Pigeon Feed For Chickens

[suki'smom]

I'm curious if anyone uses this? I'm talking of course about the grain mix not the complete feed. It has all sorts of grains and seeds in it and you can get it without corn (my pigeons hated the corn and would never eat it anyway). I'm curious if there would be any reason not to feed it? I can't remember everything it has in it but its quite the variety, maybe ten or so grains and seeds, and I think it would be good for my chickens, better than scratch anyway and if I remember right I'm sure my old flock would eat any feed that my pigeons would flick out of their coop without a problem.

Way off topic but I also heard that feeding fruits will make your chickens stop laying. Is there any truth to this? My last flock once got into my tomatoes and they did indeed stop laying for a week or so. Maybe this was due to something else?

 

[suki'smom]

Anybody?

 

[AccentOnHakes]

I'd think that it'd be best as a treat rather than a feed, but with variety like that and without corn, it's almost doubtless better for them than scratch.

The fruit thing, I've heard, is a myth that started due to the fact that fruits like apples ripen during fall, when chickens are going through molt and stop laying anyways.

 

[Gotta Love the Drake]

I've always fed my chickens fruit or whatever else extra I have, no problems in terms of laying, and they like it. As long as they have access to whatever is your standard feed, layer pellets or whatever, it should be fine. I guess if they ONLY had fruit and vegetables, after a while it probably wouldn't be enough protein to support laying.

 

[Gotta Love the Drake]

A diet really high in fruit might require calcium supplementation in the form of oyster shell. Most fruit is pretty low in calcium. I seem to recall reading that blackberries are the only fruit that are relatively high in calcium, something like 46 mg per 1 cup serving.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Most anything is "better than scratch" which is just random whole grains.

Pigeon feeds are much higher in protein than layer feed, but the last bag I bought was about $25/ 50lbs

 

[suki'smom]

Thanks everyone

 

[sourland]

I'm with Bear Foot Farms-- although pigeon grains would be fine for chickens - the cost is excessive. (So says Sourland who is feeding 100+ pigeons.

)

 

[suki'smom]

I'm with Bear Foot Farms-- although pigeon grains would be fine for chickens - the cost is excessive. (So says Sourland who is feeding 100+ pigeons. ?)

LOL yea I suppose. Might be cheaper to but the grains separately and mix them myself.​

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

LOL yea I suppose. Might be cheaper to but the grains separately and mix them myself.

I won't be much cheaper since the costly ingredients are the peas.

A 50 lb bag of Austrian Winter Peas is about $40

The only "cheap " way of feeding it would be to grow your own​