizes the feed, no matter what type of feed it is, or what animal it's meant for. The bags often have just a hint of some fine webbing inside...when freshly opened.)

Not all pellets crumble. I have some pellets from my coop that don't crumble at all... so it COULD be just that brand. For instance, I hate Purina's Flock Raiser because the crumbles have been more mash/dust like in every bag I've ever gotten. I'm using ADM's crumbles, and they're firm and don't turn to dust at all. The Flock raiser was so darn dusty! My first experience with crumbles was the Flock Raiser, so I just about assumed that's what all crumbles would look like. Nope, not at all! Same with the pellets.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Could it be you've got some little bitty critters in there that are actually eating it and the dust you see is their poo? Happens. Toss some food grade DE in with your feed to keep the little bugs from reducing it to dust

 

[hokankai]

I'm hoping it's not bugs/critters (ew) and that it's the brand or even the organic aspect of it. What really annoys me is that I didn't even WANT this brand...but that's what they stuck in the car and I didn't realize it until I got home. It's been a couple of weeks now so I don't think I'll be returning it...but I'm definitely not going back to this formula.

I didn't notice any webbing, all's I know is that when I use a scoop to get the feed out it ends up pulverizing a lot of the food.

So for the powder that goes uneaten, how do I get it out of the PVC feeder? Right now it's an angled PVC pipe with an endcap on each end...should I just take the endcap off and try to get the dust out? I'm considering putting some kind of filter on the end to allow the dust to flow out while keeping the pellets inside. Any ideas on what material to use?

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

The powder can be mixed up with some warm water and other treat stuff to make a mash for cold mornings. I would expect they will love it and saves wasting it.