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MotorcycleChick said:
Emorems0, ferment their feed.
Click to expand...

Get me started... small scale. I make sourdough bread and do ferments for our family so I'm familiar with the process, but all the instructions I've seen for chickens are so long winded I get overwhelmed by the idea of it.

I have a couple 1 gallon buckets I can use. I'm feeding turkeys and meat chickens - the pasty butt chicks are Delaware and Dark Cornish. their feed is game starter crumbles from Agway (only higher protein feed I could find). So... I put their feed into a bucket, I cover with water and a splash of apple cider vinegar, I wait a couple days (2 days?) stirring once or twice a day. On day 2 (or when it bubbles) it's ready to feed? From there, I start a new bucket or can I just add more feed and water to the original bucket as I take some out each day?

I need to feed fermented feed in some kind of bowl or trough, right? It won't work in a gravity feeder. I actually bought a length of gutter and two end caps to make a trough for the chicken tractor when they are older, I should be able to cut that down to size and start using that right away as long as they can reach it (it's pretty tall).

The crumbles will turn into mush, right? Are there any general guidelines on how much to feed, or just whatever they can finish in an hour or so and then I take it out. I guess it's better to feed twice a day with fermented feed instead of just filling up their gravity feeder each morning.
 
emorems0 said:
Get me started... small scale. I make sourdough bread and do ferments for our family so I'm familiar with the process, but all the instructions I've seen for chickens are so long winded I get overwhelmed by the idea of it.

I have a couple 1 gallon buckets I can use. I'm feeding turkeys and meat chickens - the pasty butt chicks are Delaware and Dark Cornish. their feed is game starter crumbles from Agway (only higher protein feed I could find).  So... I put their feed into a bucket, I cover with water and a splash of apple cider vinegar, I wait a couple days (2 days?) stirring once or twice a day. On day 2 (or when it bubbles) it's ready to feed? From there, I start a new bucket or can I just add more feed and water to the original bucket as I take some out each day?

I need to feed fermented feed in some kind of bowl or trough, right? It won't work in a gravity feeder. I actually bought a length of gutter and two end caps to make a trough for the chicken tractor when they are older, I should be able to cut that down to size and start using that right away as long as they can reach it (it's pretty tall).

The crumbles will turn into mush, right? Are there any general guidelines on how much to feed, or just whatever they can finish in an hour or so and then I take it out. I guess it's better to feed twice a day with fermented feed instead of just filling up their gravity feeder each morning.
Click to expand...

You pretty much have it down.
Don't use gravity feeder, bowl works well, or trough.
Just add more feed and water every day to existing bucket and stir.
Some of us only use enough water to make it more like a loaf. No need to strain.

Two days is good to start, then just use the same bucket with what is left in it as a starter.

The vinegar must be apple cider vinegar with mother. Yeast works, too.

Yes, it will be mush.
 
You need to be careful when using a trough style feeder with meaties...they tend to eat and sleep in the same spot..they will pile into an empty feeder and sleep when young..those on the bottom of the pile do not do well..

My opinion is to ditch the high protein feed and the pasty butt will stop. But I am in the minority in my thinking on that......the healthiest birds I ever have, no matter what they are, is when they are broody raised, they eat what everyone else is eating in that case. And only get extra protein in the treats they are given.

if you are worried about cocci you could just add oregano and cinnamon to the feed. All my meaties start on this instead of medicated feed.
 
Every time I think I can get started on the new coop it rains or snows. Hard to dig the post holes in liquid dirt.
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At least the Woodcock are migrating through and the song birds are back.
 
LadyBehir said:
Still no LMP?
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MotorcycleChick said:
She should be popping in soon.
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... you guys don't know how good it feels to look on here and see that others are asking about you....thank you so much..
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it has been awhile...life does a real job of it some times....

I hope everyone has made it through the difficult winter..nice to know we are just a short time away from very nice weather again.

I am having an issue with one of my wyandottes...i believe she has something in her airway...i don't think it is the esophagus..i am at a loss as to what to do...i feel a small "item" in the tube, but cannot dislodge it..i am also wondering if i do dislodge it would it do more harm than good if it does happen to be in her windpipe.
She is breathing..obviously, but strained , she coughs a lot..it sounds awful..

I have tried to put "lubricant" in her esophagus...thinking if it is there..that would help it to move..but no luck so far...

I just typed a novel there, sorry, but if anyone has anything in mind that might help..even if it a long shot..i am up for anything..because I cannot continue to keep her in this state...she is the most beautiful of my BLRW..so very upsetting...i was hoping to breed her this year....she deserves to be out of this difficulty...so any help would so very much appreciated. thank you all..and hope everyone is very well!
 

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