⠀ Protein

[Ol Grey Mare]

I've seen that so many times. People are told to add cat food for protein. I look at cat food labels at the pet store so it can be anywhere from 11 to 30% or more. So just saying cat food isn't the answer. It is feeding something that is actually higher in protein than chicken feed. Some canned cat foods don't fit the bill, some dog foods don't and definitely eggs aren't higher than chicken feed.

Good point and one that is easy to overlook when you are accustomed to only purchasing and feeding high quality pet feeds such as cat foods that have high animal protein content - it's easy to forget that not all pet foods are so well made.

 

[TherryChicken]

I'm trying to think of what else we have

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

I'm trying to think of what else we have

Do you have any meat - beef, turkey, pork, chicken, fish - in the freezer (sorry if this has been asked/answered previously, I looked and didn't see if it had)? I especially like to feed off things that have been in the freezer a bit too long to be all that appetizing to me but still be perfectly safe for consumption - cook it up (or not) and feed it out.

 

[MeepBeep]

I've seen that so many times. People are told to add cat food for protein. I look at cat food labels at the pet store so it can be anywhere from 11 to 30% or more. So just saying cat food isn't the answer. It is feeding something that is actually higher in protein than chicken feed. Some canned cat foods don't fit the bill, some dog foods don't and definitely eggs aren't higher than chicken feed.

That is mostly incorrect...

I have never personally seen a dry cat food bellow the mid 20% protein levels, but yes canned cat food 'appears' to have less protein but it's only because of the added water, a big often overlooked fact in this discussion... Generally canned cat food has much higher overall protein levels then dry food...

The % distinction between wet and dry feeds is huge, dry cat food has about 10-12% moisture while canned cat food about 75-78% moisture, two entirely different ends of the spectrum...

Protein on foods is listed as a percentage by weight it's not adjusted for moisture content, when you add water to the feed that percentage of other nutrients like protein plummets, when you remove the water the percentages climb...

Lets assume a canned cat food is 75% water (as most are close to that) and says 11% protein as the OP suggested their can says, to get a comparison to to dry feed protein content you do this math bellow...

(protein percentage / dry percentage) x 100 = dry equivalent percentage

So in this case, that 11% can of cat food (with 75% moisture) is about 44% equivalent dry feed protein... (11 / 25) x 100 = 44% dry protein equivalent...

And this same math applies to eggs as well...

Eggs are about 74% water and 13% protein, so we do the same math, and find eggs are about 50% protein when dry... (13 / 26 ) x 100 = 50% dry protein equivalent...

In the end eggs and likely all cat food is higher protein content then most all chicken feed...

To the OP your 11% canned cat food (about 44% dry protein equivalent) will provide a significant protein boost over chicken feed...

The FDA even has a webpage about this, and explains it in much further detail if you are interested...

http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/ucm047113.htm

** On this same note the recommended say 16% protein level for chickens in dry feed already factors in the moisture content of that feed for consumer ease...

In actuality a 16% poultry feed (assuming 10% moisture) is probably closer to 17.8% dry protein equivalent, as a comparison... (16 / 90) x 100 = 17.8%

 

[TherryChicken]

Do you have any meat - beef, turkey, pork, chicken, fish - in the freezer (sorry if this has been asked/answered previously, I looked and didn't see if it had)?   I especially like to feed off things that have been in the freezer a bit too long to be all that appetizing to me but still be perfectly safe for consumption - cook it up (or not) and feed it out. 

Yes we do. What all kind? I'm not too sure

 

[TherryChicken]

That is mostly incorrect...

I have never personally seen a dry cat food bellow the mid 20% protein levels, but yes canned cat food 'appears' to have less protein but it's only because of the added water, a big often overlooked fact in this discussion... Generally canned cat food has much higher overall protein levels then dry food...

The % distinction between wet and dry feeds is huge, dry cat food has about 10-12% moisture while canned cat food about 75-78% moisture, two entirely different ends of the spectrum...

Protein on foods is listed as a percentage by weight it's not adjusted for moisture content, when you add water to the feed that percentage of other nutrients like protein plummets, when you remove the water the percentages climb...

Lets assume a canned cat food is 75% water (as most are close to that) and says 11% protein as the OP suggested their can says, to get a comparison to to dry feed protein content you do this math bellow...

(protein percentage / dry percentage) x 100 = dry equivalent percentage

So in this case, that 11% can of cat food (with 75% moisture) is about 44% equivalent dry feed protein... (11 / 25) x 100 = 44% dry protein equivalent...

And this same math applies to eggs as well...

Eggs are about 74% water and 13% protein, so we do the same math, and find eggs are about 50% protein when dry... (13 / 26 ) x 100 = 50% dry protein equivalent...

In the end eggs and likely all cat food is higher protein content then most all chicken feed...

To the OP your 11% canned cat food (about 44% dry protein equivalent) will provide a significant protein boost over chicken feed...

The FDA even has a webpage about this, and explains it in much further detail if you are interested...

http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/ucm047113.htm

** On this same note the recommended say 16% protein level for chickens in dry feed already factors in the moisture content of that feed for consumer ease...

