Pros and Cons of Pelleted feeds?

[amartinlb]

What are the pros and cons of pelleted feeds? Are they better for laying hens or worse, or should I just stick with mashed or crumbled feeds?

-Anna

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Many people prefer them because there seems to be less feed wasted. When crumbles spill on the ground the chickens may not peck up every bit. When pellets spill on the ground the chickens are more likely to find most of it.

Some people say their chickens "refuse" to eat the pellets, and will grind them up into crumbles to satisfy their birds. Other folks think that's nonsense, that chickens won't refuse anything if they're really hungry. I recommend that if your chickens are unsure about eating the pellets you can try wetting some in a dish to tempt them. Then you can gradually reduce the amount of water until they're eating dry pellets.

Crumbles are just crumbled pellets.

 

[melissastraka]

I was using crumbles for my flock and going through a 50lb bag a week! thats $16 a bag. I then read about the pellets and switched them to that. I now go through a 50lb bag every 2.5 weeks and it is $11. It is just so much less wasteful. I dont know if they cant see it when the crumbles spill or what but they will go after the pellets around when they fall out of the container. I didnt have any problems switching them from crumbles to layer. They will eat anything if they get hungry enough...(I have never tested this since my birds are never out of food)

 

[NancyDz]

Yea I love the pellets and my birds had no problems with the transition. So much less waste, nutritionally there is no difference... just a personal preference I think.


Nancy

 

[gritsar]

I've used pellets since my chickens went on layer feed at 19 weeks old. I pay $11 a bag for it at the farmer's co-op. When you think about it, the actual cost is less because we belong to the co-op and get a dividend back every year.
I'm sorry, but I don't buy the idea that chickens won't eat pellets. They're not going to starve themselves to death. They'll eat pellets when they get hungry enough.

 

[JessaLynn]

I tried feeding my girls pellets once for a week and they went threw a bag faster then there crumbles.Not sure why but I went back to crumbles needles to say.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

That's unusual, most people have had the opposite experience. Perhaps there was some other reason the feed went so fast that time. You might want to try pellets again at least one more time, you might have better results.

 

[Wynette]

I've had excellent luck with the pellets.

The biggest reason NOT to use them is if you have a situation such as a pen that's not quite big enough for your flock. Reason being, it takes them longer to eat crumbles. They have to work a bit harder for them. With pellets, they fill up more quickly, and then are left full with nothing to do. Chickens scratch & search for food all day long, so actually, feeding pellets is sort of changing their natural routine. This has never been an issue for me, and I prefer the pellets due to them not being wasted like crumble.

 

[a2ms4chickens]

I use pellets because they seem to last longer. I can usually get about a week out of my 50# bag of pellets, vs. 4-5 days from crumbles.

The chickens seem to like the crumbles better, but they're not buying the feed, so they have no choice, lol.

Nutrena makes smaller pellets than our feed store brand, and it seems easier for the chickens to eat.

Good luck in making your decision!!

Angie

 

[gritsar]

Quote:

Mine are buying their own feed (thru egg sales) but until they learn to drive, pellets it is.