Pullets not eating Pellets

[tjcib]

My girls are about 20 weeks old. We free range them anywhere from 2 to 5 hours a day on 1/3rd acre. But for the last couple of days we have not been able to let them out of their run for various reasons. But they are not eating the pellets that are available inside the run.

We do not give them a lot of treats. Mostly the tops of strawberries. Only one of our six girls has started laying. We got three eggs from her last week and then she has not layed for the last 6 days. I'm not so much worried about the stopping of egg laying, but I am worried about them not eating since they must stay in their run for the next few days due to fence repairs/construction.

We have only recently switched to the pellet food. Should I go back to offering them crumbles? Or should I just power through it and make them suck it up?

 

[Elemes]

Hello, I can't speak to pellets: I've always fed natural feed to my girls to supplement their free ranging. It can be due to heat; I say this because they will slow production and feed consumption in high temp weather. Do they have enough water in multiple areas of the run? Shade?
If weather isn't a factor and the pellets are new, I would think they do not agree with the new feed choice.

 

[getaclue]

Power through, but keep a check to make sure they're not losing too much weight. Usually they take some time to transition, but they eventually do. Stop feeding treats until they transition.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Pellets aren't enjoyed by most birds, if you really want them to be on pellets they will eventually eat them if that's their only option. Once they get used to eating them you can resume treats.

 

[Cluckcluck1215]

As RosmaryTyme said, A lot of birds hate pellets.Mine do, you might be better off using Crumbles.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

I just bought a bag of pellets because the crumbles turn to powder, I hope they eat it!
I would wet some up in a bowl if I was afraid they were not eating, they think its special when its wet Silly chickens
Good luck

Gary

 

[GC-Raptor]

I transitioned them to pellets from crumbles by mixing 50/50 in feeder for 2 weeks and by tossing a small amount of pellets on dry ground. I mixed it with scratch grains 50/50 also, to finish off leftover crumbles after transition to pellets was complete. Only toss pellets on dry ground, cause they will get moldy on wet ground if not eaten.
Chickens don't like change, including feed. GC

 

[tjcib]

Thanks for all the replies.

It is HOT right now (hit 100 today) but they do have lots of shade and water. They are probably a little stressed from that.

They did pick up their consumption in the past day when we removed all treats/scraps/etc. we will keep them off goodies until the prove whether or not they will subsist on pellets.

They do make a mess of the pellets...but they did of the crumbles too (and scraps, and grit, and everything they see).

 

[Kiki]

I have always fed crumbles, but I ferment it too.
Chickens don't like change...either go back to the crumbles or wait it our.
You could put some pellets in a bad and take a hammer to it.

 

[SueT]

Wet their daily amount of pellets, to the consistency of mashed potatoes....
But first, make sure your feed is not moldy or funky smelling. Check the date if manufacture. It should be less than 6 months old max.
I agree w others that pellets are not as well liked as crumbles.