In actuality a 16% poultry feed (assuming 10% moisture) is probably closer to 17.8% dry protein equivalent, as a comparison... (16 / 90) x 100 = 17.8%

Interesting.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Do you have any meat - beef, turkey, pork, chicken, fish - in the freezer (sorry if this has been asked/answered previously, I looked and didn't see if it had)? I especially like to feed off things that have been in the freezer a bit too long to be all that appetizing to me but still be perfectly safe for consumption - cook it up (or not) and feed it out.

I do the same, go through the freezer occasionally and anything over a year old gets grilled up and fed to the chickens.

Meat and fish is the only thing someone will have around the house that has the amino acid balance to be a boost to their chicken feed.

That is mostly incorrect...

I have never personally seen a dry cat food bellow the mid 20% protein levels, but yes canned cat food 'appears' to have less protein but it's only because of the added water, a big often overlooked fact in this discussion... Generally canned cat food has much higher overall protein levels then dry food...

The % distinction between wet and dry feeds is huge, dry cat food has about 10-12% moisture while canned cat food about 75-78% moisture, two entirely different ends of the spectrum...

Protein on foods is listed as a percentage by weight it's not adjusted for moisture content, when you add water to the feed that percentage of other nutrients like protein plummets, when you remove the water the percentages climb...

Lets assume a canned cat food is 75% water (as most are close to that) and says 11% protein as the OP suggested their can says, to get a comparison to to dry feed protein content you do this math bellow...

(protein percentage / dry percentage) x 100 = dry equivalent percentage

So in this case, that 11% can of cat food (with 75% moisture) is about 44% equivalent dry feed protein... (11 / 25) x 100 = 44% dry protein equivalent...

And this same math applies to eggs as well...

Eggs are about 74% water and 13% protein, so we do the same math, and find eggs are about 50% protein when dry... (13 / 26 ) x 100 = 50% dry protein equivalent...

In the end eggs and likely all cat food is higher protein content then most all chicken feed...

To the OP your 11% canned cat food (about 44% dry protein equivalent) will provide a significant protein boost over chicken feed...

The FDA even has a webpage about this, and explains it in much further detail if you are interested...

http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/ucm047113.htm

** On this same note the recommended say 16% protein level for chickens in dry feed already factors in the moisture content of that feed for consumer ease...

In actuality a 16% poultry feed (assuming 10% moisture) is probably closer to 17.8% dry protein equivalent, as a comparison... (16 / 90) x 100 = 17.8%

Your math is correct but does the reality really follow? People are told to feed eggs as a protein boost. They don't feed egg powder. They scramble up eggs and feed them.

 

[shortgrass]

I do the same, go through the freezer occasionally and anything over a year old gets grilled up and fed to the chickens.

Meat and fish is the only thing someone will have around the house that has the amino acid balance to be a boost to their chicken feed.


Your math is correct but does the reality really follow? People are told to feed eggs as a protein boost. They don't feed egg powder. They scramble up eggs and feed them.

Dry matter conversion is correct as far as MeepBeep us saying, Chicken canoe, but I can see your point...

Food for thought though..do you COOK the eggs before giving them, it do you feed them raw? I cook mine

Are you following ? Cooking decreases the water content...

So hey, @MeepBeep, lol what is the dry matter conversion in s cooked egg? Would you assume it still has like, 25% moisture?

Even at that, it would still have..oh this is going to be wrong because its 4 am and I'm too groggy... 40% protein?

I totally gave up and guessed, its too early lol

 

[MeepBeep]

Your math is correct but does the reality really follow? People are told to feed eggs as a protein boost. They don't feed egg powder. They scramble up eggs and feed them.

Yes, it follows as the 16% (or other) protein recommendation you hear about for chickens in based on dry feed, not wet feed and is tied to their daily calorie requirements in said feed... A better measurement would be the level of protein to calories in the feed as chickens eat to meet their daily calorie needs, not their protein needs, but that would confuse consumers...

No you are not feeding powdered eggs, but you are not feeding your chickens dry food only either, in either instance the chicken is going to have to ingest the proper ratio of water to dry mass food so it can digest the food properly....

If you feed a chicken dry feed, they are going to consume a lot more water so they can digest vs feeding them a food that is already hydrated...

Consider people that feed fermented feed, when you add the water to ferment the feed the protein level (based on weight) of that feed overall plummets, but it's still the same exact feed the only difference is the chicken is now getting the dry matter and water in one step vs having to eat the dry matter then hydrate it in a second step by drinking water...

So hey, @MeepBeep, lol what is the dry matter conversion in s cooked egg? Would you assume it still has like, 25% moisture?

Cooked egg moisture content is arbitrary, the only way to do the factoring is to weigh the egg before and after cooking to determine the water loss, either way the amount of protein stays the same at about 6 grams per egg...

To give you an idea, in a 16% protein dry feed, to get the same 6 grams of protein you would need about 37.5 grams of dry feed, or about 1/4 cup of feed and the chicken will drink about 1/3-1/2 cup of water to re-hydrate that feed for metabolism, aka about 110-150 grams of feed/water combined vs the 40-50 grams of egg to get the same level of protein from the cooked egg...

 

[TherryChicken]

I gave them a little chicken we had for lunch